Use this guide when tyres are near the legal limit, damaged or old, or a garage has told you they need replacing. Have your car's handbook, a torch, a coin or tread depth gauge, and your current tyres to look at ready.
Step by step
Check whether you really need tyres now
The legal minimum tread depth for cars in the UK is 1.6 mm across the central three-quarters of the tread, around the whole tyre, but grip in the wet falls well before that. Check depth in several places with a gauge, and look for cuts, bulges, cracking or exposed cord, any of which means replacing the tyre regardless of tread. Uneven wear on one edge suggests a wheel alignment problem to fix at the same time.
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