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Motoring news

'Lack of air' costs motorists millions

28/05/2010

Each year, UK motorists are wasting £440 million in fuel due to under-inflating their tyres, according to manufacturer Michelin.

And in addition to the financial cost, Michelin is highlighting the environmental impact of wasting the estimated 370 million litres of fuel. It says that this results in one million extra tonnes of CO2 being released into the atmosphere unnecessarily.

The company is launching its Fill Up With Air campaign to test tyres across the UK until October.

After checking more than 5,000 cars last year in its 2009 campaign, Michelin based its calculations for the possible savings on 30.3 million cars - each driving 12,000 miles at 35mpg, and on fuel costing £1.20 per litre. According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, the number of cars on UK roads fell last year to 31,035,791 - the first annual fall since the Second World War.

Head of communications Peter Snelling said checking tyre pressure regularly "is a matter of life and death".

"A large percentage of motorists in this country are simply not taking tyre maintenance seriously," he added.

"If all the cars in the UK were running on correctly inflated tyres, then motorists would save a considerable amount of money and as a result, CO2 emissions would also be reduced."

And the problem of waste could be even greater, according to not-for-profit organisation TyreSafe, which aims to raise awareness about the dangers of worn or defective tyres.

It warned last month that around a third of UK drivers could be using under-inflated tyres - putting the cost of wasted fuel at some £700 million.

It cited a survey of more than 4,500 vehicles which was carried out by a member last year. It found that 36% were driving around on tyres considered to be unsafe - under-inflated by 8psi or more.

Under-inflated tyres are prone to overheating, which can cause sudden failure and lead to accidents.

A spokesperson for the Environmental Transport Association focused on the environmental damage. "Everyone wants to save money, but of greater concern [is that] incorrectly inflated tyres in Britain result in around 1 million tonnes of CO2 emissions," they added.

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