Your tyres form the essential bond between your vehicle and the ground. The tread grips the road as you drive. But if it's not deep enough, your car loses traction and suffers extended braking times. Shallow tread grooves make it harder to control the vehicle in wet weather and the chance of aquaplaning increases. To ensure your safety, measure the tread depth as part of your regular vehicle maintenance.
Tread is the rubber on the tyre in contact with the road. As you drive, the tread will wear down. A tyre with a tread depth below 1.6mm lacks grip. Braking distance and vehicle control are impaired. These tyres are not safe for driving and must be replaced.
Please consider that safe driving in wet and snowy weather conditions is affected by the tread depth, the pattern design and the rubber compound of the tread of your tyres. On wet or snow-covered roads braking performance will progressively decline with lower tread depths. On wet roads there is an additional increased risk of aquaplaning with reduced tread depths.
Therefore, check your tyres regularly, reduce your speed on wet and snowy roads and consider replacing your tyres in good time.
Ensure your vehicle is equipped with the correct winter, summer or all season tyres.
Tread Wear Indicators
Tread wear indicators, or wear bars, are spaced evenly through the main grooves in the tyre tread. If they are flush with the level of the tread, then the tyre should be replaced.
Several winter tyre models are equipped with winter tyre wear indicators. If they are flush with the level of the tread, the tyre is no longer suitable for winter driving conditions. In some locations, they may also no longer legally qualify as winter tyres.
