When you think of checking your tyres ahead of a long trip you do not tend to think of yourself as performing life-saving actions, but that is, in fact, what you are potentially doing! Checking your tyres often can mean that you quickly pick up issues and will be able to change or repair your tyres before the problems get serious – and a serious tyre breakdown, at speed and on the motorway, can be life-threatening. Here are some life-saving tips that you can try.

Check the Tread

Your tyres hold onto the road via the tread pattern, which legally needs to be at least 1.6mm deep (and many mechanics recommend 3mm for best results). Check the tread of your tyres often, once a month or so, and more often if you frequently drive on bad roads, to make sure you are still safe to be on the roads. While many bald tyres can operate safely in good conditions, it is in wet weather that your tread pattern earns its keep, squeezing water away from the tyre surface and maintaining good grip on the road. Do not take a chance on a sudden rain shower endangering your life and the lives of your passengers and other road users.

The Right Inflation

Modern tyres are designed to be used at optimum levels, so check your owners' manual and make sure your tyre pressure falls between the recommended range in order to keep your tyres in the best possible condition for safe driving. Check your tyre pressure regularly – once a week if you drive a lot on bad roads and once a month if your daily commute is on better roads. If your manual is not to hand, your tyres will often have the pressure range marked on them, and there is always the internet, a source of almost all the information you will need!

Finally, choose the tyres that are best for the weather they will be facing, putting on winter tyres when temperatures are reliably below 7°C, and sporting all-weather tyres when necessary. If you are looking for car tyres Basingstoke has a good range of services and products available for you. For instance you can buy good quality car tyres in Basingstoke at great prices from Headley Tyres. Either visit their garage or easily shop tyres online.