Our customers at Megatyre, Browns Bay, North Shore, Auckland, often ask us if their tyres are likely to comply with Warrant of Fitness regulations; the main considerations for wof compliance being:
Warrant of fitness tyre rules
– That all puncture repairs comply with regulations with no illegal string repairs, no sidewall repairs and no repairs too close to the sidewall.
– Can I mix tyres?
Four brand new high quality tyres will always be the best way to go, but you can mix and match tyres on an axle provided both tyres have matching specifications in terms of wof regulations.
For example, both tyres on the same axle must have the same style/type of pattern. e.g. 2 directionals or 2 non directionals. You cannot have a directional tyre on one side and a non directional tyre on the other.
Also, the load ratings must be within 2 numbers of the tyre on the other side of any given axle. E.g. if the existing tyre has a load rating of 82, you can fit a tyre of any load rating ranging from 80 to 84 to the other side of the axle. Wof regulations permit you to have, for example, 2 directional tyres at the front and 2 asymmetric tyres at the rear but the 2 different tyre pattern tyres must never be on the same axle.
That snow tyres can only be fitted as a set of 4 and that the tread depth must be 4 mm or higher. They can not be mixed with standard road tyres.
– Minimum tyre tread depths
The minimum legal tread depth limit is 1.5 mm for car and van tyres. However, many agencies change their tyres at 3mm and we would recommend replacing your tyres at or before 2mm. (note: Tyre performance in wet weather deteriorates when tread depth is below 4 mm).
Megatyre, Browns Bay, North Shore, Auckland. www.megatyre.co.nz
Great read thanks, it helped to explain a few mysteries about my last wof test
Happy we could help
Hi there if you have 4 tyres that are rotational but dont hav a inside or outside on the sidewall does it matter which rim it goes on.
If your tyres are directional, they must be fitted with the tread pattern running forward. There should be arrows on the sidewalls to guide you in this.
Brian.
What about asymmetric tyres; is it essential that the work “outside” is always on the outside?
Yes, the word “outside” must always appear on the outside tyre sidewall when using asymmetric tyres.
Very useful thanks. Was searching for a replacement tyre and this will help to narrow down the options.
Happy we could help!
if you have a pair of directional and non directional tyres on a car does it matter what way round they are for the way the car will handle?
Hi Matt
I presume you are saying that you have a pair of non directional tyres on one axle and a pair of directionals on the other. If so, there is no need to put a particulat tread type on one axle or the other.
Just put the tyres in best condition on the back.
directional and non directional tires? can you please in a dumb mans turms explain please
Hi Quentin
Ok, directional tyres have a tread pattern that runs in one direction and these tyres must be fitted on the vehicle with the direction of the tread, i suppose you could call it the sharp end, facing the front. Directionals always have an arrow on the sidewall showing the direction of the tread and will often have the word “rotation” beside the arrow. Drectional tyres revolutionised the tyre industry 10 to 12 years ago and represented a major advance in road holding, especially on wet roads.
Non directional tyres, at Megatyre we often call thse “symmetric or symmetrical, have a tread that is the same in both directions meaning they can be fitted on the rim and car in either way. Non directionals are the traditional type of tyre but a good quality tyre of this type can still do an excellent job.
At the risk of confusing matters, I feel I should mention there is a third tyre type, “Asymmetric Tyres”. They have been with us for about 5 years now and have truly revolutionised the tyre world. Each part of the tyre tread has been tuned for its location to maximise road holding; for example, the outside of the tread will have a diferent pattern to tread on the inside of the car. Asymmetric tyres tend to have excellent road holding without the noise and discomfort associated with some directionals. They seem to be taking over from directionals though some directionals still do a great job. e.g. Hankook K110 V12 Evo.
Hope this helps
Brian
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I’m gonna watch out for it.
Cheers!
Can I put slightly narrower Tyres on the rear of my fed car? (195/50r15 on the front, 185/50r15 or 55r15 wide on the rear) so they clear the shocks rather than fitting spacers?
Hi Corey
I think the best, and obvious answer here is that best course of action would be to do the job properly and fit shims in accordance with wof rules. Also, in instances where people are going to have different sizes front and rear, it is usual and best practice to fit the smaller tyres to the front. I guess a tyre only 10 mm narrower at the rear is not going to make a lot of difference but before proceeding you should check that this is ok with wof rules.
Peter
Can I have – on the same axle – a 215/55/17 “Dunlop SP Sport 270” and a Hankook 215/55/17 K415 ?
