They're round, black and made of rubber. Tyres. Not the most exciting part of a car, are they? Tyres are a vital component of your vehicle however, and have a big influence on its performance.
Your tyres have to transmit all of the cars driving, steering and braking force to the road surface through four contact areas, each approximately that of a size 10 men's shoe; on all types of surfaces and in varying weather conditions.
That little bit of rubber has to do an awful lot.
You’re travelling along the highway at 100klm/hr and your engine seizes, your windscreen wipers stop or your battery dies? What happens? Generally speaking, not much. You slow down, pull over and sort the problem. And when your tyre blows out?
It can mean Game Over for you and your passengers, and anyone else who gets in the way.
So what’s riding on your tyres? More importantly, who? Please take a moment to view some of the information we have provided in this section and make sure you are making the best decisions when it comes to round, black rubber.
Tyres are high technology items that have been continually refined and improved by over 100 years of research and development. The wheel and indeed the tyre have been improved upon and these days we are riding on a great deal more than rubber, as the diagram below shows...