A quarter of new tyres fail wet weather tests

A quarter of new tyres legally sold in the UK do not meet the most stringent safety tests, says a leading industry boss. Budget brand tyres imported from Far East and Russian manufacturers do not perform in the wet as well as the majority of European brands and are sometimes considerably worse, said Continental Tyres UK boss David Smith. He also criticised new regulations due to be introduced across Europe within two years which will make manufacturers certify their tyres meet specific tests.
“The problem is these will be self-certification labels and the manufacturers can say what they like on them because the tyres are not going to be independently checked,” he said. “As an industry in Europe we are very concerned about this new labelling scheme and if it is to mean anything it must be backed up by independent verification and enforcement.” The UK currently turns over about 32 million new tyres a year and approximately 8 million come from the Far East and Russian makers who want to cash in on the budget end of the market.
		Mr Smith (left) said, “Tyres are generally a distress purchase and people have been conditioned into buying the cheapest because as an industry we haven’t helped ourselves by first offering customers a cheap tyre and then the option of a more expensive better performance tyre. Suppliers should be offering a premium tyre first and explaining its benefits before going down market to the less capable tyres.” With cars having longer service intervals and the decline of DIY motoring tyre checks are becoming less frequent and potentially minor problems which can be quickly rectified are becoming much more serious and leading to expensive tyre failures. Mr Smith added, “Mis-aligned suspension, under-inflated tyres and damage caused by potholes or riding over kerbs are the major sources of premature tyre wear and failure and they are avoidable.”
It is known that about 3.5 million motorists in the UK are driving on illegal tyres with a tenth of cars having tyres below the legal minimum tread depth of 1.6mm in a continuous band throughout the central three-quarters of the tread width and the whole of the circumference. Using an illegal tyre carries a maximum £2,500 fine and three penalty points per tyre.
		Continental engineer Craig Sterry, who comes from Swansea, said, “ We know from recent surveys that a staggering 93pc of vehicles checked had mis-aligned wheels and this wears out tyres faster than they should and it is not uncommon to find tyres running at just 3lbs below recommended pressure and that can have a significant impact on wear rates as well.” The growing number of sharply angled speed bumps is also damaging tyres, usually on the inside wall where it is not often picked up unless a full examination is done. Drivers who bump up onto kerbs and pavements are also risking more damage to their modern tyres, he added. Continental recommend a weekly check of tyres for objects embedded in the tread, sidewall damage, wear patterns and correct inflation in accordance with the car maker’s guidance. “A few minutes spent checking the tyres can save a lot of money if a minor problem is quickly corrected and it could save you from a nasty accident or worse,” said Craig (left).
On a special wet test track I was able to experience the difference in grip between new tyres with 8mm tread, a set worn down to 3mm and the legal 1.6mm limit. In identical stopping tests from 55mph, braking distances went up from 31.5 metres with new tyres to 44.1 metres at the legal limit, which is an additional distance equivalent to the length of a school bus. I also experienced the difference in handling between a correctly inflated pair of rear tyres and two with pressure dropped 30pc, which is fairly commonly found by tyre fitters. The car with the under-inflated rear tyres was far more prone to slide around with the rear end breaking away and it became less predictable on twisting sections of track. The last sobering thought was that no matter if you have the latest electronic driver assistance programmes on your car, how good you can drive or the state of your tyres, ultimately the average contact area for all the tyres with the road surface is equivalent to four patches of rubber which equate to an A4 sized piece of paper. *©Robin Roberts*