Different things can cause hot tires. When you live in a warm area of the globe or experience warm summers, excess heat to tires could become a problem. Excess heat will cause the rubber of the tire to heat up which in turn will cause the air inside the tire to heat up. Hot air expands and will cause tire pressure to build up. Pressure build up on a worn tire may be disastrous, even healthy tires could be in danger of a blowout.
Factors affecting tire temperature:
- Ambient temperature
- Friction on the road
- Direct sunlight
- Speeding
- Tire pressure
Ambient temperature
Hot tires can be caused by air temperature outside the tire and cause the tire to heat up and increase tire pressure. For instance on a hot summer day your tire pressure will be more than on a cool day. When your tires are over-inflated and you go driving on the warm tarmac exposed to the sun all day, it could cause your tire to burst.
So what can I do to prevent tire blowouts?
Be ready for the warm summer months where your tires will be put under added heat stress. Make sure you replace your winter tires with summer tires that can withstand heat much better. Inspect your tires, make sure you have enough tread on them and that there are no cracks or bumps on the tire’s sidewalls.
Friction on the road resulting in hot tires
How does friction work?
Friction is when two objects come in contact with each other. Friction works in the opposite direction of where the object is moving, slowing it down. Kinetic energy of the object is converted into heat energy.
When you are driving there is friction between the rubber surface of the tire and the road, heating up the tire surface. When rubber gets heated it actually expands, causing more stress on the tire.
So what can I do?
Make sure your tires are in a healthy condition, checking for any weak spots on the tire. Using the correct tires also makes a difference. Use summer tires during hot summer months, these tires use a rubber compound that is harder than winter tires and deals with extreme heat much better. Harder rubber also means less friction on the road and better fuel economy.
Direct sunlight
In the heat of the summer, direct sunlight on the tire will cause it to heat up. The sun will also heat up the tarmac to extreme temperatures and heat will be transferred quickly to the tire. The rubber surface of the tire will contract and the air inside the tire will heat up while pressure builds up. This could cause a blowout when the pressure inside the tire is more than the tire can handle.
So what can I do?
When you park your car, don’t leave it in the sun all day. This will result in driving with hot tires and will cause you to drive with over-inflated tires. The extreme temperatures will also reduce a tire’s lifespan, causing cracks and weakening the tire before its time.
Especially with tire’s older than 5 years. The heat of the sun can melt the tarmac. When taking long trips make sure you make enough stoppages so your tires can cool down before driving again. Feel to see if your tires are still hot to touch.
Speeding
The faster you drive the more kinetic energy will be created and the more friction there will be on the rubbery surface of the tire.
This excess kinetic energy will be converted into heat energy, causing you to drive with hot tires and pushing the tires durability to the maximum. With already worn tires, this could be very dangerous. Fast acceleration and hard braking also heat up tires faster and reducing the life of your tires.
So what can I do?
This goes without saying, aggressive driving will heat up your tires faster and will reduce its lifespan. When you need to take a long trip in the heat of the summer, Check your tire pressure when tires are cold in the morning before you go on the road, make sure they are at the manufacturer’s recommended pressure.
Make sure that you stop often enough so that your tires can cool down before driving again. Check tires regularly during the trip.
Tire pressure
Tires naturally lose air over time or they can get punctured. Driving with an under-inflated tire will cause the car’s weight to push down hard on the tire and tire sidewalls, deforming it more and causing stress to the tires.
An under-inflated tire will have more surface area and more contact with the road. This will cause even more friction and heat buildup in the rubber which gets transferred to the air inside the tire where build-up occurs resulting in driving with hot tires.
So what can I do?
Best to check tires at cooler ambient temperatures before you go on the road. Early morning would be best during warm summer months. Inflate the tires according to the manufacturer’s recommended pressure.
The problem when checking the tire when it is already hot is that the tire will already be over-inflated as the air inside the tire will be hot. This will result in under-inflating the tire, when the tire temperature returns to normal it will be under-inflated.
Conclusion
Your tires have a lot of added stress during warm summer months where ambient temperature is high especially around midday. The direct sunlight to the road may be devastating to your tires, where it can heat up the air inside your tire resulting in driving with hot tires. It can increase the pressure in the tire so much as to cause a blowout.
It is important to check the health of your tires regularly as well as your tire pressure. When over-inflated tires are heated, the air inside expands and causes even more pressure. Where under-inflated tires have more contact with the road causing more friction heating it up.
Some newer cars have instruments that will warn you about your tire pressure. It’s called a Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS). Don’t completely rely on these warning systems, these TPMS tools only warn you when tires are at a low tire pressure. They Do Not warn you when the tire pressure is too high.
Keeping at the speed limit; except for getting less speeding tickets, it will also cause less friction and stress to your tires keeping it cooler. Racing on the motorway with warm over-inflated worn tires without stopping is as unsafe as you can get!
