MOT Question. How many miles left in a tyre close to the legal limit?

[SweatyBetty1234]

MOT back in December. Car passed but advisory that rear tyres both close to legal limit. Since MOT I have done 2000 miles.

I know that I should take it down to the garage to check, which I will.

However, just wondered if someone can give me a general idea of how quickly you need to get tyres changed when tread close to legal limit.

Thanks in advance.

Depends what "close" means. Really it depends on your weekly mileage. I do very little, so if someone told me I had 2000 miles left that would be a good few months for me.

I think 2000 miles is quite a lot in that time, so I'd go next week to get them checked again.

Do you have a 20p coin to hand? www.tyresafe.org/20p-test/

I will try the 20p trick . Many thanks.

Most modern tyres have little raised bits inside the tread to indicate the legal minimum depth; if they're no longer inside the tread then it's past time for new tyres.

duckduckgo.com/?t=ffsb&q=tyre+tread+indicator&iax=images&ia=images

Minimum is 1.6mm in uk. In Germany it’s 3mm. Many germans then sell their 3mm tyres secondhand to uk.

Do you mean "how many miles before it becomes illegal" or "how many more miles before it significantly affects performance especially in wet or icy weather, increasing stopping distance and making loss of control more likely"?

I would say if you were close to 1.6mm 2000 miles ago, they're probably under by now. www.rac.co.uk/drive/advice/tyres/checking-tyre-tread/ But even if they're not, you're more at risk than with new tyres.

If they’re under 3mm it’s time to seriously consider renewing them. New tyres are usually fitted to the rear and then moved to the front once the fronts are due for replacement. (Unless you have a staggered tyre setup)