Vehicle Maintenance

Free Tire Pressure Clinic! Tire pressure demonstrations will be held Thursday June 25th (2-4 pm) at Esso Plus Foods in Canmore (location on Google Maps).

Monthly tire pressure checks help ensure proper tire inflation - which increases tire lifespan, decreases fuel consumption, and improves vehicle safety. The reduced fuel use means fewer green house gas emissions and fewer tires going to the landfill.  In short, monthly tire pressure checks are a win/win/win situation - they help save money, lives and the environment. 

Tires loose about 2 psi of air monthly due to the natural porosity of the rubber. Losing 8 psi increases your vehicles fuel use by 4%.  If the average Canadian driver had properly maintained tire pressure, they could save the equivalent of two weeks worth of gas every year.  Each year in Canada, 1.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide are unnecessarily released into the environment because of poor tire maintenance practices. 

What you can do?

• Learn how to maintain the tire pressure for your specific vehicle
• Keep a good quality tire pressure gauge in your vehicle
• Measure your tire pressure monthly to ensure proper tire inflation
• Organize a tire pressure clinic in your community

Factors affecting tire pressure include:

• Dramatic temperature swings
• Extreme temperatures
• Carrying a heavy load

How to Measure Pressure:

Find the recommended pressure for your tires on the vehicle information placard. Common locations for information placard are the driver side front door, fuel filler door, trunk/hatch area, glove box, or sun visor. The tire pressure may be different for the front and rear tires. Measure pressure when the car has been stationary (at least three hours or driven less than 2 km).

Remove valve cap, press tire gauge onto valve, take pressure reading, add air to achieve recommended pressure, replace valve cap, repeat steps on each tire.

Do not drive on seriously under-inflated tires!