Performance tires

by TOM SMITH

Tires are arguably one of the most important components on a car. They stick the car to road and determine how well the car will handle.

What are performance tires?

Performance tires are manufactured to a higher quality than normal tires and are usually made from a softer compound. They will provide more grip and are designed to withstand greater speeds. The downside is that some performance tires will wear more quickly. This may be due to some tires having a softer compound or just coming with less tread on them in the first place.

When is the best time to purchase?

Try not to let your tires tread wear down to the bare minimum before changing them as this can be dangerous when driving in wet conditions. If your tires still have a good amount of tread left you could keep them until they have worn down or change and keep the old ones as spares.

Why do tires have grooves?

Tire grooves are there to improve grip on wet surfaces. They allow water to escape from the sides of the wheel when it presses down on the road. If the water was unable to escape there would be a layer of water remaining between the tire and the road reducing the amount of friction with the road surface. This is known as hydroplaning.

Interpreting what��s written on the tire

Example tire p215/30 r18 84v

The first letter p stands for passenger car

The first number in the sequence 215 is the tire��s width in millimetres

The second number 30 is the tire��s aspect ratio of the tire��s sidewall height to width. So this tire��s sidewall height is 30% of its width.

The third number r18 stands for radial construction and refers to the diameter of the rim that the tire can be mounted onto (18 inches).

The last number/letter 84v is the speed the tire is rated at. The higher up in the alphabet the letter, the faster the tire can go. In this example the tire is rated at v and so it can travel at 150 mph before it becomes unsafe to go any faster.