TYRES WITH STICKING POWER

Your car's tyres are vital in keeping it going where you point it, so it's worth making sure they're up to the task. We get to grips with five popular brands

- CLAIRE EVANS

MOST PEOPLE DON'T pay much attention to those four strips of black rubber between their car and the ground, but they should; that rubber is vital in keeping you safe on the road.

According to research by tyre safety charity TyreSafe, 989 UK motorists were killed in accidents caused by tyre-related problems in 2023, and 159 of them died as a result of a crash caused by defective tyres. And yet, TyreSafe's data reveals that one in five drivers have never checked their car's tyres.

It's vital to monitor the tread depth of tyres and replace them before they wear down too much. It's also crucial that you ensure they're correctly inflated; our research shows that driving on under-inflated tyres can substantially increase your car's braking distance, as well as making it far harder to control, especially in the wet.

Fundamentally, though, it's always best to choose good-quality tyres that will grip and brake well in wet and dry conditions, and that's what we're testing here. We found a difference of nearly three metres in wet-weather stopping distance between the best and poorestperforming tyres. That distance is the length of a small hatchback, and it could easily mean the difference between your car avoiding a collision or crashing into another vehicle or person.

The difference that good tyres can make to a car's handling is hugely important, too. The best tyres lose grip gradually, giving the driver the time to react and ease off the accelerator, or to steer into the skid to regain control of the car.

The worst tyres let go of the Tarmac without warning, and that means a far higher risk of your car ending up in a ditch or worse.