Your tyres are the only thing connecting your car to the road — four contact patches each about the size of your palm. Worn tyres are dangerous, illegal, and one of the most common MOT failures. The good news: checking them takes about a minute and costs nothing.
Tyres get forgotten until something goes wrong. But nearly 60% of dangerous defects spotted at MOT are tyre-related, and tread depth is a frequent cause of failure (MOT data). Here's everything you need to keep yours legal and safe.
The legal limit
In the UK, the minimum legal tyre tread depth for cars is 1.6mm, across the central three-quarters of the tyre and around its entire circumference (RAC, The AA). Drive on tyres below that and you're risking a fine of up to £2,500 per tyre and three penalty points each. On four bald tyres, that's a licence gone and a very large bill.
The 20p test
You don't need fancy gear. Grab a 20p coin:
- Push the coin into the main tread grooves of the tyre.
- If the outer band of the coin is hidden by the tread, you've got more than the minimum — you're fine.
- If you can see the outer band, your tread is getting low and the tyre should be checked by a professional.
Do this at several points across each tyre and around it, because tyres often wear unevenly. The 20p band sits at roughly 3mm, which is why it's a good early-warning check rather than waiting for the 1.6mm legal cliff-edge.
Why we say replace at 3mm, not 1.6mm: braking distances and grip in the wet drop off sharply below 3mm. Waiting until you're legally on the limit leaves you almost no safety margin — especially on wet Coventry roads in winter.
What else to look for
- Uneven wear — more wear on one edge can point to tracking/alignment or worn suspension
- Cuts, bulges or cracks — any bulge means the tyre could fail; replace it
- Correct pressures — under-inflated tyres wear faster, use more fuel and handle worse. Check them cold against the figures in your handbook or door pillar.
- Age — even tyres with plenty of tread degrade over time; the four-digit code on the sidewall tells you the week and year they were made
Uneven wear is a clue, not just a tyre problem
If one tyre's wearing on the inside or outside edge, the tyre isn't really the problem — the alignment or suspension is. Just fitting a new tyre without fixing the cause means it'll wear out the same way. We check the whole picture: tyres, tracking and the suspension components behind them.
Local Service Areas: We provide expert vehicle servicing, diagnostics, and repairs for drivers across the West Midlands. Whether you need a garage in Coventry, Solihull, Kenilworth, Berkswell, Meriden, or Balsall Common, our workshop is easily accessible.
Tyres looking worn? Get them checked in Coventry.
Tyre checks, replacements and the suspension work behind uneven wear — from £50 at our Meriden Road workshop. Book in and stay legal.
