Get your tread read before winter says Kwik-fit

You may have had your palm, tea leaves, cards or even your head read, but few motorists will have ever had their tyre tread read. Yet according to Kwik-Fit the seemingly humble car tyre can reveal a mass of information, both about your driving style and your car.

The company says that by looking at motorists’ car tyres it can not only spot problems with the car but also with the way it’s being driven, and is inviting motorists to come in for a free winter tyre check. By understanding the basics about car tyres the company believes that motorists can benefit by extending the lifetime of their tyres and by improving the safety of their vehicles.

According to Kwik-Fit the four most telltale symptoms of unhealthy tyres and their causes are:

Excessive wear is concentrated on one edge of the tyre. This can often mean that wheel is not correctly aligned. Motorists may find that the car has a ‘pull’ and that steering and controlling the vehicle is more difficult.

Excessive wear is concentrated on both edges of the tyre. More often than not this is a clear signal that the tyre has been used whilst under-inflated. Your car handbook states the correct tyre pressure needed, according to the weight being carried. Motorists with an under inflated tyre may experience poor handling and braking performance. A correctly inflated tyre will last up to 5,200 miles more than a tyre that is under inflated by 10%.

Excessive wear is concentrated in the centre of the tyre. Generally this means that the tyre has been over-inflated but it can also reveal a driver that frequently accelerates too heavily. Over inflated tyres are more liable to puncture and will also give a bumpy ride.

Bulges in the sidewall of the tyre. These are known in the trade as shock or impact ruptures, and can mean that either a motorist has hit a deep pothole or has hit or mounted the kerb. These weaken the structure of the tyre and increase the risk of the motorists experiencing a puncture or a blowout.

David White, customer service director at Kwik-Fit commented: “Tyres wear out quicker if they don’t sit on the road surface correctly. To maximise tyre life, and provide optimum grip the tread should wear out evenly across the full width of the tyre. If you know what you’re looking for, tyres can indicate that the vehicle has defective steering and suspension components, including shock absorbers. They also indicate wheel alignment problems.”

He continued: “Just think, no matter how safely you drive this winter at the end of the day the only contact you have with the road are four areas each the size of a handprint. It is absolutely critical that your tyres are safety checked regularly by an expert.”

Any motorists wishing to have their tyre read can do so for free at any one of Kwik-Fit’s 670 centres across the UK.