Key takeaways
- A loaded car on a long bank holiday drive asks far more of its tyres, so a five-minute check before you leave is time well spent.
- Check tread, pressure, sidewalls and the spare while the car is cold on the driveway, not after you have set off.
- Set tyres to the higher laden pressure listed on your door placard, because a full boot, roof box and passengers add real weight.
- The legal tread minimum is 1.6mm, but most safety bodies advise replacing at around 3mm for wet grip on motorway journeys.
Bank holiday weekends mean packed cars, long drives and some of the busiest roads of the year. Your tyres carry all of that extra weight at sustained motorway speeds, often in changeable weather. A quick check on the driveway before you leave is the easiest way to avoid a breakdown that turns a getaway into a write-off. Here is a five-minute routine that covers everything that matters.
Why check your tyres before a bank holiday trip?
You should check before a bank holiday trip because a fully loaded car on a long, fast drive puts far more strain on tyres than your everyday commute. Extra passengers, luggage and a roof box add hundreds of kilograms, and motorway speed builds heat. The UK legal tread minimum is 1.6mm, but worn or soft tyres are most likely to fail exactly when loaded and hot.
Bank holidays also bring some of the heaviest traffic of the year, so a roadside failure means long delays for you and everyone behind you. Five minutes before you set off is far cheaper than a recovery wait with a packed car. It is the single most useful thing you can do for a safe, smooth journey.
How do you check tread depth quickly?
The fastest tread check is the 20p test. Push a 20p coin into the main grooves at several points across each tyre. If the outer band of the coin is hidden, you are likely above the legal limit; if you can see it, the tread is getting low and the tyre needs attention before a long drive.
Check the inner, middle and outer grooves, because tyres rarely wear evenly. A tyre can look fine on the outside while the inner edge has worn smooth from an alignment or pressure fault. For a long motorway run, aim higher than the bare legal limit. Most manufacturers and safety bodies recommend replacing at around 3mm, because wet braking falls off sharply below that. Our full guide on how to check your tyre tread depth covers gauges and wear bars.
What pressure should a loaded car run?
A loaded car should run the higher laden pressure listed on your placard, not the everyday figure. Look inside the driver's door shut, on the fuel filler flap or in the handbook, where most cars list a separate pressure for a full load or motorway driving. A heavy boot, roof box and passengers all increase the weight the tyres must support.
Check pressures cold, before you drive, because air expands as the tyres warm and gives a falsely high reading. Set every tyre to the laden figure, and remember to bring them back to the standard pressure once the car is empty again. Our guide on how to check and set your tyre pressure explains where to find the right number for your car.
| The 5-minute check | What you are looking for |
|---|---|
| Tread depth | Above 3mm ideally, never below 1.6mm; even across the tyre |
| Pressure (cold) | Set to the laden figure on your door placard |
| Sidewalls | No bulges, cuts, splits or deep cracking |
| Tread surface | No nails, screws or embedded debris |
| Spare or kit | Inflated, in date, and the kit is present and sealed |
What sidewall damage should you look for?
Look for any bulge, blister, deep cut or split in the sidewall. A bulge means the internal structure is damaged, often from a pothole or kerb, and the tyre can blow out without warning at speed. Sidewall damage cannot be repaired under BS AU 159, so a bulged tyre always means a replacement before you travel.
Run your hand around each sidewall and look for fine cracking or crazing in the rubber, which points to ageing. This matters most on a second car or caravan that sits unused, where rubber perishes faster than the tread wears. Also scan the tread face for nails or screws picked up since your last drive, which can cause a slow puncture once the car is loaded and warm.
Is your spare ready to use?
Your spare needs checking too, because it ages and loses pressure sitting unused in the boot. A space-saver or full-size spare can be soft or perished exactly when you need it. Check its pressure and condition before you leave, and confirm the jack, wheel brace and locking wheel-nut key are all present and in the car.
Many newer cars carry a sealant and inflator kit instead of a spare. If yours does, check the sealant is in date, as it expires, and that the canister is sealed. Either way, knowing what you have before you set off is far better than discovering a missing tool on a hard shoulder with a packed car and a long queue forming behind you.
Found a problem before you leave?
If a tyre is worn, soft that keeps dropping, or damaged, do not gamble on the journey. A pre-trip check is only useful if you act on it. Our wider tyre safety checklist before a long drive covers lights, fluids and loading too. If you find a problem on the day, Fast Tyre brings mobile tyre fitting to your home or roadside across London and central England, usually within 30 to 60 minutes, so a tyre issue need not cancel your weekend.
Frequently asked questions
Check tread depth, pressure, sidewall condition, the tread surface for nails, and your spare or repair kit. Do it on a cold car before you load up. Set pressures to the laden figure on your door placard, because a full car and roof box add significant weight.
Yes. Most cars list a higher laden pressure on the door placard for a full load or motorway driving. Extra passengers, luggage and a roof box increase the weight the tyres support, so set the higher figure cold before you leave and return to standard once empty.
Legally you can use a tyre to 1.6mm, but for a long, fast, loaded drive aim higher. Most manufacturers and safety bodies advise replacing at around 3mm, because wet braking and aquaplaning resistance fall off sharply below that, which matters most on a wet motorway.
Walk round the cold car: do the 20p test on each tyre, look and feel along every sidewall for bulges or cuts, scan the tread for nails, set pressures to the laden figure, and confirm the spare and tools are present. Five minutes covers all of it.
Do not drive on it. A bulge, deep cut or a tyre that keeps losing air is a replacement, not a risk to take on a long drive. A mobile fitter can come to your home and replace it on the spot, often within an hour, so you still get away.