Electric Car Vehicles

Posts Tagged ‘Safety’

Serious warning – Car tires may have a hidden defect that could cause drivers to lose control on the road.

A lot of us think that if our car tires look good, are properly inflated and have a good amount of tread, that they are probably safe to go out on the road with.

But few drivers ever think about the age of their tires – as we are about to learn, this can be a tragic mistake.
Tires, especially the spare tire, could be up to a decade old, making them an accident waiting to happen. A ten year old tire can have deteriorated to the point of having rotted inside, when the tire is used at highway speeds the effect can be disastrous.

“In tires, the materials that hold the belts together — the rubber materials — will degrade and lose its elasticity, and those properties will get to the point where the tire can no longer hold together,” said vehicle safety advocate Sean Kane. Also, in warmer climates tires start to break-down even earlier. Six years, or older, is when we start to see a disproportionate rise in tire failures. An American government report on tire aging, analysing insured tire claims from several states, found that 84 percent of claims were for tires over 6 years old.Even never used tires, such as those bought from the showroom floor, in the same age bracket, are just as dangerous, as they may indeed have been sitting there for a decade or more, just waiting to be sold.

Many auto-makers now put warnings in their new-car manuals, warning against using tires more than 6 years old. What is really needed are expiration dates stamped on the product, similar to many other consumer products, from washing machines to yogurt.

The tire industry disagrees, stating that expiration dates will only give consumers a false sense of security, Dan Zielinski from the ‘Rubber Manufacturers Association’ says: “Consumers may view the use-by-date as the minimum service-time they can use that tire, no matter what they do to it – whether they care for it or not, or have worn it to the nub.”

Tire-makers say proper maintenance is the key to safe tires and that there is no reliable data available showing tires becoming dangerous after 6 years.

So, where does this leave the consumer? I have some invaluable information to pass on to you!

On the outer wall, or side-wall of the tire, the bit that faces away from the car, are a series of four raised numbers and letters (actually manufactured with the tire). The last series of four numbers actually shows the “birth-date of the tire”. e.g. if it shows 1501, this means on the 15th week of 2001 is the date of manufacture.

Safety experts advise that if a tire does fail, the driver should not slam on the brakes, this can cause the vehicle to swerve out of control, pulling suddenly toward the affected tire, nor should drivers jerk the wheel back, possibly causing the car to roll.

Drivers should immediately back off the accelerator and gently pull the wheel back to straighten the car applying the brakes carefully once the car has slowed to a manageable speed.

Airbags are one of the most advanced car safety technologies that have revolutionized the car industry in the recent years. These are flexible and inflatable cushions built into the car interiors mainly on the steering wheel or the dashboard designed in a way to rapidly expand in case of a car accident. Earlier these were only fitted on the steering wheel but with further advancements airbags are now also found on the door interior, roof, and under the car seat.

History

The history of airbags dates back to 1950s when John W Hetrick, a former naval engineer, came out with the concept of airbags. Later in 1960s Allen Breed introduced a crash sensing technology by inventing a reliable ball-in-tube crash sensor. This was believed to be the first electromechanical airbag in the automotive industry.

Ford Motors was the first car manufacturer to test the reliability and effectiveness of this new technology in 1971. Later on, General Motors, in 1973, made airbags available to general public. Further to that, many modifications were done by skilled engineers to create the most reliable airbags available in the present. Airbags made a quick and gentle move from the Western countries to India through luxury cars tagged to Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and BMW. Gradually, the technology has also shifted to all the car segments in India.

Types

The basic types of airbags available in Indian car industry are frontal airbags and side impact airbags. There are others as well but those are categorized under the main categories defined below:

Frontal Airbags: These types are either fitted on the steering wheel or on the dashboard. Frontal airbags are deployed in just a span of few milliseconds making it a sure life saver in case of a frontal crash.
Side Airbags: These are fitted on the door trim, side of the car seats, and on the roof to protect injury to the chest, head and neck in case of a rear end collision or a rollover accident.

Working

Airbags works on a crash testing technology that enables the installed sensor to detect an accident. These sensors further send an electric current to a wire that heats up and charges the inflator. Charging of the inflator undergoes a chemical reaction to fill create gas and inflate the flexible cushions positioned on the steering wheel or the dash or rear compartment in case of side-impact airbags. As the gas expands and fully inflates the airbag it starts deflating, thereby cushioning the impact.

Functions

The primary function of airbags is to reduce injuries in case of a car accident. This function follows laws of motion that states that all moving objects have speed and impetus.

With this law, airbags help protect the occupants in case of an accident when the moving car suddenly comes in contact with an outside force. This I because even if the car stops in such a case, the moving objects including the passengers within the car will keep on moving unless and until some powerful force is not applied to restrain the impact. Here, airbags help to restrain the impact. In short, this car safety technology proves to be a perfect life saver.

Whether you are looking for car tires or truck tires, getting the right ones at a good price is absolutely essential when it comes to your vehicle’s safety and performance on the road.  Keeping your car tires up to date is unbelievably important.  Failing to check the tread and air pressure, or not rotating and installing new tires on a regular basis can set you up for a whole host of problems.  These car maintenance tasks keep your vehicle from sliding on the road, can help prevent an unexpected flat, and also maintain good fuel economy.  Therefore, although tires can sometimes seem like a costly afterthought, staying on top of their condition is actually vitally important.

Luckily, the internet now makes it easier than ever to find affordable car tires and, thus, properly maintain your vehicle.  There are plenty of discount tires that you can purchase without needing to sacrifice on quality and safety.  However, in order to find the tire dealers offering these deals or to locate coupons to save on tires, it is often best to search the internet.  One of the biggest deterrents for staying on top of getting new or more weather-appropriate tires is often their excessive cost.  Luckily, instead of being forced to pay the typical, high prices, it is now possible to locate local dealers offering the best promotions and lowest rates by looking online.

While most automotive tires for sale are marked up significantly it is possible to find dealers offering low prices.  Especially when you factor in how often tires need to be replaced in addition to your other vehicle maintenance costs, being able to purchase quality, discount tires is a great option to have.  Fortunately, using the internet to find tire dealers with the lowest prices or to find coupons makes it much more feasible to purchase new car tires when necessary and even to splurge on season-specific car tires.

When choosing which car tires to purchase for your, it is important to make sure that you get the right tread and the proper fit.  For this reason, it is a good idea to consult a car tire sales professional.  While using the internet to help locate local car tire dealers with the best prices is a good idea, it is essential to pay them a visit to them in person for proper fit and installation.  By investing a bit of time locating car tire dealers with the best prices, you will be able to get the most appropriate automotive or car tires at a reasonable price, keeping you safe and secure on the road.