Question 4
Tell me how you’d check the tyres to ensure that they have sufficient tread depth and that their general condition is safe to use on the road.
Answer 4
Tyres should have no cuts and bulges
They should have a minimum of 1.6mm of tread depth – this is across the central three-quarters of the breadth of the tyre, and around the entire outer circumference of the tyre.
Extra 4
Your car tyres need to be in good condition. They shouldn’t have any lumps or bulges, or any cuts or rips. If a tyre has got any cuts or bulges, then you shouldn’t drive on it. Driving on tyres that have cuts or bulges is dangerous.
The tread on a tyre is the grooves that run all the way around the tyre.
How deep these grooves are, is called ‘tread depth’.
Tyres must have enough tread depth because the tread grips the road as you drive. If you don’t have enough tread, it will take longer to stop the car and you are more in danger of aquaplaning when the roads are wet.
As you drive, and the tyres have contact with the road, the tyre wears out and the tread depth gets less and less.
You can check your tyres tread depth using a tread depth gauge. Put the probe into the tread groove and press down. Then check the measurement.
The tread depth needs to be 1.6 mm, this is all the way around the tyre, but in the centre bit or the tyre – the central ¾