When Van Nuys hits triple digits in July, the road surface can climb far hotter than the air, and that heat is working on your tires every mile you drive.
Here is what matters most: hot weather raises the air pressure inside your tires, accelerates tread wear, and puts extra stress on any tire that is already underinflated or aging. Check your pressure at least once a month when the tires are cool, inspect your tread, and check how old the tires actually are. A quick seasonal check is the simplest way to protect your Volvo, your fuel economy, and your family on the 405 and the 101.
Why Summer Heat Is Hard on Your Tires
San Fernando Valley summers are not gentle. Pavement temperatures on a sunny afternoon can run well above the air temperature, and that heat transfers straight into your tires. As the air inside a tire warms it expands, so pressure that read correctly in a cool morning garage can read noticeably higher by the middle of a hot day.
That matters for two reasons.
First, heat plus friction plus load is exactly the combination that finds a tire’s weak spot, so a tire that is already low, old, or worn is far more likely to fail in summer than in winter.
Second, the temperature swings we see here, from cool canyon mornings to scorching valley afternoons, mean your pressure is constantly moving. Staying on top of it is the whole game.
Check Your Tire Pressure the Right Way
Proper inflation affects tread life, fuel economy, stopping distance, and overall tire performance, so this is the single most valuable habit you can build.
Check your air pressure at least once a month, and always check it when the tires are cool, meaning before you have driven or after the car has been parked for a few hours. Reading a hot tire gives you an inflated number and can trick you into letting out air you actually need.
Use the pressure Volvo recommends for your specific vehicle, which is printed on the label inside the driver’s door jamb and in your owner’s manual, not the maximum number stamped on the tire sidewall. Those are different figures and people confuse them constantly.
Do not forget the spare if your model has one. And if your Volvo shows a tire pressure monitoring warning, treat it as a prompt to check all four tires by hand rather than a reason to guess which one is low.
Measure Your Tread With a Quarter, Not a Penny
Tread is what keeps your Volvo planted, and it wears faster under summer heat and heavy highway use. Check it monthly.
Here is the method worth knowing. Insert a quarter into the tread groove with Washington’s head pointing down. If the tread covers part of his head, you have at least 4/32 of an inch. If you can see the top of his head, it is time to shop.
The penny test most people know measures 2/32 of an inch, which is the legal minimum in most states rather than a safety threshold. The gap between those two figures is where wet stopping distance climbs sharply, and in Los Angeles that gap shows up on the first real rain of the season, when months of accumulated oil lifts off the pavement and the freeway turns slick in twenty minutes.
If you see uneven wear across the tire, feathering on the edges, or bald spots, that is often an alignment or inflation problem that will only worsen in the heat.
Check How Old Your Tires Are
This is the check almost nobody performs, and in Southern California it may matter more than tread depth.
Sun and heat degrade rubber from the outside while the tread stays respectable. That means a low-mileage Volvo that spends its week in a Valley driveway can have plenty of tread and rubber that no longer grips the way it was engineered to.
You can check it yourself in thirty seconds. Find the DOT code on the sidewall and read the last four digits, which give the week and year of manufacture. So “2321” means the 23rd week of 2021. General guidance is to avoid running tires more than six years old regardless of how the tread looks.
Sidewall cracking, a dry grayish appearance, or tires that hold pressure poorly are all signs the rubber is past its useful life, whatever the tread gauge says.
Alignment Before the Long Drive
A proper alignment improves handling and helps tires last longer. It is worth having done after a new set is installed, or any time your vehicle pulls to one side.
Getting that handled before summer road trip season means better traction, more even wear, and a more composed drive when the pavement is hottest.
Aging and Underinflated Tires Are the Real Summer Risk
Heat is not the enemy on its own. Heat combined with a tire that is already compromised is.
An underinflated tire flexes more, builds more internal heat, and wears its shoulders down quickly. An older tire, even one with tread remaining, can have hardened or cracked rubber that is more likely to give up under summer load.
If your tires are several years old, showing sidewall cracks, or holding pressure poorly, do not wait for a failure on the freeway. A technician can tell you quickly whether they are safe for another season.
Buying and Servicing Tires at Galpin Volvo
When it is time for new tires or a professional inspection, buying from your Volvo retailer has real advantages.
At the Galpin Volvo Tire Center, you get tires matched to your Volvo model, expert installation by technicians who work on these vehicles daily, and all major brands including Continental, Hankook, Michelin, and Pirelli. We handle tire repair, replacement, rotation, and balancing.
Road hazard coverage is included at no additional cost on eligible tires, with 100 percent replacement coverage for 24 months and flat-tire repair up to $40 per occurrence. Coverage runs by date or until 2/32 of an inch or less of tread remains, whichever comes first, and OMNIMAX-branded tires do not include road hazard coverage. See your service advisor for complete details.
The Volvo Tire Price Match Guarantee lets you present a printed, pre-tax lower-priced quote for identical new retailer-installed tires meeting your vehicle’s specifications, dated within 30 days of purchase from a retailer within 25 miles, and we will refund the difference. Labor is excluded, and the guarantee may not be combined with other offers such as rebates, clearance, or special pricing. Restrictions and exclusions apply.
Worth checking current service specials before you book, since tire and alignment offers rotate.
A Simple Summer Tire Checklist
- Check pressure monthly on cool tires, using the door-jamb specification rather than the sidewall maximum
- Measure tread with a quarter, and shop at 4/32 of an inch rather than waiting for 2/32
- Read the DOT date code and treat tires over six years old with suspicion regardless of tread
- Look for uneven or edge wear, which usually points at alignment or inflation
- Schedule an alignment if the car pulls, or after installing new tires
- Have aging, cracked, or slow-leaking tires inspected before any long drive
Ready for Summer? Let Us Take a Look
Before the next heat wave rolls through the Valley, give your tires the attention summer demands. Our technicians can check your pressure, measure your tread, read your date codes, review your alignment, and recommend the right tires for your Volvo.
Schedule service at Galpin Volvo, or call our service department directly at 818-922-3678.
We are at 15500 Roscoe Boulevard, Van Nuys, California 91406. Our service department is open Monday through Friday from 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM and Saturday from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, closed Sunday. The 7:00 AM weekday opening means you can drop the car off before your day starts.
A few minutes now can save you a stressful roadside stop later this summer.