Once you have your new tyres fitted its always a great idea to regularly check the tyre pressures, you can find the details in your vehicle handbook, on a plate inside the door sill or even inside the fuel cap.
Maintaining the correct tyre pressure will extend the life of your tyres, improve your vehicle handling, safety and save you money by maintaining maximum fuel efficiency.
If your tyres are under inflated you will wear the edges out and over inflation will wear the centre of the tyre out faster than necessary.
Under inflated tyres can lead to over heating and can cause blow outs, burn more fuel as the rolling resistance increases and create more CO2 emissions, these problems from under inflation can be dangerous, expensive for your budget and damage the environment from increased CO2.
Over inflated tyres can lose traction as the centre line of the tyre tread is running on the road giving less grip as a smaller tyre footprint is in contact with the road, high pressure increases the stiffness of the tyre making it susceptible to blow outs from impacts with potholes or curbs, the excessive pressure can distort the shape of the tyre causing uneven wear. Over inflation problems can be a safety risk or cost you more financially with the tyre having a shorter lifespan.
FAQs
You can find tyre pressures for your car in your vehicle handbook, door sill or inside the petrol flap, if you cannot find it please contact your main dealer service department.
Absolutely it matters that you regularly check your tyre pressure, damaged or worn tyres can be illegal and dangerous. You can have 3 Penalty points and fines of up to £2500 for each illegal tyre in the UK. Regularly checking your tyre pressures will save you money in the long run from maximum fuel efficiency and not having to purchase new tyres before their lifespan has finished.
No, you must find the tyre pressure for your car as recommended by the vehicle manufacturer, tyres have a maximum tyre pressure on the sidewall this is the maximum pressure the tyre can hold. Refer to your handbook for the correct vehicle pressure, It’s dangerous to inflate a tyre to its maximum pressure if it’s not the recommended pressure for your vehicle. It can blow out, wear in the centre and loose traction.