If you follow me on Instagram you will have noticed that we have recently treated ourselves to a new car. I'm really pleased with it as it has lots of new features which make my life a lot easier when I am driving. Having a new car though doesn't mean that you should forget the basics.
Autumn is drawing near and winter will be on us before we know it. It will be darker and wetter as we are driving around and we need to make sure that our tyres are safe.
(Photo credit: Melodi2 at Morguefile.com)
Did you know that having the incorrect tyres causes a significant amount of car accidents every year? If the tread is too worn your braking distance is increased and it will take you longer to stop. Even more so if it is dark and wet and possibly icy.
Having the wrong tyres on your car can also have a negative impact upon it's performance and also it's emissions which is bad for the environment.
Did you know that from October until March you are safer switching to winter tyres? Honestly this is not something I had ever thought of before but once the weather gets to below 7 degrees it makes the tyres harden. Winter tyres are specially made to help combat this and tests have shown that a car driving at 60mph on a wet road at 5°C stopped five metres shorter when fitted with winter weather tyres. That's definitely made me think about getting winter tyres fitted as the weather gets colder.
So, while we have a relatively new car, it is still important to check the tyres regularly to make sure that we are as safe as we can be when we are driving, especially because we have children in the car.
As a woman, I must admit that I do find it a little daunting going to the garage for things, tyres included, which is really silly as it is an easy thing to do and they can change them while you wait. You can buy tyres online now though and if in doubt go to a large chain garage as they are less likely to rip you off!
(Photo credit: Jusben on Morguefile.com)
If you are looking to save some money, looking online before you buy can be your best bet. Point S is a great site for car tyres online where you can just put in your vehicle registration number and it will tell you which tyres you need. You can also check out where your local branch is too.
It's so easy there really is no excuse to be driving with worn or incorrect tyres this autumn and winter.
Disclosure - this is a collaborative post.
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