The Dangers of Mismatched Tyres (Infographic)
The Dangers of Mismatched Tyres (Infographic)
Sometimes you might have individual components which are fine in their own right but don’t work well in tandem with each other. For instance, a billionaire owner of a football club may commission the signings of multiple big-name stars to play in the same team, but if there are personality clashes, or if one proves to be a misfit, the collective won’t perform to the best of its capabilities.
The same principle applies to fitting tyres to a vehicle. The four tyres you put on might all be in perfect working order, but if there is a discrepancy in tyre size, manufacturer or tread pattern, for example, the car will not achieve optimum performance.
Indeed, mismatching tyres could have a far graver effect than just hampering your car’s performance. If road conditions are difficult, the car could react inconsistently, which is likely to increase the probability of an accident occurring. Also, you could place unnecessary strain on your vehicle’s drivetrain, which might leave you with some very expensive repairs further down the line.
You may ask, if only one of your tyres is problematic, whether there’s a need to replace the entire set, as it might seem impractical to replace three tyres that are working perfectly. You might be able to replace just one tyre if you are sure that the new tyre matches all the key characteristics of the other tyres on the car, although safety guidelines would suggest that the best option is to replace all the tyres to ensure consistency.
The infographic below from First Aid Wheels explains how tyres can be mismatched and why you should always have consistent characteristics between every tyre on your vehicle.
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