How far along has tire pressure monitoring come recently? Well it is making significant strides in the transportation industries for a variety of reasons; reducing fuel costs, safety and insurance savings.
The DOT has looked into these issues for passenger cars and the Tire Industry has had mixed emotions for a reason, often stating that the best thing to do is to educate consumers about tire pressure. A recent survey during Car Care Aware Week showed that 54% of all cars had one or more tires, which were low on air, thus causing excessive wear, stability issues and poor fuel efficiencies. This was an interesting case in fact.
During this same study it was found that only 14% of the cars had one or more tires that needed tread and were worn out. It would behoove those in the car care industry to check tires as a courtesy for customers. Jiffy Lube and other companies do this already as part of a multi-point check list.
Recently we discussed the issues with Large Passenger van rollovers and the NTSB did a huge study showing these vans to be unsafe, yet many of the problems stemmed from low air pressures and poor loading in rear or on top.
Once again issues of tires were the biggest. Under rated tires for the load or under inflated tires during the trip which contained the accident were a factor in the event itself. Some shop owners have asked me why should I get involved with tire pressures because I might be sued if I put air in and someone has an accident and they determine that on a dirt road the car had too much air in the tires for that condition, when I put the additional air in because the dad said he was taking his family on a road trip to Colorado or Kansas for four days?
I understand this comment and fear from lawsuits and admit that there are too many attorneys in the world and most should be eliminated forth with. But as a Car Care Professional you can prevent accidents and help people.