Proper tire care and safety is simple and easy. The Rubber Manufacturers Association (RMA) recommends getting in the habit of taking five minutes every month to check your tires, including the spare. Check for:

• Pressure
• Alignment
• Rotation
• Tread

The following tips are from the Better Business Bureau.

Traveling With Your Car
Preparing your car for travel is very important. Make sure your car is ready for the trip by checking all vital fluids such as the oil and coolant, and by visually inspecting your car for anything that looks out of place. It is always a good idea to double-check the coolant hoses and all belts on your car. Failures of these items are among the most common reasons that cars break down; but fortunately, they are inexpensive to replace.

Also, check your car's battery for signs of corrosion or cracks. If the battery is the "self-diagnosing" type with an indicator, make sure it is fully charged. An older, weak battery may fail without much warning. If your battery has cracks, the fluid could leak from one or more cells, rendering it too weak to start your car. If you are taking an extended trip, or if your car has not been serviced recently, you should have it checked by a reputable mechanic before leaving. A good mechanic can usually spot the problems in advance, and advise you on how long you can delay a repair and what the consequences of not immediately repairing your car may be.

Learn more about National Car Care Month HERE.

Where Do I Mount Two Tires?

Most vehicles are equipped with the same size tire at every wheel position. Ideally all of these tires should also be of the same type and design, have the same tread depth and be inflated to the pressures specified by the vehicle placard or owner's manual. This combination best retains the handling balance engineered into the vehicle by its manufacturer.

However, due to the front tires responsibility for transmitting acceleration, steering, and most of the braking forces on front-wheel-drive vehicles. It's normal for front tires to wear faster than rear tires if the tires aren't rotated on a regular basis. It's also common for pairs of tires to wear out rather than sets. And if the tires aren't rotated at all, it's likely that the rear tires will still have about 1/2 of their original tread depth when the front tires are completely worn out.

Intuition suggests that since the front tires wore out first and because there is still about half-tread remaining on the rear tires, the new tires should be installed on the front axle. This will provide more traction and by the time the front tires have worn out for the second time, the rear tires will be worn out too. However, in this case, intuition isn't right..and following it can be downright dangerous.

When tires are replaced in pairs in situations like these, the new tires should always be installed on the rear axle and the worn tires moved to the front. The reason is because new tires on the rear axle help the driver more easily maintain control on wet roads because new, deeper treaded tires are more capable of resisting hydroplaning.

Hydroplaning occurs when the tire cannot process enough water through its tread design to maintain effective contact with the road. In moderate to heavy rain, water can pool up in road ruts, depressions, and pockets adjacent to the pavement expansion joints. At higher speeds, the standing water often found in these pools challenge a tires ability to resist hydroplaning.

Exactly when hydroplaning occurs is the result of a combination of elements including water depth, vehicle weight and speed, as well as tire size, air pressure, tread design, and tread depth. A lightweight vehicle with wide, worn, underinflated tires will hydroplane at lower speeds in a heavy downpour than a heavyweight vehicle equipped with new, narrow, properly inflated tires in drizzling rain.

If the rear tires have more tread depth than the front tires, the front tires will begin to hydroplane and lose traction on wet roads before the rears. This will cause the vehicle to begin to understeer (the vehicle wants to continue driving straight ahead). Understeering is relatively easy to control because releasing the gas pedal will slow the vehicle and help the driver maintain control.

However, if the front tires have more tread depth than the rear tires, the rear tires will begin to hydroplane and lose traction on wet roads before the fronts. This will cause the vehicle to begin to oversteer in which the vehicle wants to spin. Oversteering is far more difficult to control, and in addition to the initial distress felt when the rear of the car starts sliding, quickly releasing the gas pedal in an attempt to slow down may actually make it more difficult for the driver to regain control, possibly causing a complete spin-out.

In case there is any doubt, when tires are replaced in pairs the new tires should always be installed on the rear axle and the worn tires moved to the front.