12-2For U.S.A.
The following information has b een c omp iled ac c ord i
ng to Cod e of Fed -
eral Reg ulations “Title 49, Part 575 ”.
Uniform tire quality grading standards
This information ind ic ates the relative p erformanc e of p asseng er c ar tires
in the area of tread wear, trac tion, and temp erature resistanc e. This is to
aid the c onsumer in making an informed c hoic e in th e p urc hase of tires.
Quality g rad es c an b e found where ap p lic ab le on the tire sid ewall b e-
tween the tread should er and maximum sec tion wid th. For examp le:
Treadwear 200 Traction AA Temperature A
The q uality g rad es ap p ly to new p neumatic tires for use on p asseng er
c ars. However, they d o not ap p ly to d eep tread , win ter typ e snow tires,
sp ac e-saver or temp orary use sp are tires, tires wit h nominal rim d iame-
ters of 12 inc hes or less, or to some limited p rod u c tion tires.
DOT quality grades – All p asseng er c ar tires must c onfirm to Fed eral
Safety Req uirements in ad d ition to these g rad es.
Treadwear
The tread wear g rad e is a c omp arative rating b ased o n the wear rate of
the tire when tested und er c ontrolled c ond itions on a sp ec ified g overn-
ment test c ourse.
For examp le, a tire g rad ed 150 would wear one and o ne-half (1-1/2)
times as well on the g overnment c ourse as a tire g r ad ed 100. The rela-
tive p erformanc e of tires d ep end s up on the ac tual c ond itions of their
use, however, and may d ep art sig nific antly from the norm d ue to varia-
tions in d riving hab its, servic e p rac tic es and d iff erenc es in road c harac -
teristic s and c limate. Traction AA, A, B, C
The trac tion g rad es, from hig hest to lowest, are AA , A, B and C. Those
g rad es rep resent the tire ’s ab ility to stop on wet p avement as measured
und er c ontrolled c ond itions on sp ec ified g overnment test surfac es of as-
Consumer information and Reporting safety defects12-3
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CONTINUED –
p halt and c onc rete. A tire marked C may have p oor t
rac tion p erfor-
manc e.
WARNING
The traction grade assigned to this tire is based on straightahead
braking traction tests, and does not include acceleration, corner-ing, hydroplaning, or peak traction characteristics.
Temperature A, B, C
The temp erature g rad es are A (the hig hest), B and C , rep resenting the
tire ’s resistanc e to the g eneration of heat and its ab il ity to d issip ate heat
when tested und er c ontrolled c ond itions on a sp ec if ied ind oor lab oratory
test wheel. Sustained hig h temp erature c an c ause th e material of the tire
to d eg enerate and red uc e tire life, and exc essive t emp erature c an lead
to sud d en tire failure. The g rad e C c orresp ond s to a level of p erfor-
manc e whic h all p asseng er c ar tires must meet und er the Fed eral Motor
Vehic le Safety Stand ard No. 109. Grad es B and A rep resent hig her lev-
els of p erformanc e on the lab oratory test wheel tha n the minimum re-
q uired b y law.
WARNING
The temperature grade for this tire is established for a tire that is
properly inflated and not overloaded. Excessive speed, underinflation, or excessive loading, either separately or in combina-tion, can cause heat buildup and possible tire failure.
