Forking out for tyres can be expensive and many of us get confused with the number of options available to us when it comes to choosing which type of tyre we want. You firstly need to decide whether you want new or part worn tyres. If you simply need a legal tyre as quick and as cheaply as possible then you may want to go for part worns. New tyres come with 8 mm of tread on and many garages recommend you change these at 3mm or 2mm to ensure optimal driving. The legal limit for tyres in the UK is 1.6 mm. Part worns tyres can be sold with as little as 2mm of tread left on them not giving you much driving time before they become illegal and need to be replaced again.

When buying new tyres you will have to decide if you want budget, midrange or premium tyres. The price will increase accordingly so it may be that you have to choose tyres within a certain budget. Even if you are choosing budget or midrange tyres it is still worth researching the make to check what ratings that tyre has been given in terms of wet grip, fuel economy and road noise.

 

 

Coming out of your house to a flat tyre is something we all dread and very often it will happen for no apparent reason and with very little warning. If the tyre has developed a slow puncture you may have had to fill it with air more often that you should have but it may have all of a sudden got worse.

The first thing to do is to pump the tyre back up, ideally this should be in situ as if you drive on a totally flat tyre it is likely you will not only damage the tyre but also even the wheel trim or alloy.

Once pumped up inspect the tyre for any visual damage such as nails. If you do not find anything you can chose to spray a solution made from one part soap to four parts water all around the rim and over the surface of the tyre to see if you can see any bubbles coming up from where the air is escaping. If not then you will probably need to take it to a garage for a further inspection.

 

 

Replacing tyres can be a costly hassle and careful driving will only preserve them so far. The front tyres should go beyond 20,000 miles with average driving, and the rears will go a lot longer on a front wheel drive car, so why not exploit this and rotate the cars tyres. It’s also a good way to avoid uneven wear that could shorten the tyres lifespan. Before you move your cars tyres, check their construction type as cross ply and radial tyres shouldn’t be mixed on the same axle and never use radials on the rear with cross ply on the fronts.

For front wheel drive vehicles (the most common set up for road cars) swap the fronts to the back, keeping the tyres on the same side and swap the rears forward to opposite sides. Rear wheel drive vehicles (most BMW’s, Mercedes, some sports cars etc.) should have the rear wheels moved to the front on the same side and the front tyres moved back, swapping sides. For four wheel drive vehicles like SUV’s, swap all tyres diagonally around the vehicle.