http://www.eurekar.co.uk/articles/2017-05-15/michelin-reveals-all-about-worn-tyres
Quote:
To debunk the myth that tread depth alone is critical, the tyre maker [Michelin] has just staged a demonstration at its Ladoux test track in France to show exactly how worn tyres perform…...
According to Michelin, safety is all about general tyre performance, not just tread depth and the results from Ladoux were an eye opener.
Michelin says there is no direct link between accident levels and tread depth and has also flagged up a study by Ernst and Young which estimates that increasing minimum tread depth from the current 1.6mm [1/16 inch] to 3.0mm would cost motorists in Europe almost £5 billion.
Point taken then that better quality tyres out-perform cheaper alternatives at the limits and to back that up Michelin produced the results of tests it has carried out on 24 different sets of tyres showing the differences in stopping distances when new and worn.
"All tyres are not equal when they are new - and what our tests at Ladoux have shown us is that tyre performance is even less equal when worn," said Terry Gettys, Michelin's boss of research and development.
"In fact the differences are very much accentuated once a tyre is in the latter stages of its life. Quite surprisingly we have discovered that some tyres worn to the legal limit have a wet braking distance virtually the same as some new tyres."
According to the article, there were wet and dry braking tests, and wet and dry skidpad tests. But no mention of hydroplaning tests.
Quote:
To debunk the myth that tread depth alone is critical, the tyre maker [Michelin] has just staged a demonstration at its Ladoux test track in France to show exactly how worn tyres perform…...
According to Michelin, safety is all about general tyre performance, not just tread depth and the results from Ladoux were an eye opener.
Michelin says there is no direct link between accident levels and tread depth and has also flagged up a study by Ernst and Young which estimates that increasing minimum tread depth from the current 1.6mm [1/16 inch] to 3.0mm would cost motorists in Europe almost £5 billion.
Point taken then that better quality tyres out-perform cheaper alternatives at the limits and to back that up Michelin produced the results of tests it has carried out on 24 different sets of tyres showing the differences in stopping distances when new and worn.
"All tyres are not equal when they are new - and what our tests at Ladoux have shown us is that tyre performance is even less equal when worn," said Terry Gettys, Michelin's boss of research and development.
"In fact the differences are very much accentuated once a tyre is in the latter stages of its life. Quite surprisingly we have discovered that some tyres worn to the legal limit have a wet braking distance virtually the same as some new tyres."
According to the article, there were wet and dry braking tests, and wet and dry skidpad tests. But no mention of hydroplaning tests.