DECEMBER 2018 | 35
Motoring
Read online at www.proinstaller.co.uk
CAN YOU READ A REG
FROM 20 METRES?
family cars. This check is a mandatory
part of the driving test and there have
been calls for drivers to be re-tested
at 70.
• Since 2013, police have had the power
to request a licence be immediately
revoked under Cassie’s Law, named
after 16-year-old Cassie McCord. The
student was killed in 2011 when an
elderly driver swerved onto a pave-
ment – the 87-year-old had failed a
police eyesight test just days before
but refused to surrender his licence.
With information from the police, DVLA,
insurers and finance houses, mycarcheck.
com holds comprehensive data on every
vehicle on UK roads – things that buy-
ers should be aware of before making an
offer.
Following the worrying police report
that 5% of drivers can’t read a number
plate from 20metres, mycarcheck.com
has highlighted key facts about the basic
eyesight test… and confirmed that its own
staff can all pass it.
• Between 1 March and 20 August
2018, West Midlands Police checked
the vision of 81 motorists as part of
Operation Close Pass, a campaign to
protect cyclists from dangerous over-
takes. 4 of the 81 couldn’t read a car
registration from approx. 20m.
• UK law requires drivers to be able to
read a post-2001 number plate in
good daylight from 20m (just over
65ft), about the length of two and a
half Routemaster buses or four to five
IS YOUR CAR SUITABLY ATTYRED FOR THE WINTER WEATHER?
We humans are quick
to wrap ourselves up as
soon as the thermometer
falls, yet some British driv-
ers assume their car tyres
will maintain the same level
of performance irrespective
of the temperature. They
won’t, as the majority are
‘summer’ specification prod-
ucts, the tread compound
of which tends to harden
at ambient temperatures
below +7°C, causing a no-
table reduction in grip. One
thing’s for sure, as soon as
the winter really bites, the
countryside will once again
be littered with abandoned
cars, as we never seem
ready for the inevitable.
This situation is entirely
avoidable, as the solution
is quick and easy – ie, as
recommended by TyreSafe
(the award-winning tyre
safety organisation), to fit
‘all-weather’ products ongo-
ing, or full ‘winter’ specifi-
commercial vehicles with
the best in traction and
handling in snowy and/or
icy conditions. It comes in a
choice of 18 sizes.
cation tyres from now until
March next year. Happily,
following the introduction
of its new WinterCraft WS71
offering, Kumho has the
perfect range of products
to help UK motorists in
this matter, whatever they
drive.
Additional
information and tips
re winter driving
All-season - car
The Kumho Solus HA31 is
the ideal choice for drivers
of all sizes of passenger car
who seek optimum per-
formance and reliability in
all weathers and, following
numerous additions, is now
available in no less than 70
sizes.
Winter - car
Primarily intended for me-
dium and large-sized family
and executive cars, the Win-
terCraft WP71 is available
in an extensive range of
sizes from 205/55R16 to
275/35R19, and in V and W
speed ratings. There is also
a choice of four different
run-flat sizes including
225/55R17 and 245/45R18.
For smaller vehicles Kumho
offers the aesthetical-
ly-pleasing new-generation
WinterCraft WP51 - again,
there is a run-flat version in
195/55R16 size.
Winter - SUV
WinterCraft WS71 - this
hi-tech newcomer is aimed
directly at the burgeoning
SUV market. Initially avail-
able in a choice of 24 sizes
and H and V speed ratings,
it even boasts innovative
hourglass-shaped wear
indicators for quicker, easier
tread depth assessment. The
I’Zen RV KC15 is the ideal
choice for such perennially
popular 4x4s as the Range
Rover and BMW X5.
Winter – van
PorTran CW51 is yet an-
other relatively new Kumho
pattern that provides light
All members of Kumho’s
cold weather tyre range
feature both M+S (Mud &
Snow) and the desirable
3pMSF (3 Peaks Moun-
tain Snow Flake) sidewall
markings. The treads of all
the company’s cold weather
products contain
additional silica in order
to keep them supple in
lower temperatures, and
additional ‘sipes’ (small
lateral grooves) to help best
maintain contact with the
road in wet, icy and snowy
conditions.
Whatever tyres are fitted,
when driving in wintery
conditions it is doubly
important for their tread
to be of ample depth, and
for them to be inflated to
the recommended pres-
sures. They also need to be
in good overall condition
and free of such potential-
ly dangerous damage as
bulges, cracked sidewalls,
abnormally worn shoulders
etc.
As their name implies,
‘all-season’ tyres are a com-
promise and designed to
safely cope with conditions
all the year round. ‘Winter’
ones on the other hand
are intended solely for the
colder seasons, so need to
be paired with an equiva-
lent set of summer covers
- some dealers even offer a
‘hotel’ facility whereby win-
ter rubber can be stored in
summer and vice versa.
Full details of all Kumho’s
cold weather offerings
and their stockists can be
found at www.kumhotyre.
co.uk.