When you set off on a long car journey , how often do you check your tyres to ensure they are road safe? Driving with faulty tyres can create so many problems to a vehicle. Travelling in rural country areas, Scotland for example, can be even more tricky with unsafe tyres.
At the start of the summer holidays , my OH and I took our boys (and our pet dog!) on a trip to the Scottish Highlands. It was a fair old trek from North Devon, as it took 12 hours to reach our holiday cottage. We drove our trusty T5 camper van, and before we left home we did the usual checks of the oil, water and diesel and our because the van had recently had its MOT, the tyres were all checked and in fact two had been replaced.
However, we actually had an issue with two of our tyres while we were in Scotland, in the middle of nowhere! Luckily for us we were able to get to a village garage who were able to sort us out until we could reach a larger town and a better equipped tyre specialist.
It is imperative to have good tyres in somewhere like Scotland, and even more so in the Highlands where we were holidaying, owing to how narrow and winding they are. Not to mention how rural it is and how far it is from one big town to another.
Tyre care is always neglected but it is important, I mean it could potentially save lives. As I mentioned earlier, here are those 5 tips for ensuring you have safe tyres when driving in Scotland:
5 Tips for ensuring you have safe tyres when driving in Scotland:
1) Tyres determine your fuel consumption , and therefore, bad tyres put a strain on the vehicle you are driving meaning that your car needs more fuel
2) When driving in Scotland (Dundee, Stirling, Fife) it is essential you know where you can purchase new tyres from. The authenticity of the tyre fitter is also an important consideration. We had to google tyre fitterson our mobile phone from the side of the road when we were searching . However, with a bit of planning you can have a number saved in your phone ready to dial should you need to. You can easily get tyres from Dundee, plus you can also order them online from Fife Autocentre.
3) Tyre Health keeps you safe, it keeps your passengers safe and it keeps other road users safe. Ultimately, tread depth has to be followed otherwise there are legal penalties
4) Using the correct tyres will assist your vehicle to perform to optimum level. This will not only save you time but money too.
5) Maintaining the correct pressure in tyres is also crucial, because over inflation and under inflation can happen and will have serious repercussions. Under inflated tyres can overheat, and over inflated tyres can lead to poor vehicle handling on the road. Not only that, but it will cost you more money as these tyres will need replacing more often than ones that have the correct pressures maintained.
Follow these guidelines, and you will ensure safe driving and money savings when travelling in Scotland.
