2008 SMART FORTWO COUPE weight

Tires and wheels
>> Operation
185 Loading the vehicle
Two labels on your vehicle show how much
weight it may properly carry.
1) The Tire and Loading Information placard
can be found on the driver’s door B
pillar.
This placard tells you important informa

tion about the number of people that can
be in the vehicle and the total weight that
can be carried in the vehicle. It also con

tains information on the proper size and
recommended tire inflation pressures for
the original equipment tires on your vehi

cle.2) The certification label, also found on the
driver’s door B
pillar, tells you about the
gross weight capacity of your vehicle,
called the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
(GVWR). The GVWR includes the weight of
the vehicle, all occupants, fuel and cargo.
The certification label also tells you about
the front and rear axle weight capacity,
called the Gross Axle Weight Rating
(GAWR). The GAWR is the total allowable
weight that can be carried by a single axle
(front or rear). Never exceed the GVWR or
GAWR for either the front axle or rear
axle.
1
Driver’s door B
pillar
Following is a discussion on how to work with
the information contained on the Tire and
Loading Information placard with regards to
loading your vehicle.

Tires and wheels
186
>> Operation Tire and Loading InformationTire and Loading Information placard
i
Data shown on Tire and Loading Informa

tion placard example are for illustration pur

poses only. Load limit data are specific to
each vehicle and may vary from data shown in
the following illustration. Refer to Tire and
Loading Information placard on vehicle for
actual data specific to your vehicle.
1
Load limit information on the Tire and
Loading Information placardThe Tire and Loading Information placard
showing the load limit information is located
on the driver’s door B
pillar (

page 185).
>Locate the statement "The combined weight
of occupants and cargo should never
exceed XXX kg or XXX lbs." on the Tire and
Loading Information placard.
The combined weight of all occupants and
cargo / luggage should never exceed the
weight referenced in that statement.
Seating capacity
The seating capacity gives you important
information on the number of occupants that
can be in the vehicle. The Tire and Loading
Information placard showing the seating
capacity is located on the driver’s door
B
pillar (

page 185)
.
G
Warning!
Do not overload the tires by exceeding
the specified load limit as indicated on
the Tire and Loading Information placard
on the driver’s door B
pillar. Overload

ing the tires can overheat them, possibly
causing a blowout. Overloading the tires
can also result in handling or steering
problems, or brake failure.

Tires and wheels
>> Operation
187
i
Data shown on Tire and Loading Informa

tion placard example are for illustration pur

poses only. Seating capacity data are specific
to each vehicle and may vary from data shown
in the following illustration. Refer to Tire and
Loading Information placard on vehicle for
actual data specific to your vehicle.
1
Seating capacity information on the Tire
and Loading Information placardSteps for determining correct load limit
The following steps have been developed as
required of all manufacturers under Title 49,
Code of U.S. Federal Regulations, Part 575
pursuant to the "National Traffic and Motor
Vehicle Safety Act of 1966".
Step 1
>Locate the statement "The combined weight
of occupants and cargo should never ex

ceed XXX kg or XXX lbs." on your vehicle’s
Tire and Loading Information placard.
Step 2
>Determine the combined weight of the
driver and passenger that will be riding in
your vehicle.
Step 3
>Subtract the combined weight of the driver
and passenger from XXX kilograms or
XXX lbs.Step 4
>The resulting figure equals the available
amount of cargo and luggage load capacity.
For example, if the "XXX" amount equals
540 lbs and there will be one 150 lbs
passenger in your vehicle, the amount of
available cargo and luggage load capacity
is 390 lbs (540 lbs
150 lbs = 390 lbs).
Step 5
>Determine the combined weight of luggage
and cargo being loaded on the vehicle. That
weight may not safely exceed the available
cargo and luggage load capacity calculated
in step 4.
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The maximum cargo compartment load is
100 lbs (50 kg).

Tires and wheels
188
>> Operation The following table shows examples on how to calculate total and cargo load capacities with varying seating configurations and number and size
of occupants. The following examples use a load limit of 540 lbs. This is for illustration purposes only. Make sure you are using the actual load
limit for your vehicle stated on the vehicle’s Tire and Loading Information placard (

page 186).
The higher the weight of all occupants, the less cargo and luggage load capacity is available.
Example
Combined weight
limit of occupants
and cargo from
Tire and Loading
Information
placard
Number of
occupants
(driver and
passenger)
Occupants weight
Combined weight of
all occupants
Available cargo weight (total load limit
from Tire and Loading Information
placard minus combined weight of all
occupants)
1
540 lbs
2
Occupant 1: 150 lbs
Occupant 2: 180 lbs
330 lbs
540 lbs
330 lbs = 210 lbs
2
540 lbs
1
Occupant 1: 150 lbs
150 lbs
540 lbs
150 lbs = 390 lbs

