Worn tyres tread on risky ground

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If Duncan hadn't made the move to get Petunia's tyres checked, her car would not be the only thing skidding towards disaster.

Weddings and wheels

While these are not two topics you might ordinarily associate with each other, Duncan and his fiancée Petunia have been travelling far and wide in search of the perfect wedding venue. One rainy afternoon after having visited their third wedding venue that day, Duncan noticed that Petunia’s car kept skidding while they were on their way back home to George.

“When was the last time you got your tyres checked, darling?” Duncan asked Petunia. “Can’t remember. I think over a year ago,” Petunia replied, causing alarm bells in Duncan’s mind. This is because not regularly checking your tyres every 8,000 kilometres to 10,000 kilometres can result in your tyre tread wearing down to dangerous levels.

Since Duncan's flat tyre, he’s learned to never ignore any unusual signs coming from a car. Luckily, he knew that they would be passing a Dunlop Zone on the way home, and Duncan immediately made the stop.

The experts explain

“The problem is with your tread depth,” an expert explained after inspecting Petunia’s car. “In a matter of days, the depth would easily become less than one millimetre deep. This is why your car is skidding.” In between the grooves of your car tyres is an indicator, which tells you when you need to replace your tyres. The indicator can sometimes also be found outside the grooves in the form of a small triangle.

If your tyre tread is not level with the indicator, you’re still good to go. If your tread is however level with your indicator, you’re in trouble.

If the tread depth of your tyres is less than one millimetre, you risk not only your own life but that of your passengers and other road users. You can also expect the following fatal issues to crop up:

Skidding
Steering problems
Poor braking response times

How do you measure tread depth?
Tread depth is measured from the tread rubber down to its deepest grooves. The more you drive, the more worn your tyres get, and the more ‘shallow’ your tread depth becomes.

Tyre grooves do more than make patterns in the sand: They’re responsible for the car’s general stability and safety on the road, from taking a corner to making a sudden stop.

“I recommend a tread depth of at least 1.6 millimetres. If you’re tread depth is above a millimetre, your car will always be stable on the road, even if it rains,” said the Dunlop Zone expert. “You can also make your tread to last by rotating your tyres every 8, 000 kilometres to 10,000 kilometres.”

“Is there another way I can check my tread depth?” Petunia asked, because with all the driving her and Duncan are yet to do, she anticipates that she might not have the time to take a look at her tyres.

“Of course! Ever heard of the matchstick test?” asked the expert, to a puzzled Duncan and Petunia.

To check tread depth, put a match head into the tread grooves, and if any part of the head shows above the grooves it’s time to replace the tyre.