It’s time for your Winter Tyre Check

Tyre care is always important, but winter conditions put an extra strain on your vehicle and its tyres and breakdowns are more at this time of year. This means it’s vital that you make sure everything is in working order now, especially as road conditions become more difficult, with temperatures dropping and snow and ice about. Here are our top winter tyre safety tips to ensure you and your family stay safe on the roads.

Invest in Winter Tyres

Winter tyres are designed for snow and ice. They are becoming increasingly popular with UK drivers and one of the main reasons for this is that, as temperatures drop, they provide more grip than summer tyres in all weather conditions - even in the dry. Plus handling and braking are also improved.

Keep an eye on Tyre Pressure

Cold temperatures have a major impact on tyre pressure and can cause your tyres to deflate by a significant amount. This can impact negatively on tyre wear, handing and braking. Moreover, tyres with low pressure are more likely to suffer sudden deflation.

Visual Inspection

It’s a good idea to carry out a visual check of your tyres throughout the year, but particularly in winter when road and driving conditions are usually sub-optimal. Look for any lumps, bumps, cuts or bulges and, if you notice any such blemishes, call into your local Kerr’s Tyres. We’ll assess the situation professionally and offer the best-cost solution.

Check the Tread Depth

In the UK, the minimum legal tread level is 1.6mm across the central 75% of your tyre and around the tyres’ entire circumference. But you need your tyres to provide firm grip in the winter, so we would advise changing your tyres long before they reach this stage.

What about the rest of your Car?

It’s worth carrying out a few extra checks on your car to make sure that you’re well prepared for winter driving. Lift the bonnet and make sure you’re fully topped up with antifreeze, brake fluid and oil. And don’t forget the wiper blades and washer fluid. Also, what shape’s your battery in? Colder temperatures affect battery performance and during winter we tend to use more electrical components, such as heating and lights, which make additional demands on the battery.

We recommend all drivers to follow these simple steps to safety throughout the winter. In addition, you can simply call into your local Kerr’s Tyres outlet and our trained mechanics will complete these checks for you and make all necessary upgrades. Your safety is always our priority, but never more so than in winter.