Your vehicle’s tyres are the number one safety feature you have. After all, they are the only thing keeping you in contact with the road so it would make sense that you would want to keep them in excellent condition.
It’s important to know when to change your tyres. For obvious reasons, your tyres tread should have optimum depth but also, we have a legal tread depth here in Australia of 1.6mm
You don’t need any special equipment or require your car to visit your local workshop when it comes to knowing your tread depth. Most modern tyres are equipped with tread wear bars located in the longitudinal grooves of the tyre.
Tread wear bars or tread wear indicators (TWI) are a simple, effective and visual way to determine your tyres tread depth. When your tread reaches the wear indicators, it's time for new tyres.
Other options for checking your tyre tread
If your tyres do not have TWI you can simply open up your wallet and pull out a 20 cent coin. Place the coin in the tyre of interest’s deep grooves. These are the grooves running parallel to you around the tyre.
If the tread reaches the Platypus' bill (nose) you still have sufficient rubber on your tyres but you will need to look at purchasing new tyres pretty soon. Depending on the amount of driving you do, this will determine when to book in.
So your tread did not reach the Platypus’ bill? It is highly recommended that you rotate from the spare or purchase new tyres immediately. Your vehicle could be un-roadworthy with tyres below the legal limit of 1.6mm.
The less tread your tyres have, the less grip you have on the road. This can ultimately make driving extremely unsafe, especially when conditions aren’t the best.
Remember, if you are unsure of how to check your tyres tread depth, simply call Tyrepower for more information or to book into a Tyrepower store near you.
You can speak with a member of our team at 13 21 91 or make a booking at your local store by choosing the right store closest to you. With over 270 stores located around Australia, we are never too far away.
