The Importance of Tyre Safety

The importance of having good tyres on your car can hardly be over emphasized. Tyres are the one area where you should not skimp in relation to your car's maintenance, because tyres are your only direct contact with the road and can make the difference between you staying on the road or going into the ditch in tricky circumstances. A good quality tyre with plenty of tread on it will maintain its grip on the road if you have to swerve suddenly to avoid a dog or child running into the road, or take a sharp corner in the wet. Wet weather reduces the friction beteen tyres and road and you are more likely to lose grip and slide or skid with your steering ability consequently much less than normal. Good tyres will also enable you to brake and stop within the minimum distance, whereas partly worn tyres will mean longer distances before you come to a complete halt and this could make a real difference in an emergency situation.
Tyres are much better now at gripping the road than they used to be since manufacturers have spent time and money on improving their products for maximum safety. All tyres however, are something of a compromise to meet the conflicting needs of good grip and long life. To last well tyres tend to be made of a harder rubber which resists wear better, but for maximum grip you need a softer basic rubber compound. Traditionally certain manufacturers like Michelin have preferred to offer tyres that last well, whilst others, like Pirelli put more emphasis on performance, using softer rubber, with the consequence of a shorter usable life. Having said that, there are not many bad tyres out there these days, unless you go for the cheapest budget tyre or remoulds, or part worn tyres. These should all be avoided like the plague since they can put your life at risk.
Your owner's handbook will tell you what sort of tyres are recommended for your particular car, and you can find a good guide to buying tyres online at UK Net Guide so that you can decide on your best choice of tyre.
Having checked your wheel and tyre size you can search and compare tyre brands and prices online, although you will need probably to go to a local tyre dealer or garage for them to order and fit the tyres for you. If you quote the specification and the best online price you have found they will usually be prepared to match that for you. This can give you a considerable saving over just going straight to your local garage without any idea of what the price should be, because they will charge top dollar, i.e. the recommended retail price.
Buy the best tyres you can afford for your car since it is a potentially life saving investment. You will need to have the wheels balanced whilst you're at it, and it is also a good idea to have the tracking checked and adjusted if it has not been done for a while. Poor tracking leads to uneven tyre wear which shortens the usable life of your tyres because they may well wear down below the legal limit over a certain area much quicker than they should if the wheels are not properly in alignment