How To Choose The Best Tires For Your Honda Civic

Anyone who has owned a car knows that regular maintenance is what is going to keep it on the road for the longest amount of time. If you're a Honda Civic driver (or any car, really), you know that staying on top of your tire maintenance is also crucial for keeping you safe. Regularly checking tire pressure and tread wear makes you safer and makes your tires last longer, but no matter how careful you are, eventually, everyone needs to get new tires.

There are a couple of ways you can check right now to see if you need new tires. One old trick is to take a quarter and stick it in the tread with George Washington's head pointed toward the tire. A good tread will obscure the top of his head. But if you can see his whole head, it means the tread is getting low and that it's not performing as well as it should. You can also predict wear and tear by knowing the mileage on your set of tires. Depending on the climate in your area and your style of driving, cars can need new tires between every 36,000 and 75,000 miles or roughly every three or four years. Needless to say, when your tires are not gripping the road as well, it can be dangerous, especially when driving in wet conditions.

There are a number of tires to choose from that work great with your Honda Civic, but some are better than others depending on which model you're driving where you live.

The LX has the smallest wheel size of the Civic family. There are a number of options for tires, but the most important factors to consider are where you live and how you drive. If you live in the Pacific Northwest, for example, you know you're going to be driving in a lot of rain and sometimes even some light snow. For these conditions, you want a tire that can grip better and maintain stability on the road. One of the best in this category is the Bridgestone Turanza QuietTrack. It does exceptionally well in wet weather even though it's not specifically designated as a winter tire. It will give you a smooth ride, good traction, and handling, and comes with a 5-year or 80,000-mile warranty.

For climates that are mostly dry, try the Pirelli Scorpion AS Plus 3. It offers a smooth ride and extra bite for quicker turns. You won't want to use these tires if the temperature in your area regularly dips below 45 degrees and it doesn't do as well as other tires in areas with a lot of rain. But for dry performance, it's a great option for your LX.

The more luxury-focused EX-L and Touring Civics are made for smooth rides and road trips but also excel at regular commuting, so you'll want a tire that gives you a smooth ride. If your area gets a lot of wet weather, you'll want to err on the side of caution with a strong all-weather tire. For these conditions, a great choice is the Michelin CrossClimate 2. Reportedly excellent in all driving types and weather, this tire features a smooth ride and can handle virtually whatever weather and road conditions you throw at it. It was deemed to be better than most in snowy conditions and as such, was given a 3PMSF Severe Snow rating.

If you live in a drier location, you want to maximize your tire's mileage and make sure it gives you the most comfortable ride possible. The Bridgestone Potenza RE980AS is technically an all-weather tire that performs less than ideally in rainy conditions, but it does offer a tread pattern that's highly resistant to hydroplaning. With that said it is also highly rated in dry conditions with great handling, tight maneuverability, and a pleasantly quiet ride.

For the speedier Civics, you want a high-performance tire that can handle whatever the road throws at you. Whether that's going through fast curves or smoothly handling long straights, you want tires rated high in all categories. For all-weather tires with high ratings across the board, you should get the Michelin Pilot Sport AS 3. These tires handle wet weather with grace, with a smooth ride, good traction, and good responsiveness. For overall performance, you can't go wrong. 

When you have that Si or Type R quickness at your disposal, in dry conditions, you want something that will really stick to the road. If this is the climate you usually find yourself in, you should try Goodyear Assurance WeatherReady tires. They are highly rated on dry surfaces with great stability through corners and tight responsiveness. Surprisingly, these tires are also great on snow, but don't do as well as other tires in rainy conditions. Either way, the WeatherReady offers a very quiet ride even when going fast on the highway.