Michelin Tests Reveal Lax Tyre Care Habits

Two days of inspections conducted by Michelin in the Oxfordshire town of Banbury has highlighted the necessity for motorists to regularly check their vehicle’s tyres. More than half of the cars looked at by the Michelin team had at least one dangerously under-inflated tyre.

According to local newspaper the Banbury Guardian, 80.11 per cent of the 181 vehicles had under-inflated tyres, while the percentage of vehicles with tyres considered dangerously under-inflated was 54.70 per cent. Eight of the cars checked even had punctured tyres.

Michelin states that running on tyres inflated to 15psi below the recommended level lowers the speed at which a car will aquaplane on a wet surface by 10mph. Potential weaknesses in the tyre’s wall can also develop through the excessive build up of heat that results from under-inflation. And if this is not reason enough to check those tyres, the tyremaker adds that Over 70,000 miles, having the correct tyre pressure could save replacing two tyres.