Posted on 3/21/2016
Taking care of our tires is part of vehicle care for Scottsbluff drivers. We know they have to be replaced when they wear out, but tires also require some preventive maintenance. This maintenance will improve and extend the life of the tires, so it's well worth the effort and expense for Scottsbluff drivers to get it done. Tire maintenance includes keeping tires properly inflated, rotating tires and balancing wheels.The recommended tire pressure for a vehicle's tires is printed on a sticker on the inside of the driver's side doorjamb. A lot of engineering goes into calculating the correct pressure, so it's an important number for Scottsbluff vehicle owners to know. Not following this recommendation can throw off the suspension system and can lead to tire damage. Underinflated tires wear out more quickly than properly inflated tires. Vehicles also get better traction and handling on properly inflated tires. Check your tire pressure at least once a week and add air if necessar ... read more
Posted on 11/12/2015
Today's tires and wheels offer a lot of options for every Scottsbluff driver's style, habits and driving conditions.Tires are designed for high-performance in winter or summer and even come in a long-wearing variety for all NE seasons.Scottsbluff off-roaders should be excited about the options available to them as well. The tread on off-road tires is designed to handle the wear from bumps and rocks. The tires' high profile protects rims from damage.But what if you own an SUV but aren't interested in off-roading around NE? You can change out those high-profile beasts for a lower, wider look if it suits your style.Twin City Auto tire professionals can offer great auto advice on how to choose tires that match your needs and style.If you just need to purchase new tires, a tire professional at Twin City Auto can also help you select the tires that are best for your driving needs and habits. The right tires will protect you and your vehicle on the road.So personalize your vehicle ... read more
Posted on 10/22/2015
Scottsbluff drivers want their tires to last as long as possible. Two ways to extend tire life are wheel balancing and tire rotation.When wheels are out of balance, they wobble and vibrate. That makes the tires wear in a cupping pattern. If a front wheel is out of balance you'll feel it in the steering wheel. If it's a rear wheel you'll feel it through your seat. To fix this, your technician at Twin City Auto puts weights on your wheels to balance them out.That brings us to tire rotation. The front tires on a vehicle wear out faster than the rear tires. As they push through turns, the shoulders of the front tires wear down. So rotating front and rear tires allows them to all wear at about the same rate over the life of the tire.Proper tire inflation will also help Scottsbluff folks' tires last longer. Underinflated tires wear more on the shoulder and may even overheat. This could cause tire damage or a blow out. Overinflated tires wear too fast in the middle.Four-wheel ... read more
Posted on 10/8/2015
It seems like everywhere you go in the Scottsbluff area you see custom wheels. Big trucks, little cars, mini-vans - it doesn't matter - are expressing themselves with custom wheels. Some NE auto owners want smaller tires and wheels - some want larger - and some want them enormous. So where do you start if you want new wheels? At Twin City Auto, we suggest you start with your budget. We know, that sounds so practical. But if the look you're after goes beyond just new tires and wheels and enters into the world of suspension modifications, you need to be prepared for the additional cost.Let's start with something easy - you want to give your ride a unique look and the stock wheel size is just right for you. One of the concerns you will have is that the new wheels have the same offset as your vehicle factory wheels.Your tire and wheel professional at Twin City Auto in Scottsbluff can help you find the right size wheel or install adapters to make your new wheels fit. All yo ... read more
Posted on 10/1/2015
Some of us Scottsbluff drivers just love tires. All those little rubber hairs on new tires and the smell is wonderful. We live in a great time for tires. No matter how you drive around NE, where you want to go or the look you're after; there is a tire for you.The same is true about wheels. The hardest part is choosing from the thousands of wheels available at NE tire shops.The team at Twin City Auto can help you get some things in mind before you make a purchase. Let's start with function and think about how you drive.For example, maybe you have a large SUV but you don't drive off-road around NE, so an off-road tread isn't important. Also, because you are not out bouncing over rocks in the NE backcountry, you don't need a high profile tire to protect your rims. So that means you can probably go with the low-wide look.If you have a winter season with rain and snow or if you find you need better ice and snow performance, they make great, high-performance snow tires that won't make i ... read more
