Are my tyres worn out?

[dsearle]

Just had an MOT and the advisory came back that I only have 1.4 legal tread left on one of the tyres. I'm just about to drive down to France which will be another 1500k on the car. Shall I change the tyre or will 1.4 legal tread last that distance?

I'm guessing that I should replace both the back tyres if I choose to replace the worn one. Is that the case?

Any help appreciated

Cheers,

Dave

[R33]

Personally I'd change them. I never comprimise on worn tyres, if there is one thing to look after and keep in good shape it's tyres. The S4 is heavy and on a long trip you don't need a dangerous blow out. I had one at 110mph a couple of months ago (on a good tyre!?) and it wasn't fun!


edit"actually saying that brakes are pretty important too "

[BlingBling]

Also stopping distances are greatly reduced and considering you are driving to and from France I#d change them. You have been advised.

[Witchfinder]

The minimum tread depth is, IIRC, 1.6mm. Tyre manufacturers and other organisations recommend you change at 2.0mm, but then again that's like Kellogg's recommending you buy a new packet of cornflakes when your old one is down to 20% full.

When you say "1.4 legal tread left," do you mean it's 1.4mm above the legal limit? If so, then you have about 3.0mm left which sounds reasonably healthy. If it's down to 1.4mm, then I thought that would be an MOT failure, as it's already below 1.6mm.

Also, you need to take into account the wear pattern across the whole of the tyre - is it more worn on one particular part of the tyre?

Tyres generally have wear markers that indicate when you should change. These are ridges inside the tread grooves. When your tyre is worn down to the top of the ridge, you should definitely change! You can also get a little tread depth meter from most motor spares shops, which is well worth the investment. They're pretty cheap.

Cheers,

Rob

[iR8V10]

I would hate having that niggle in the back of my mind, I'd change em just for peace of mind while I'm away. IMHO.

[Audidoody]

Daft newbie question time - does the S4 wear fronts or rears more ?

[elmo]

Fronts definitely for me! It's a heavy car with the engine out front. I'm on my second set of fronts and original set of rears in just over a year. All were about 5-6mm when I bought the car.