Official partner Bridgestone will team up with its retail dealer network First Stop to provide tread depth checks at the European Tour event at The Grove from October 13 to 16, to coincide with Tyre Safety Month 2016.
As part of the world’s number one tyre and rubber company’s presence in Hertfordshire, daily tyre checks across the event’s main car parks will take place through First Stop. And if national statistics from the TyreSafe organisation are anything to go by, hundreds of tyres might well be below the legal limit.
Bridgestone is continually calling on motorists to check that their tyre tread depths are above the minimum legal limit of 1.6mm – roughly the same as the rim of a 20p piece – after TyreSafe revealed that 10 million vehicles could be driven with an illegal tyre across the UK.
The research, from a survey of 340,000 tyres, revealed more than 27% of tyres were already illegal when they were replaced, equating to more than one-in-four of the 37 million cars and light commercial vehicles.
First Stop, currently operating with 72 centres, will be ready to check each tyre at The Grove, utilising state-of-the-art, handheld scanning devices and drive over ramps, which can instantly check for tread depth levels and wheels out of alignment.
If a car is in need of a replacement tyre on the day, First Stop’s team of fast fitters will be on hand to change the product, along with a discount and an official British Masters supported by Sky Sports shoebag.
Any other drivers will be given a discount on their next DriveGuard tyre purchase, while TyreSafe leaflets will also be handed out to coincide with Tyre Safety Month.
This offer coincides with Bridgestone’s award winning DriveGuard tyre, which allows motorists to keep on driving for 50 miles, at speeds up to 50mph, following a puncture.
Bridgestone’s partnership with the British Masters supported by Sky Sports is the top level of a three-tiered sponsorship which included the introduction of the DriveGuard Trophy for amateur golfers and the title sponsorship of the Bridgestone Challenge at Heythrop Park at the end of August.
All three were interlinked with the winners of the DriveGuard Trophy actually playing in the pro-am at The Grove, to realise the company’s aim of engaging with players across all levels of the sport.
First Stop’s partner manager Mike Glover said: “We will be at The Grove to provide free tyre safety checks, with the sole aim of aiding safer driving experiences for motorists and their passengers, where applicable.
“We hope that every tyre we check will be fully legal and safe, but we know that simple checks aren’t always carried out, which is where we will hope to assist.
“We will check each vehicle as they enter the car park while the driver is behind the wheel. It will take a matter of seconds and if we do find a tyre that is approaching or below the 1.6mm tread limit, we will let him or her know, with details of their nearest garage.”
Tyre Safety Month www.tyresafe.org
First Stop www.firststop.co.uk