Strathclyde Tyres Blog

Firestone has launched the Firehawk SZ90µ RFT for the replacement market, the brand’s first tyre with Run-Flat Technology in Europe.

The tyre’s reinforced sidewall rubber construction enables the driver to continue driving safely if the tyre deflates or suffers a total loss of pressure, says the company.

The number of drivers over the age of 80 has now topped one million, according to information obtained by the IAM, following a freedom of information request to the DVLA.

The DVLA figures show that there are now 1,012,399 drivers over 80. There are also 122 licence holders over the age of 100, including three 105 year olds, and one 106 year old woman.

Four in ten motorists say they will use the car less in 2012 if the costs associated with driving continue to rise, according to AXA's motoring census of 2011. One in 13 say that they have already been forced to stop.

Almost half (44%) admit they enjoy driving less than they used to, largely down to the cost (68%). This is striking in comparison to 2010 figures, when cost clearly had less impact on motorists' habits (just 38% admitted they enjoyed driving less than they used to, and 38% blamed the cost).

One in seven (14.6%) of British motorists say that they will not replace the tyres on their cars until they fail an MOT or are flagged as illegal by a garage during a service, according to a new survey by VanRental.co.uk.

A further 47.8% use their car's tyres right down to the legal limit of 1.6mm before they replace them, ignoring tyre safety advice, which shows that braking distances increase steadily once tread depth gets below 3mm.