Car tyres. We tend to take them for granted and, though they aren't fit and forget items, we tend not to invest too much time in looking after them. Provided we regularly check their pressure and physical state, car tyres generally get on with their job, quietly and efficiently. However, the following facts might open your eyes, about car tyres in general and about particular aspects concerning them.

Imagine fifty-five pence. That shiny heptagonal coin and its small circular counterpart are capital. However, the idea that you are throwing this much away with every gallon of fuel you use is a less than capital idea. Yet, running your car tyres at less than the recommended pressure can cost you 10 percent in terms of fuel economy. As under inflated tyres are harder to move along the road; they give the engine more work to do and this means more fuel is burned.

The law is an ass, said Mr. Bumble, in Charles Dickens' 'Oliver Twist'. He wasn't talking about car tyres but the principle nevertheless applies. The law says that your car tyres must have no less than 1.6 millimetres of tread. Legal? Yes. Sensible? That's arguable. A mere 1.6 millimetres of tread is generally accepted as cutting things fine. Tyre manufacturers mould two millimetre-deep tread wear indicators into tyres, with good reason. It's arguably better to comply with the spirit of the law here rather than the letter, as the consequences of an uncontrollable skid in wet conditions cost a great deal more than new tyres.

What makes car tyres grip the road? The different types of tyre - all weather, winter, mud and snow, all terrain and performance - share common elements. The hardness or otherwise of the rubber in them and the tread pattern they have make a major difference in terms of grip, tyre life, on-road behaviour and longevity. In general though, it is the hardness (or softness) of the tyres' compound and the water-clearing abilities of the tread that make the most difference to the level of grip given.

There's nothing better than a new set of car tyres, is there? Some have found out to their cost that brand new tyres aren't necessarily as grippy as their predecessors. The good news is that this relatively lessened grip doesn't last long. If car tyres weren't coated in an anti-stick compound during manufacture, they'd never leave the mould. This coating has to wear away before full grip is achieved. So run your new tyres in, driving more carefully for the first 500 miles or so. This is particularly important in wet conditions.

More than 40 million car tyres. That's a lot of rubber but it is the number of tyres that are disposed of every year. Following EU directives means that comparatively few tyres go into landfill these days. Some are treated to new treads, minced tyres become carpet underlay and some wind up as part of new road surfaces. Plans are in progress to recover energy from old car tyres; they could replace coal in some industries.

About The Author

Louise Slee has been a fan of driving for over 25 years, with no penalty points to date! See her articles at http://www.merityre.co.uk/ where she cuts through the technical jargon and explains car tyres in simple laymans terms.