Moose Jaw is notoriously known for Mac the Moose, murals, and… potholes.
The folks at Panda Tire can’t make the potholes go away, but they can offer advice to help the damage to your vehicle go away. And if you still find yourself in need of repairs, the experts at Panda Tire can make things right.
Potholes are not just a Moose Jaw problem — they are a cold-climate issue. They are caused by the freeze-thaw cycle as the seasons change. As temperatures fluctuate in the spring, water from melting snow and ice can find its way into cracks and then freezes overnight. Given enough time, these cracks get larger until a full-fledged pothole is formed.
Vehicles then drive over these cracks all day long.
Since it’s impossible to avoid potholes altogether, Panda Tire offers some advice to help mitigate the risk potholes cause and help you avoid unnecessary damage to your vehicle.
Lorrie Moggey, the service manager at Panda Tire, offers some advice.
The best advice for potholes is straightforward: “Don’t hit them,” she chuckled.
One simple thing you can do to save your vehicle is get a wheel alignment.
“Because of the potholes, if your alignment is out, you’ll wear the tires but not notice this until months later,” Moggey said. “But avoiding them is (still) your best course of action.”
Hitting a large pothole or even just carefully hurdling over them on your daily commute can cause damages to your vehicle and it all depends on how fast you were driving and how big the crater was.
One of the most common repair issues is a broken strut or shock. Moggey mentioned a few of the most common issues encountered at Panda Tire this season: “Broken struts or shocks, bent rims, cracked rims sometimes, blown tires if you hit it hard enough.”
You can mitigate some of the risk to your vehicle by keeping in mind some better driving habits. Keep your tires properly inflated, beware of suspicious puddles on the road, and slow down. It’s important to maintain a safe following distance to give yourself time to react.
It’s also good practice to report new or large potholes to the city so they can prioritize repairs.
Moggey said that Panda Tire regularly fixes pothole-related damages, but that number will vary each season. “This year we’ve had several, but I’d say it was under a dozen (so far).”
MooseJawToday.com asked who comes up with the material for the sign along Main Street in front of the store? “It’s a combined effort,” said Moggey, noting that everyone working there helps with new ideas.
This brings a new life to the workplace, as the material is fun and takes a good-natured approach to some current events such as pothole season or Sidewalk Days. It also makes the drive down Main Street that much more enjoyable.
If you find yourself in need of vehicle repairs or routine maintenance, the expert staff at Panda Tire and Auto are there to help you. They can also help prioritize repairs and provide a peace of mind inspection.
Stop by their location at 888 Main St. N. across from Tim Horton’s, or call to book your appointment at 306-691-0080.
Remember to be careful on the roads this pothole season!
