Since it is important that your tyres have sufficient tread depth, it is important that you know how to measure it and what the level is that you will need to ensure that you have. It is recommended that the tread depth is bigger for winter tyres than summer tyres, but in reality, you will need at least 4 mm tread depth for both to ensure that you have the necessary properties for safe driving. You need the tread depth to have good grip, short braking distance and being able to prevent aquaplaning during the summer and slushplaning during the winter.
There are a few ways to check the tread depth, one new cool way of doing it has been developed by Nokian Tyres and is nowadays available at some service stations in the Nordics, but it is a scanner system where you can just drive over the scanners and the service will identify your car from the license plate and e-mail you the results after you have registered to the service. This gives you a very exact reading of the conditions of your tyres and the wear pattern. For the areas that don’t have this possibility you have to resort to old methods like either using a tread depth gauge or then just use something that you can insert into the tread and measure. Commonly used items are coins or matchheads, which are easy and gives an approximate depth measurement.
Driving Safety Indicator is another way to easily identify the tread depth of your tyres. This doesn’t however require that your tyres have this as part of its tread. It is basically numbers that are visible in the tread and as the tyre wears the number will change. This way you can easily see when it is time to purchase a new set of tyres. For the winter tyres it is more important to make sure that you change as the tyres start losing its key properties, such as grip and braking distance and for summer tyres you have also its properties to prevent aquaplaning. These are all properties that reduces your safety while you drive, which is why you need to measure the depth often enough so that you know when to change to a new set of tyres.
You also need to make sure that the tyres are properly inflated. You will need to make sure that you check the tyre pressure on all the four wheels on a regular basis. You need to confirm what tyre pressure your tyres should have, which you find in the car’s manual. When you visit the petrol station you check the tyres to make sure that the tyre pressure coincides with what the owner’s manual recommends. If the pressure is too low, you will need to fill them to the recommended level. If it is too high, you will need to deflate them to the correct level.
For more information regarding filling your tyres, visit: www.nokiantyres.com