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Tyre Care & Maintenance

  • 1. Tyres Care & Maintenance

    Maintenance of correct inflation pressure

    The maintenance of inflation pressure is especially important from the view point of not only maximizing the characteristics of the tyre but also preventing tyre failure. Without proper inflation a tyre is no more than a chunk of rubber.

    Keep the Air pressure of your tyres cheeked in at least once in a month in cold condition. Even in ideal condition tyre will lose 2-3 psi in a month, due to difference in atmospheric and the tyre pressure. Low or high tyre pressure may cause irregular tyre wear or permanent failure of the tyres

    1. Tyre Rotation

    ll tyres in your vehicle getting worn out at different rate. To get even tread wear in all the tyres, it is advisable to rotate the tyre at every 8,000 to 10,000 Km. It will also help you to achieve smooth/balanced ride and handling.

    Rotate the tyres in line with the vehicle manufacture’s recommendation, If it is not available, rotate the tyres as follows (Shown below is 4 wheel rotation).


    2. Wheel Balance

    An Out of balance tyre and wheel assembly may cause vibrations, which are mainly two kinds. One is called steering shimmy or flutter and the other is called vehicle vibration or shake. Out of balance tyres are supposed to have a heavy spot which generates the force to shake the axle up and down. The shake is transferred to the vehicle body and then finally to the steering wheel and you feel as the vehicle vibration. Even the tyres are statically balanced, there is still a chance of causing steering shimmy. If there is dynamic imbalance, tyres are shaken side to side. Therefore dynamic balancing is necessary to eliminate the side to side force. Steering shimmy appears at a certain speed usually between 80Km/h and 110Km/h. Even 30g of imbalance is enough to cause noticeable steering shimmy.

    Hence it is recommended to get tyre and wheel assembly balanced in below condition.

    • Mounting/Demounting of tyre
    • Any vibrations /shimmy felt.
    • Every 5,000 kms.

    3. Wheel Alignment

    Wheel alignment widely known as camber, caster and toe in or toe out, is related to the vehicle condition and if it is not properly maintained, tyres are likely to face irregular wear. If a tyre is vertical to the ground and the tyre in the left and right are parallel, abnormal force under contact patch is not generated and the tyres evenly wear down.

    As mentioned above it is very important to make sure that the tyres are properly aligned, which means that they are vertical to the ground and parallel. The completion of proper alignment is to get the best performance out of a tyre, i.e. maximum tyre life by eliminating irregular wear and to ensure straight track.

    It is recommended to get wheel alignment checked and corrected at

    • Every 5,000 Km
    • Irregular tyre wear observed.
    • Vehicle pulling/drifting towards one side of a road

    4. Replacement of Tyre

    Running on worn out tyre may result in loss of Grip and Steering Control especially on Wet Roads, which may leads to severe damage to your car and occupants inside.

    Checking usable Tread Depth is easy process and does not required any specific tool or expertise. Every passenger car tyre has Tread wear Indicators on their tread face, Tread wear indicators are molded on to the tread, so it can be evaluated visually. Wear indicators are generally 1.6mm high ridges at the bottom of grooves. They are provided at 6 portion around a tyre.

    Hence, whenever Tyre worn out up to Tread Wear Indicators, it is the right time to replace your tyres.

  • 2. Tyre Safety

    Mounting and demounting of tyre

    The following is the mounting and demounting procedure that FTI recommends. A warning and recommendations on how to mount the tyre properly are printed on the tyre label


    1. Warning

    SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH MAY RESULT FROM EXPLOSION OF TIRE/RIM ASSEMBLY, IF PROPER MOUNTING INSTRUCTIONS ARE NOT FOLLOWED.


    2. Proper mounting procedure

    • Only specially trained persons should mount tires.
    • ALWAYS match rim diameter with tire diameter.
    • NEVER mount tire on a cracked, bent, rusted or otherwise damaged rim or a rim which has been repaired.
    • NEVER put a flammable substance into a tire.
    • ALWAYS clean and lubricate rim and tire beads.
    • ALWAYS use an extension air hose with gauge and clip-on air chuck.
    • ALWAYS lock wheel on tire mounting machine or place in safety cage when inflating.
    • ALWAYS stand clear, and NEVER lean or reach over the tire/rim assembly when inflating.
    • NEVER inflate over 40 psi (275 kPa) to seat beads.
    • ALWAYS adjust tire pressure to vehicle manufacturer’s recommendations after beads are fully seated.


    3. Proper demounting procedure

    When a tyre and wheel assembly is demounted, basically the same care as above should be followed. It is important to completely deflate the tyre before starting any operation.

  • 3. Tyre Repair

    Tyre manufacturers generally do not repair tyres directly, however FTI recommends repair guideline as follows;

    A tyre must always be checked thoroughly before it is repaired. If the tyre displays any of the following, it should not be repaired;

    • Illegal tread depth (below 1.6mm) or exposed cords tyre tread throughout the entire circumference)
    • Run flat damage — breakdown of the tyre’s structural integrity
    • Secondary damage — caused by the injuring object
    • Ageing/deterioration of tyre rubber due to oil or chemicals
    • Damage on tread shoulder, sidewall or bead
    • Out of repair limit
    • Faulty/poor previous repairs
    • Tread separation

    FTI strongly recommends to use a repair kit consisting of a patch and plug type. Plug only or patch only type is not recommended.