Throughout June we have been focussing on tyre safety and the importance of checking your tyres on a regular basis. However, as well as the regular checks, it is always crucial to do additional checks before and after long journeys, which is why the focus has been during the month leading up to the summer holidays.
Tyres are amongst the most important elements of a vehicle, and the most abused at times, and their quality can quite literally mean the difference between life and death.
However, despite all of the risks and the importance put on tyre safety, it is still anticipated that more than a million vehicles are on the roads of Spain alone with defective tyres.
The Royal Automobile Club of Spain (RACE) in collaboration with GOODYEAR recently performed more than 380,330 technical inspections of vehicles and ITV stations throughout Spain.
Of the 380,330 inspections in 14,744 cases they found tyres with very serious defects. Using that figure as a benchmark, the figure would relate to almost 4% of all of the vehicles on the roads of Spain, some 1.1 million vehicles, the majority of which are passenger cars.
However, proportionally, light vans have a higher percentage of vehicles with a total of 4.8% of all vans on the roads having serious defects.
The most common defects found on the tyres checked were related to good tyre maintenance, normally because of excessive or uneven wear.
We have looked at checking tyres already and we will offer more advice again, but the figures highlight the need to perform regular checks.
For their part, GOODYEAR have produced 100,000 information leaflets which are being distributed through ITV centres and maintenance workshops offering further advice.
Here at N332, we have spoken to our supporters at Autos Direct in San Miguel and they have agreed to check your tyres for defects for free during July, and show you the most important elements you can check on your own. All you have to do is contact Autos Direct and say that you follow N332 and they will perform the checks for you. For more information, visit their website, autosdirect.es and get your tyres checked today.
Here are their contact details…
AutosDirect SL
San Miguel de Salinas
Calle Espliego Pol Ind Lo Quilez Parc 22-23
San Miguel de Salinas
Alicante 03193
(00 34) 966 723 718