With summer in full swing many vehicle owners take a long look at their rides. What maintenance does it need? How can its looks be improved or its performance increased? Your options range from an oil change and wash ’n’ wax to body work, engine overhaul or a new audio system.

One way to improve your vehicle’s looks, perform maintenance and improve performance all at one time is to buy a new set of tires. In response to economic uncertainties and high fuel costs many car owners are going the “makeover” route by improving their current vehicles instead of buying new. A new set of tires could help improve your fuel mileage.

If you’re looking at replacing your tires, do some research. Know your vehicle’s tire size. If you’re not the original owner, check all the tires to make sure they are the same size and produced by the same manufacturer. Your vehicle should have tire information affixed to the inside of the driver’s door, in the glove box or on the tire sidewall itself.

Make sure you inspect your tires – condition and age are a big factor. Your tires may not be bald, cracking or losing air but that doesn’t mean that they are OK. Most major tire manufacturers agree that the serviceable lifespan of a tire is seven years. So if your tires are approaching seven years of service or more, they need to be replaced.

If you’re going to replace your tires, the next decision is whether to upgrade or do an exact replacement.

Several tire manufacturer Web sites provide tire information: www.coopertires.com, www.bridgestonetire.com, www.firestonetire.com and www.goodyeartires.com. These sites can help fit the right tires for your vehicle/driving style with selector guides, pricing and FAQs. They also offer maintenance tips.

To replace my tires I used the plus zero sizing method. This type of tire upgrade involves going to a slightly bigger tire while maintaining the overall diameter of the original tire. If you go this route you can maintain the proper operation and calibration of your anti-lock brake system, speedometer, traction control system and vehicle stability control system.

The next option is plus-one, two or three sizing, which involves installing tires with larger rim diameters, wider contact patches and shorter sidewalls.

A wider tire with a wider contact patch will have a reduced sidewall, meaning the tire has less resistance during cornering. With plus sizing your immediate reward is an improvement in handling/cornering and faster steering reaction.

There are limits to this type of tire increase. Adding 26-inch tires to your car will jack your vehicle off the ground, potentially causing body or chassis clearance problems. This type of change will severely alter your car’s center of gravity, handling and braking and negatively impact the electronic systems installed on your vehicle.

Adding a shorter sidewall tire usually makes the tire stiffer and makes the ride firmer. It’s important to note that what you gain in performance and handling by going with a shorter sidewall will affect the overall ride comfort of your vehicle.

By going with a plus-zero upgrade I will be able to keep my original wheels, while going to a slightly wider tire and maintaining ride quality.

With a plus-one upgrade or greater I would have to purchase larger wheels, the ride would get noticeably firmer and the rim of my new wheels would be closer to the road, thus risking damage. I would also have to get the electronic systems in my car adjusted to work properly again with the new tires.

By going with a plus-zero sizing upgrade I can maintain my original wheel rim diameter but increase the tire section width by 10mm and drop the aspect ratio by five points. The aspect ratio is the tire’s section height in relation to its section width as represented in a percentage. An example is a 50-series tire. This means the tire has a sidewall that is 50 percent as tall as the tire’s section width.

My original tire size is p225/60R16, so with a plus-zero upgrade the new tire size I could go with is p235/55R16. This change will give me a small increase in contact patch, my sidewall will drop slightly and, hopefully, I’ll see an improvement in steering response and tighter cornering.

So what type of tires should you select? That depends on your driving habits. Do you drive your car year-round, summer only, winter only, long or short trips?

The following are basic tire categories. There are more specialized subcategories, but to simplify use the following.

Winter tires typically have aggressive tread designs and are composed of compounds that work well in freezing temperatures so they can dig into snow and ice. These tires keep you going through snow and slush but don’t improve handling in warm weather and are not recommended for year-round use.

Summer/performance tires are engineered to deliver better handling in the rain and on dry roads. The grip, adhesion and lower rolling resistance they offer on a nice flat road on a dry day can really bring out the best in your vehicle. The tread designs are less aggressive and the tires are composed of compounds that work well with hot asphalt. The tread design can make these tires act like slicks in winter as you end up riding on top of the snow instead of digging through it.

All-season tires are just that: They provide a balance of performance and grip in a variety of weather conditions. In the warmer months their tread design and compounds do help with gas mileage and increased durability. Just don’t expect improved handling or great winter traction.

When looking for a new replacement tire you must consider more than just price. How do you use your vehicle? What are the most extreme driving conditions that you expect to drive in? Is ride or performance more important? Do you want to enhance your vehicle’s appearance?

If you answer these questions and do your homework you will be able to select the proper tires to achieve your performance, appearance or handling goal.