Hello Alex
We do not sell Dunlops so we have no information about them. If you could tell me your tyres load and speed rating, I would be able to tell you if it is compatible.
John
Thanks for the reply. The load indices and speed ratings are: 93V for the Dunlop tyre and 94V for the Hankook – they are within 2 points of each other and are likely to be compatible in this respect. I was, however, wondering about all the other requirements stipulated in http://vehicleinspection.nzta.govt.nz/virms/in-service-wof-and-cof/general/tyres,-wheels-and-hubs/tyres-and-wheels
Hi Alex
a mix of 93 and 94 load rating tyres on the same axle would be wof compliant provided the other tyre is a symmetric pattern like the Hankook K415. Given that I have never seen your current tyre/s, I can not comment as to the other stipulations
John
Can I put car tyres on my boat trailer it’s a single axle or do I have to have 8 ply
Hello Vince
there is no problem using 4, 6 or 8 ply tyres on a trailer so long as the total load does not exceed the tyres load rating. Just tell me the maximum weight of your trailer and load and tyre size and I will tell you which tyre is appropriate. However, as a general advisory, 6 and 8 ply tyres do have stronger and tougher sidewalls and are more rigid, so they can be more appropriate for trailer especially if you tend to drive over kerbs and very rough ground etc.
Peter
I just purchased a toyota surf with brand new 33×12.5×15 archilles desert xmt’s on it. However they stick slightly out the side of the vehicles guards. Is this going to cause me any issues with wof? If so I’m glad I’m not the one who paid to put them on
Hello Ryan
You may have a problem come warrant of fitness time as tyres are not meant to extend past the wheel arch. But you may be ok if there is only an extremely minor amount of tyre sticking out; if so, it would come down to a judgement call on the part of the WOF tester.
Peter
can you use different tyre patterns on a trailer for a wof
Hello Derek
yes, you can have different patterns, but the tyre sizes must be exactly the same, the load rating has to be within 2 digits and both tyres must be of the same construction/type. eg. asymmetric, symmetric, directional, 4 ply or light truck.
Brian
I need your help – I had a screw in my tyre, through the tread, yesterday I got a puncture repair done on it, I took it home and put the wheel back on the car. Now today when I drive it, it makes a slight noise when driving – its only at low speed(under 50kph) and I notice that the noise stops when I go around right hand corners(wheel is rear left). the noise is a sort of thump….thump……thump noise once per wheel revolution.
Is there something wrong with the puncture repair? they put a plug in it – I’ve had puncture repairs many times over the years but never had this problem before
Hello Phillip
I have never heard of a puncture repair causing a noise before; though I guess there is a very slight chance of a noise of the mushroom patch making a noise if it was not cut close to flush with the tyre.
Maybe the tyre has sustained some damage due to under inflation or some other factor? Why not take it back to the tyre shop who did the repair; most of us are happy to talk issues like through with our customers.
Brian
If you have alloy wheels, and the tyre shop has used the new stick on wheel weights on the inside of the rim, it is possible they are hitting the brake caliper as the wheel goes round. Although this tends to make more of a tink sound rather than a thump.
Hello Phillip
yes, it is possible the weights on your wheel are hitting the brake caliper. Its easy to confirm ir disprove this, just jack the corner concerned up and rotate the wheel by hand. I you can see/hear the weight hitting the brake caliper, then you have solved the mystery!
Brian
Can my front tyres be of higher profile than the rear ones (same diameter and width)?
Such a tyre set up would probably be WOF compliant, but logically you should have the higher profile tyres at the rear. You need to check this out with your WOF tester before spending any money; they will have full details of your vehicle and will be in a better position to advise you.
Brian
I have discovered that i have directional tyres on the left side of my vehicle and symmetrical on the right, i note that this means that it will not be of WOF standard, on looking at the WOF advisory page it say you cant mix tyres across the same axle, but it doesn’t say why and is it dangerous? Thanks
Hi Tina
the construction of Symmetric and Asymmetric tyres is entirely different and as a consequence they perform differently, especially in emergency situations. Assuming they all have wof compliant load rating matches, it is just a case of putting the symmetric tyres on one axle and the asymmetric tyres on the other.
Brian
Hi there I just had a warrant done on my car and it was failed becaise one of the tyres had flat spots.
That is the first time that I have ever heard of that, apart from that it have lots of tread depth and the side walls are ok.
Can they fail me on that as I cant find reference to it anywhere
Hi Steven
yes, a WOF inspector can refuse a warrant due to tyres with flat spots. I do not recall the exact grounds, but it would be something like non complying and/or unsafe tyre etc.
Brian