Balder tyres, big savings

Press, 3 October 1979, Page 7

Balder tyres, big savings

Nelson reporter

Substantial oil earnings could be made by reducing the existing legal minimum tyre depth from I.smm to Imm, through tyre replacement costs, the annual conference of the New Zealand Automobile Association was told in Nelson. The conference approved a Southland remit asking for the organisation’s technical committee to examine and report upon the existing car-tyre tread depth as relating to the changed oil situation, lower maximum speed limit and increasing tyre replacement costs, and the economics of fitting retreaded tyres compared with new tyres taking into account the purchase price allowance on usable casings and anticipated distance travelled.

In a note to the remit it was pointed out that, in a hypothetical reduction of o.smm, it was found that the total usage gained was 9.375 million km, or the equivalent of 312,500 tyres, giving a saving of 821 million. The oil saved was about 9.942 million litres with a saving for each car of about $lO. Thirty-two litres of oil were required to produce one new tyre compard with 14 litres to retread a tyre, said the note.

“We might, therefore, be expected to recommend to our members that wherever possible they should use their tyres with retreading in mind. However, before doing so, we must be certain that in addition to saving oil, our members are getting a fair deal in cost, usage and safety” said the note.