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Loading Your Vehicle
It is the responsibility of the Final Stage
manufacturer to install a Certification label on
your vehicle. This label shows how much weight
your vehicle can properly carry. It may also
show the size of the vehicle’s original tires, and
the inflation pressures needed to obtain the
gross weight capacity of your vehicle. This is
called the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR).
The tire information could also be shown on a
separate Tire Information label.
The GVWR includes the weight of the vehicle,
all occupants, fuel, and cargo.
The Certification label also tells you the maximum
weight for the front and rear axles, called the
Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR). To find out
the actual loads on your front and rear axles,
go to a weigh station and weigh your vehicle.
Your dealer can help you with this. Be sure
to spread out your load equally on both sides
of the center line.Never exceed the GVWR for your vehicle, or the
GAWR for either the front or rear axle.
And, if you do have a heavy load, spread it out.
{CAUTION:
Do not load your vehicle any heavier than
the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR),
or either the maximum front or rear Gross
Axle Weight Rating (GAWR). If you do,
parts on your vehicle can break, and it
can change the way your vehicle handles.
These could cause you to lose control
and crash. Also, overloading can shorten
the life of your vehicle.
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How Often to Check
Wheel tightness is so important you should have a
technician check nut tightness on all wheels with a
torque wrench after your first 100 miles (160 km),
and then 1,000 miles (1 600 km) after that. Be sure
to repeat this service whenever you have a tire
removed or serviced. SeeScheduled Maintenance
on page 363for further information.
Wheel Replacement
Replace any wheel that is bent, cracked or badly
rusted or corroded. If wheel nuts keep coming
loose, replace the wheel. If the wheel leaks
air, replace it.
Your dealer will know the kind of wheel you need.
Each new wheel should have the same
load-carrying capacity, diameter, width, offset and
be mounted the same way as the one it replaces.If you need to replace any of your wheels, wheel
bolts or wheel nuts, replace them only with
new GM original equipment parts. This way, you
will be sure to have the right wheel, wheel
bolts and wheel nuts for your vehicle.
{CAUTION:
A leaking wheel could fail without warning.
A wheel designed for tubeless tires could
be leaking because it is damaged. Do not
use an inner tube or some other thing to try
to stop the leaking. Get a new wheel of the
proper type.
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{CAUTION:
Without the correct wheel, you may not be
able to stop properly, and you could have
other problems like a tire air-out. You
could have a collision. If you do not go to
your dealer to get a new wheel, be sure
you get the correct one. Each new wheel
should match the original wheel in
load-carrying capacity, in ation pressure
capacity, diameter, width, offset and
mounting con guration.
Using wheels and tires with higher load-carrying
limits than the original wheels and tires does
not change the Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR)
or the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) of
your vehicle. SeeLoading Your Vehicle on
page 238for more information.Notice:The wrong wheel can cause trouble in
bearing life, brake cooling,
speedometer/odometer calibration, headlamp
aim, bumper height, vehicle ground clearance,
stopping distance and tire clearance to the
body and chassis. You could also have other
problems like a tire air-out.
Used Replacement Wheels
{CAUTION:
Putting a used wheel on your vehicle is
dangerous. You cannot know how it has
been used or how far it has been driven. It
could fail suddenly and cause a crash. If
you have to replace a wheel, use a new
GM original equipment wheel.
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