Vehicle owners have a large selection of winter tyres, summer tires and all-season tyres. The variety is so great that some people find it difficult to commit to tires for their vehicle. Basically, that’s not a bad thing. After all, buying a tire should always be well thought out, since aspects such as safety are included. To help you with orientation, we have put together 5 tips for buying tires for you. If you stick to all the points, you should make a good choice.
1. Choosing a good provider
One of the most common questions when buying tires is: Where can you buy tires online? That is not surprising. After all, you can save a lot of money when buying tires online. If you buy from a local dealer, you often pay more. It is not uncommon for the retailer next door to even shop online themselves. So it makes sense to look for a good provider on the Internet. Both the price and the remaining conditions should be right. Among other things, secure payment by credit card should be possible.
2. Type of tires
The choice of tires should of course depend on what the tires are used for. In the best case, these are summer tires for the summer and winter tires for the winter. The latter in particular should not be neglected, as there is no question that winter tires are necessary. An alternative to winter and summer tires are all-season tires that can be driven in both winter and summer. However, all-season tires usually perform worse than a combination of summer and winter tires. Tires that are intended for vehicle tuning are a completely different story, but it is advisable to familiarize yourself with the legal regulations here anyway.
3. Wheel size
Vehicle owners do not have unlimited options when it comes to tire size, as only a few tire sizes are approved for the respective vehicle. This information can be used by vehicle owners registration certificate part 1 and the CoC remove. The tire sizes in the registration certificates do not have to match the actual tire dimensions. However, if they do not appear either in the registration certificate or in the CoC, the tire size is not approved and there may be a high safety risk if fitted.
4. EU tire label
Since 2012, consumers have been able to read the properties of certain tires using the EU tire label. However, only three criteria are taken into account: external driving noise, wet braking properties and rolling resistance. The evaluation is based on the same principle as the energy efficiency of refrigerators. Values are assigned in classes A to G. You can find some important information about the tires on the EU tire label. When you shop online, it’s often not even necessary. Many sellers have already listed the relevant information on their websites. So you don’t have to visit a local dealer to get the information. In an emergency, all you have to do is contact support.
5. Is a change necessary?
One of the most important questions before buying a tire should be whether a change is really necessary. On the one hand, it is important whether the tires are suitable for the respective season. On the other hand, the tires should not be too old. After all, it is not possible to drive tires indefinitely. Therefore, a change is often worthwhile even if the remaining profile is still over 1.6 millimeters. With a remaining profile of more than 1.6 millimeters, you can hardly be legally prosecuted, but the rubber compound of the tire hardens over time. This in turn contributes to the fact that the braking distance worsens in the wet. In an emergency, this can make the difference between life and death. So it doesn’t hurt if you occasionally take a look at the rest of the profile.
Winter tires usually have a tread depth of 9 millimeters. Tread depth on new tires can be checked by sliding a ruler down the center of the tread between the tread blocks.
Video: how do I find the right tire?
These properties determine the tire quality
The UTCQ data, i.e. Uniform Tire Quality Grade, is located on the tire sidewall. This level gives an indication of the performance level of the tyre.
- traction: New tires should have very good wet traction. Tires with the values AA, A, B and C are permitted. AA is the highest quality level. The value of the traction also provides reliable information about the length of the braking distance.
- Wear rate: The so-called trade wear provides information about the wear rate of the tire tread compared to standard tires. If the value is 300, this means that the tire wears three times slower than the standard tyre.
- heating resistance: Temperature means the heating resistance of the tire. Motorists should pay attention to category A, because this is the highest classification. If a tire dissipates heat poorly, tire damage is the result.
- Old: You should no longer use tires that are more than 6 years old. To do this, use the date on the DOT number.