You’re driving down the highway. The scenery outside is beautiful, the radio has your favorite song, and the kids in the backseat are occupied with a new game.
Everything seems perfect.
That’s the moment when your vehicle dings and displays a “Maintenance: Tire” warning. What does that mean?
It can be scary to see your heads-up display light up with notifications. When you see a maintenance warning, the immediate temptation is to pull over to see what is wrong with the vehicle.
If you’ve encountered the “Maintenance: Tire” problem, this guide provides the information you need to make an informed decision about your vehicle.
What Does “Maintenance: Tire” Mean
“Maintenance: Tire” is an LCD display warning that occurs while driving Nissan vehicles. It’s similar to the reminder you receive when your car has counted enough engine revolutions to suggest an oil change. It triggers to remind you that it is time for a tire rotation.
When you see the “Maintenance: Tire” warning occurs with an exit sign at the bottom left of your screen, this reminder serves as a prompt to get your tires rotated at your next regularly scheduled maintenance stop. It is not something that you must take care of immediately because it does not indicate an emergency occurred.
If you have already rotated your tires or don’t want to see the reminder, you can reset the prompt manually.
You’ll need to go through the maintenance menu, select the tire option, and then choose the reset selection. These actions occur by using the buttons located behind the steering wheel’s left side.
If you have any questions about accessing or navigating the menu for your Nissan, please refer to the owner’s manual for help.
To be clear, you can still drive your vehicle without damaging it with the “Maintenance: Tire” notification displayed.
My Nissan Has Never Issued the “Maintenance: Tire” Warning
If you haven’t experienced the “Maintenance: Tire” warning before, you’re not alone. Most leased vehicles have this option set to ensure that the terms and conditions of the contract get met as requested.
The warning typically displays after the first 15,000 or 30,000 miles, although it can be set at specific intervals for each model.
When you purchase a new Nissan, the dealership might assume that you don’t want this option set.
The automaker has a new car delivery checklist that requires the sales staff to inspect each vehicle point by point during the process. Most sales reps ask their clients if they want to have the reminder set, if they’d prefer to do it, or to have it left alone.
Most drivers decide to leave the vehicle settings alone so that the “Maintenance: Tire” doesn’t engage.
What Are the Benefits of Rotating My Tires?
Tire rotation is a relatively straightforward job. Most drivers can even do the work at home with some jack stands, a jack, and a lug nut wrench.
By changing the tire positions on the vehicle, you can encourage them to wear more evenly. One of the standard methods used is to swap the ones in the front for those in the rear. You can also change them from side to side or use other positioning factors.
Your owner’s manual will let you know what options work best for your make and model.
Although this maintenance option isn’t mandatory, this small investment can deliver several significant dividends when performed on the recommended schedule. Here are the benefits you can expect to see if you have the tires rotated when the “Maintenance: Tire” signal occurs.
The 7 Benefits of Regularly Scheduled Tire Rotations
| Uniform Tire Wear: | If you want your vehicle to have the best grip possible on the road, you need tires with an even tire tread. The improved performance delivers benefits for braking and cornering while ensuring a smoother acceleration occurs in virtually all conditions. |
| Improved Handling: | Vehicles have more control when they experience even tire wear. When rotation doesn’t occur, one tread side can experience more wear than the other, leading to them losing their support faster than the other. This issue can occur from the front, back, driver, or passenger sides. |
| Cupping Elimination: | When your tire tread experiences cupping, the driving experience feels like a bounce. You might even get vibration through the steering wheel when it occurs. Drivers who get their tires rotated on the recommended maintenance schedule rarely face this problem. |
| Part Protection: | Regular tire rotations protect the other parts your vehicle uses to keep you safe at highway speeds. The axles, wheels, bearings, brakes, and suspension operate better, reducing the overall maintenance costs you’ll face over the vehicle’s lifetime. |
| Even Tread: | Front tires typically work harder than the rear ones because they perform different functions. Since acceleration occurs from there on most 2WD platforms, the tread wears out faster than it does in the back. By completing a tire rotation, you’ll create a more balanced performance. |
| Fuel Efficiency: | Vehicles that receive regular tire rotations can maintain their performance better than cars that don’t receive this service. The difference between the two is approximately 3%. Although that doesn’t seem like much, it can add up quickly when considering how many gas station stops you make per month. |
| Omissions Reductions: | When your vehicle can maintain its performance during operations, it can minimize the greenhouse gases it produces when operating. Proper tire rotation, combined with the correct inflation PSI, ensures the car performs as it should under expected circumstances. |
◼️ How Much Does It Cost to Perform a Tire Rotation?
The cost of a tire rotation depends on your local economy. For most drivers, it shouldn’t be more than $50 to complete the task.
For that price, you might receive a vehicle inspection, including brakes and bearings, to ensure that everything is driving safely.
About 11,000 accidents occur each year in the United States because of a tire-related malfunction. Most of those incidents are preventable through the use of proper tire maintenance, including regular rotation.
Depending on how much you drive, the interval between each rotation could be as low as 5,000 miles. That’s why it is essential to pay attention to the “Maintenance: Tire” reminder when it appears.
How to Rotate Your Tires Successfully
If you don’t want to pay someone to rotate your tires, it is possible to get the work done at home. All you need for completing the job is a few tools and to follow the steps outlined below.
Here’s what you’ll need to have at home for tools if you don’t have them already.
- Car Jack. Most vehicles come with a standard jack. It’s usually safer to use a hydraulic floor jack instead, and you can use it to complete other maintenance tasks that come up over the vehicle’s life. The Blackhawk B6350 Fast Lift Jack is an excellent choice for vehicles under 3.5 tons.
- Jack Stands. Once the car is on the jack, you’ll need to place a stand underneath it to remain safely above the ground. The Pro-Lift T6903D Double Pin stands have a three-ton capacity and a stamped steel construction to deliver the desired results.
- Universal Lug Nut Wrench. The GTE Tools Universal Compact Lug Wrench Set delivers more torque so that you can work on those stuck nuts with ease. It comes built to handle the standard socket sizes used on vehicles today, along with an adapter if you need to use something different.
Once you have the tools, you’ll need to figure out the pattern for rotating the tires. That means you need to determine if you have directional or non-directional tires.
Directional tires have a one-way pattern. That means they must be installed on the left or right side. If you switch them incorrectly, your vehicle’s handling could diminish rapidly.
Non-directional tires can be installed on either side.
If you have non-directional tires, you’ll want to rotate them using the cross pattern. That means your right front passenger tire should become the left rear driver’s side one. You’ll move the driver and passenger rear to the front, keeping them on the same side.
The front left driver’s tire then moves to the rear right.
If you have a 4WD vehicle, you’ll do the opposite.
Should I Rotate a Spare Tire into the Configuration?
Some older cars have a maintenance guide that recommends rotating their spare into the mix to give one of the tires a break.
Unless you have a spare equal to the other four tires to mount, this practice should get abandoned. Most vehicles that come with an extra tire usually have a doughnut with shallow tread depth and limited speed capacity.
The goal of the modern spare is to get you to the repair shop so that your original tire can get fixed or replaced.
If you decide to incorporate a full-size spare, it should come into the cross pattern for the passenger rear. That means the driver’s front side tire should become the new spare.
When everything goes smoothly, it should take about 20 minutes to solve the “Maintenance: Tire” reminder and reset the menu.