Everything You Need To Know To Find The Best tire fabric

Tires: They make the vehicle — and the automotive technician world — go round. Although seemingly simple circles of rubber, tires play a vital role in a car’s speed, fuel efficiency and overall performance.

With competitive price and timely delivery, sft sincerely hope to be your supplier and partner.

To help you understand better, we worked with Continental Tire — the official tire of Universal Technical Institute (UTI) — to put together a technician’s guide on tires. Read below!

What Are Tires Made Of?

You might be thinking, “Aren’t tires just made of rubber?” And to a point, you’d be correct, but there are many intricate parts that make up a tire. In fact, there are about 25 components, with 12 of them being different rubber compounds.

Starting from the inside and ending with the tread of the tire, here are its main components:

Bead

The bead core is a steel wire embedded in rubber, and it secures the tire firmly to the wheel. These layers of bead fillers and reinforcements enhance directional stability and steering comfort.

Sidewall

Made of natural rubbers extracted from trees grown in plantations, the sidewall is added to protect the casing from climatic conditions and other external damage.

Inner Liner

Next are the inner liners, which are usually made of a synthetic rubber called butyl. Liners seal the inner chamber and control air pressure, basically acting as the “tube” of the tire.

Belts and Plies

Now that you have the reinforcement, sidewalls and steering aids, you’re going to need help with the shaping of the tire and maintaining speed. That’s where the belts and plies come in. Rubberized textile cord ply and Steel Cord™ for belt plies maintain the shape while reducing rolling resistance. The jointless cap plies create a twine-like layer just before the tread that enables high speeds.

Tread

The tread is the top part of the tire connecting to the sidewall. It consists of natural and synthetic rubber and has three parts: cap, base and shoulder. The cap provides grip on road surfaces and directional stability, the base reduces rolling resistance and protects the internal structure from damage, and the shoulder gives a smooth transition from tread to sidewall.

Understanding Tire Sizing

When in need of a tire change, it’s important to know what size fits your vehicle. Locating the tire size is simple; it’s on the tire itself right on the sidewall. You’ll find a lot of words on the side of the tire, but the size usually looks something like: P245/70R17

Let’s break it down.

• The P stands for P-metric, which simply means it meets standards. The P may or may not be present on your tire sizing.
• 245 is the tire width, which in this case is 245 millimeters wide.
• After the slash, you see the number 70. This is essentially the height, but more technically, it’s the aspect ratio of the width. So, in the example above, the tire’s height is 70% of its width.
• The R stands for radial, meaning the layers are radially configured on the tire.
• The last number, 17, is the wheel diameter.

What Is Tire Alignment?

Alignment is important for suspension tuning and operating your vehicle’s tires.

Your vehicle’s alignment is a complex system of suspension angles and various suspension components that are always being adjusted. When your tires are properly aligned, you can expect better tire performance and fuel efficiency, as well as a more comfortable ride.

Here’s why: As you drive your vehicle, it’s common to hit potholes or curbs, and that can cause misalignment. When misaligned, the tires hit the road unevenly, making the car work harder to travel at high speeds. When the car has to work harder, it becomes less fuel efficient, and you may experience a bumpier ride.

It's best to refer to your owner’s manual, but you should have your tires aligned once to twice a year to help keep your suspension and tires running smoothly.

The Importance of Tire Rotation

Whether you have a front-wheel, rear-wheel, four-wheel or all-wheel drive vehicle, tire rotation is important to equalize wear.

Generally, the two front tires wear down more quickly than the rear tires. Whenever you turn, parallel park or U-turn, more pressure is placed on the outer edge of the front tires.

By regularly rotating your vehicle’s tires, you ensure a more even wear. Doing so doesn’t just extend the time between buying new tires, it keeps your car safe, as unevenly worn tires decrease steering control.

You should rotate your tires every 6,000 to 8,000 miles on average. To determine rotation pattern and interval, it’s best to follow the vehicle manufacturer’s recommendation, which you can find in the owner’s manual.

