Five Signs It’s Time to Replace Your Car Tyres

The tyres on your car are designed to be replaced regularly. But knowing just how regularly means being able to examine your tyres, and identify the warning signs that something has gone wrong with them. Let’s take a look at five key signals that a replacement is due.

Tread Depth

Every mile you cover will leave trace amounts of rubber on the road behind you. This, over time, will cause your tyres to wear away. This will eventually result in your car becoming unsafe—and illegal—to drive.

In the UK, the legal minimum for tread depth is 1.6 mm. This is about the thickness of the border of a twenty-pence piece. If the tread becomes too shallow, then the water on the road will have nowhere to go during wet weather. This will cause a loss of grip and, in many cases, an accident.

Cracks and Bulges

The wear on your tyre might not be even. If there’s a noticeable gash or bulge in the tyre, then you can be reasonably sure that this is a point of future failure. By replacing the tyre immediately, you can often avoid a heftier bill later on, as well as the inconvenience of being stranded at the roadside.

Vibration While Driving

If your car is vibrating while you’re on the road, this can usually be taken as a sign that the tyres are suffering or that the wheels are misaligned. This might be annoying, but it might also cause your control over the vehicle to suffer.

Age of the Tyres

The road isn’t the only thing that will degrade your tyres. Wind, rain, sunshine, and other natural phenomena will do the same thing—even while your car is motionless on your drive. When tyres are older than ten years, they should be replaced, whatever the state of the tread. If your tyres are a little on the old side, you can buy new tyres online and get them fitted. The chances are that you’ll notice an immediate change in the way the vehicle handles.

Uneven Wear

If your tyres aren’t aligned properly, then the weight of your vehicle will fall consistently on one side. This is the most common cause of uneven wear. It usually results in wear that’s consistent on one side of the tyre. If the wear is concentrated around the outside of the tyre, it’s probably under-inflated. If it’s around the middle (where a bulge would be), then it’s probably under-inflated.

Regular inspections can help you spot these problems early on. This might then allow you to diagnose the root cause, improve the performance of your vehicle, and ultimately save yourself a large repair bill.