Tyres, ground pressure and turf damage
By James Brown · Updated 6 September 2026 · 6 minute read
Turf damage comes from ground pressure and shear, not from weight alone. A wide turf tyre at the correct pressure spreads the load and marks far less than a knobbly tyre on the same machine, and most visible damage is caused by turning on the spot, braking hard and driving the same line repeatedly rather than by the vehicle simply being there.
Key takeaways
- Ground pressure, not weight, is what marks turf. Tyre width and pressure change it substantially.
- Turning on the spot tears grass. A wider arc costs seconds and saves repair.
- Wet ground is a different surface. The same route that is fine in August will rut in November.
- Repeated identical lines wear a track, which is the most common visible damage on any site.
Why the same vehicle marks one site and not another
Ground pressure is the load divided by the contact area. A wide turf tyre at a sensible pressure spreads the same weight over more grass and marks less. An aggressive all-terrain tyre concentrates it into lugs, which is exactly what you want on mud and exactly what you do not want on a green.
Soil condition does the rest. Free-draining sandy ground carries a loaded machine after rain; clay does not, and the same route that was invisible in summer becomes a rut in a wet autumn.
The three habits that cause most damage
Turning on the spot. A stationary turn tears grass rather than compressing it, and it is the single most recognisable form of buggy damage on any site.
Hard braking and sharp acceleration, both of which shear the surface rather than roll over it.
Driving the same line every day. Even a light machine wears a visible track if it always takes the identical route, and the answer costs nothing: vary the line.
- Turn on the move, not on the spot
- Brake and accelerate gently on grass
- Vary the route rather than wearing one line
- Stay off soft ground rather than testing it
Costing one of these against what is already in the yard? Every model we list carries its payload, bed size, range and gradient, so you can compare them on the same terms.
Specifying for the surface
For maintained grass, turf tyres are the answer and the rest is driving. For mixed ground with slopes and mud, an all-terrain tyre and a higher clearance machine make sense, and you accept more marking on the mown areas.
Where a site is genuinely both, some operators run turf tyres and route around the rough ground rather than the other way about. That is usually cheaper than repairing greens.
Common questions
- Will an electric machine damage turf less than a diesel
- Only to the extent that it weighs less. Weight and tyres decide ground pressure; the power source does not, though the smoother torque delivery of an electric drive can help avoid wheel spin.
- What pressure should the tyres be
- The figure on the machine's own plate or in its handbook. Under-inflation increases sidewall damage and over-inflation concentrates pressure into a narrower contact patch, so the correct number is worth checking rather than guessing.
See the utility range
Electric utility vehicles listed with payload, bed dimensions, range and gradient, so the comparison is like for like rather than brochure against brochure.
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