Posted on 6/11/2015
A lot of people get custom wheels in Scottsbluff. When you do this yourself (over the internet . . .) you could run into trouble if you're not careful. Sometimes, once they're mounted, they just don't fit right. The tires rub in turns or on bumps. You don't want that. Consulting your Twin City Auto tire professional can ensure you get the right fit. First he'll ask you a series of questions about your Scottsbluff driving needs and what you want in your new wheels. Now, not every wheel can go on every car. Care must be taken so that tires and wheels are not too large or that the wheel is centered too far towards the outside or the inside so the tires rub.If you don't want to make any modifications to your vehicle, you would need to focus on the wheels that would fit. With trucks, some people in Scottsbluff like much bigger tires so they need a suspension lift.Also, most Scottsbluff drivers don't realize that you need to keep the rolling diamete ... read more
Posted on 4/30/2015
Most Scottsbluff residents have experienced a flat tire. You know it's inconvenient and a pain. Our tires are important. Keeping them in good working order isn't just a big safety issue for Scottsbluff drivers – it also has a financial impact. With high NE gas prices, we've all heard about the importance of keeping proper tire pressure to save on gas. In addition, proper inflation promotes even tread wear so your tires last longer. There's another danger with under-inflated tires for Scottsbluff residents. Low tire pressure puts added stress on the structure of the tire itself, causing it to break down prematurely. Also, under-inflated tires generate more heat which also reduces tire life. So get those slow leaks fixed quickly – don't just keep adding air every few days. You want to avoid tire damage. Scottsbluff residents should only hire qualified tire professionals to perform repairs - we have a whole team of them at Twin Ci ... read more
Posted on 9/11/2014
Driving on bald tires is like playing roulette. Though you may be fine today, eventually your luck is going to run out.The Feds don't have any laws for tread depth, but 42 of the states, and all of Canada, do have regulations. They consider 2/32 of an inch to be the minimum legal tread depth. Two other states, including California, consider 1/32 to be the minimum and six states have no standards at all. Call us at Twin City Auto; (just call 308.635.7404) to find out what your requirements are in the Scottsbluff, NE, area.Since 1968, U.S. law has required that a raised bar be molded across all tires. When tires are worn enough that this bar becomes visible, there's just 2/32 inch/1.6 mm of tread left. But does that older standard give Scottsbluff vehicles enough safety?Consider this: Consumer Reports recommends tire replacement when tread reaches 4/32 inch/3.2 mm. And the recommendation is backed by some very compelling studies. Now before we go into the studies ... read more
Posted on 8/13/2014
So you love your job, and your family life is great. Congratulations! You have achieved balance. But can you say the same for your wheels? Scottsbluff drivers can tell if their tires are out of balance by vibrations at higher speeds on NE roads. If one of the front tires is out, you feel the vibration in the steering wheel. If it's a back tire, you'll feel the vibration in your seat.Tires and wheels are pretty heavy. When a tire is mounted on a wheel at Twin City Auto, it is usually not perfectly balanced. So the technician will spin the tire on a machine to determine where it's too heavy. He will then place weights on the wheels in strategic locations to balance it out. When a tire is out of balance, it actually bounces down the road instead of rolling smoothly. Since the average size tire rotates at about 850 revolutions per minute at 60 mph/97 kph, it is actually slamming into the pavement 14 times a second. That's where you get your vibration.Most people in Scottsbluff are surpris ... read more
Posted on 6/6/2014
Hey Scottsbluff area drivers, are your tires worn out? What is the standard for our NE streets? How can you tell on your vehicle?While there may be legal requirements for the Scottsbluff area, there are safety concerns that go beyond meeting minimum replacement mandates.Two-thirty-seconds of an inch is the depth of the tire tread wear indicator bars that US law has required to be molded across all tires since August 1, 1968. When tires are worn so that this bar is visible, there's just 2/32 of an inch – 1.6 millimeters – of tread left. It's that level of wear that's been called into question recently.We're referring to the tread depth on a tire, it can't move surface water out of the way and you start to hydroplane.In a safety study, a section of a test track was flooded with a thin layer of water. If you laid a dime on the track, the water would be deep enough to surround the coin, but not enough to cover it.A car and a full-sized pick-up accelerated  ... read more