Thinking of Pursuing a Career in the Automotive Industry?

If you have an interest in tires and all things automotive, a career as an technician could be the perfect fit for you.1 At UTI, you could be prepared to enter an exciting industry as an automotive technician in less than a year.7

The company is the world’s best tire fabric supplier. We are your one-stop shop for all needs. Our staff are highly-specialized and will help you find the product you need.

You’ll also get access to UTI’s many industry relationships — including Continental Tire, which provides tires and tire racks at our campuses.

The performance and handling of your vehicle depend on the tires. After all, tires are the only contact between the car and the road.

So, when it's time to buy a set of new tires for your vehicle, there are multiple factors you'll want to take into consideration, including your driving style, budget, and the region where you live.

Tire size is provided as width, diameter, and height-to-width aspect ratio. The width is a three-digit number measuring the number of millimeters from one sidewall to the other (1). The ratio means the percentage between the width of the tire and height of the sidewall (2).

Tires can also vary in construction, indicated by the letter R-radial (3). Until the s, cross-ply tires were the most common; they have a casing made from rubberized cord plies with edges wrapped around the bead wire. In modern car engineering, the radial tire has completely replaced the cross-ply tire. The cords in a radial tire casing run perpendicular to the direction of travel. Viewed from the side, the cords run radially – giving the tire its name.

The diameter, specified in inches, must match the wheel size of your vehicle (4).
The load index represents how much weight a tire can carry. Passenger tires have load indices spanning from 75 to 105. Look up the index to determine the weight, then multiply it by the number of tires to get the total load supported.

The speed rating, denoted as a letter on the sidewall (5), is the maximum speed the tire is capable of. Be aware that tires with a higher maximum speed usually tend to have faster tread wear. The speed rating must be at least as high as the vehicle's maximum.

The car manufacturer also provides you with information on the ideal tire pressure for optimal operation of the car. Be very careful if operating a tire near its maximum rated pressure; it changes vehicle handling and increases tire wear.

Be sure to check the sidewall for other information like load capacity (6), safety codes and association icons. They tell you whether it's approved for your country and meets common quality standards.

Taken together, the key requirements for a tire narrow down your selection. But passenger tires still have many other options. Choosing the right tire for you depends on your driving style and budget.

Are you looking for a quiet, comfortable ride? Tires in this category have a tire tread designed to minimize noise. But the tread rubber may be softer, which increases the rate of wear. Therefore, quiet tires are best suited for paved roads.

Or perhaps you're looking for tires that offer the best fuel efficiency? These tires have a tread with lower rolling resistance which provides substantially improved fuel mileage.

If you drive on unpaved roads or enjoy some off-roading, tire versatility is essential. An all-terrain tire may be enough. Or you may consider the added sidewall protection of an off-road tire. Many specialty truck tires, such as mud tires, offer added traction for various terrains.

Finally, be aware that different tire types handle differently. Give yourself time to adjust when driving, accelerating, and braking with new tires.

Driving conditions vary throughout the year. So, when it’s time to buy new tires, the first thing you should do is consider the climate where you live. Depending on your region’s climate, it may be better to alternate between a set of summer and winter tires, or it could be sufficient to stick with all-season tires.

Winter tires have a tread pattern designed to be effective on snow and slush and are able to withstand freezing temperatures. Most importantly, they offer improved handling and shorter braking distances on snow and ice.

Summer tires offer excellent road grip, handling, and shorter braking distances on dry roads and are also able to handle slippery roads following heavy rain.

Continental all-season tires work in a variety of conditions. For drivers, living in regions with mild winter conditions (temperatures rarely drop below freezing), all-season tires can be an alternative. Continental all-season tires offer safety and premium performance. In addition, drivers can save cost, time and reduce efforts required for seasonal tire changes.

If you are unsure about the right tire choice, please contact your local dealer for personal advice.

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