Did you know that as much as a million gallons of fuel are lost every day on UK roads due to low tyre pressure. That’s as much as £7,000,000 per day that we are wasting purely because we don’t keep a check of our tyre pressures. With around 30,000,000 cars in the UK that represents around £85 per year per car. Many people may think well what’s £85 in the grand scheme of things. Well to some people it may not be very much but to many others it’s a lot of money to simply through away. Think about this, would you take £85 in cash out of your pocket and through it down a drain? Of course not. So why do we do it each year purely because we can’t be bothered to check our tyres?
It not only burns more fuel but can also wear your tyres out quicker with the centre of the tyres bulging inwards and hence the outer edges make more contact with the road than they should. If your tyres are at 80% of the recommended pressure, you can expect the life of your tyre to be reduced to around 75%. If the tyre pressure falls to 60%, then you will achieve only 35% of the potential mileage from your tyres. Tyres should be checked at least once per month, preferably once a week.
So how to check tyre pressures:
- Buy yourself a reliable pressure gauge.
- Look in the owner’s manual to find out the correct tyre pressures for your car, remembering that the front tyres are normally different to the rear tyres.
- Always check the pressures when the tyres are cold. When the tyres are hot the air expands and gives a false reading. It’s best to check your tyres before you set of in the morning.
- Remove the valve cap and place it somewhere where you won’t lose it.
- Press the pressure gauge onto the tyre valve and read the pressures usually in pounds per square inch.
- Either use your own tyre inflator or take the car to your local petrol station to pump up the tyres.
Happy motoring 🙂
Peter Skelton Driving School provide driving lessons in Newbury and the surrounding areas.