Why CM contributor Craig Cheetham is happy to use part-worns

I have a young family and I’m quite fastidious about maintaining my cars, so my choosing to fit part-worn tyres to some of them was a conscious decision based not just on price, but the best combination of safety and my budget.

For example, new Bridgestone Turanza tyres for my Jaguar XJ6 cost £105 a corner new, yet that’s the rubber I have fitted. I bought them secondhand from a part-worn tyre dealer, Fishers of March

(fishersofmarch.co.uk). I’ve used them for some time and trust them because the owner is polite, courteous, professional and only supplies high-quality branded tyres direct from Germany.

The cost of these Grade A tyres with 5mm of tread is £35 each – or about £10 cheaper than the nearest equivalent unbranded budget tyre. I’ve driven old XJ6S on cheap rubber before and, believe me, there’s a very good argument for using a high-quality European tyre, especially in a country where it rains a lot. I had a similar experience with my MG ZS, to which I fitted part-worn Continental Sportcontact High Performance tyres, which are infinitely better than the Triangle-branded budget tyres it had beforehand, which the previous owner had fitted new. The first time I drove it in the wet, I knew they had to go.

Personally, I find it astonishing that most drivers in the UK buy tyres as a distress purchase, based on budget alone. As someone who knows my way around a car, I’d happily fit part-worns from a trusted source, but more as an accessible way to get my hands on the best tyres available rather than pinching the very last penny. At the same time, if a non-car-savvy relative were buying tyres and I couldn’t go with them to ensure that what they bought was good enough, I’d recommend they buy new for peace of mind.