Check Your Tyre, 20p Test
Over 1,200 drivers are road casualties due to illegal, defective or under inflated tyres. From these facts we can see having legal tyres not only protects drivers but also other drivers and pedestrians.
Steps
- Make sure your car is on level ground with the hand brake on. This ensures you are looking at the tyre on the right angle and the car won't roll away.
- Get out a 20p. This will be used as our measuring tool, there's no need for fancy and expensive equipment.
- Place the 20p flat in one of the grooves of the tread.
- If you can see some of the outer edge of the 20p, then your tyres may be illegal and will have a bigger braking distance in the wet. .
- This test should be performed on all parts of the tread, on all four tyres.
- Have an idea what the tyre should look,like. This is what a road legal tyre should look like, this tyre will have maximum performance in braking in the wet, and may be the difference in you having a collision
Video
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Tips
- Always make sure you check your own tyres before going to a garage, so you know if you will need a new tyre.
- On average the difference between a car with legal full tread tyres and a car with legal but low tread, in stopping in the wet is four car lengths.
Things You'll Need
- 20p Coin
Sources and Citations
- www.ears.co.uk