Tires and wheels
>> Operation
189
Certification label
Even after careful determination of the
combined weight of all occupants and cargo as
to not exceed the permissible load limit, you
must make sure that your vehicle never
exceeds the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
(GVWR) and the Gross Axle Weight Rating
(GAWR) for either the front or rear axle. You
can obtain the GVWR and GAWR from the
certification label. The certification label can
be found on the driver’s door B
pillar, see
"Technical data" (

page 293).
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) means:
the total weight of the vehicle, all occupants,
and all cargo must never exceed the GVWR.
Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR) means:
the total allowable weight that can be carried
by a single axle (front or rear).To assure that your vehicle does not exceed
the maximum permissible weight limits (GVWR
and GAWR for front and rear axle), have the
loaded vehicle (including driver, passenger,
and all cargo) weighed on a suitable commer

cial scale.
Recommended tire inflation
pressure
Your vehicle is equipped with the Tire and
Loading Information placard located on the
driver’s door B
pillar (

page 185).
The tire inflation pressure should be checked
regularly and should only be adjusted on cold
tires. The tires can be considered cold if the
vehicle has been parked for at least 3 hours
or driven less than 1 mile (1.6 km).
G
Warning!
Follow recommended tire inflation
pressures.
Do not underinflate tires. Underinflated
tires wear excessively and/or unevenly,
adversely affect handling and fuel econ

omy, and are more likely to fail from being
overheated.
Do not overinflate tires. Overinflated
tires can adversely affect handling and
ride comfort, wear unevenly, increase
stopping distance, and result in sudden
deflation (blowout) because they are
more likely to become punctured or
damaged by road debris, potholes etc.
Do not overload the tires by exceeding
the specified load limit as indicated on
the Tire and Loading Information placard
on the driver’s door B
pillar. Overload

ing the tires can overheat them, possibly
causing a blowout. Overloading the tires
can also result in handling or steering
problems, or brake failure.

Tires and wheels
190
>> Operation Follow recommended cold tire inflation pres

sures listed on Tire and Loading Information
placard on the driver’s door B
pillar.
Keeping the tires properly inflated provides
the best handling, tread life and riding com

fort.
For more information, see "Important notes on
tire inflation pressure" (

page 190).
i
Data shown on Tire and Loading Informa

tion placard example are for illustration pur

poses only. Tire data are specific to each
vehicle and may vary from data shown in the
following illustration. Refer to Tire and Load

ing Information placard on vehicle for actual
data specific to your vehicle.
1
Tire and Loading Information placard
with recommended cold tire inflation
pressures
The Tire and Loading Information placard
lists the recommended cold tire inflation
pressures for maximum loaded vehicle weight.
The tire inflation pressures listed apply to the
tires installed as original equipment.Important notes on tire inflation pressure
Tire temperature and tire inflation pressure
are also increased while driving, depending
on the driving speed and the tire load.
Tire inflation pressure changes by approxi

mately 1.5 psi (0.1 bar) per 18°F (10°C) of air
temperature change. Keep this in mind when
checking tire inflation pressure where the
temperature is different from the outside
temperature.
G
Warning!
If the tire inflation pressure drops
repeatedly:
• Check the tires for punctures from
foreign objects.
• Check to see whether air is leaking
from the valves or from around the rim.

Tires and wheels
>> Operation
201
DOT (D
epartment o
f T
ransportation)
Tire branding symbol1 (

page 200) which
denotes the tire meets requirements of the
U.S. Department of Transportation.
Manufacturer’s identification mark
Manufacturer’s identification mark2
(

page 200) denotes the tire manufacturer.
New tires have a mark with two symbols.
Retreaded tires have a mark with four
symbols. For more information on retreaded
tires (

page 182).
Tire size
Code3 (
page 200) indicates the tire size.
Tire type code
Code4 (
page 200) may, at the option of
the manufacturer, be used as a descriptive
code for identifying significant characteris

tics of the tire.
Date of manufacture
Date of manufacture5 (

page 200)
identifies the week and year of manufacture.The first two figures identify the week, start

ing with "01" to represent the first full week of
the calendar year. The second two figures
represent the year.
For example, "3202" represents the 32nd
week of 2002.
Maximum tire load
1
Maximum tire load rating
i
For illustration purposes only. Actual data
on tires are specific to each vehicle and may
vary from data shown in above illustration.The maximum tire load is the maximum weight
the tires are designed to support.
For more information on tire load rating
(

page 197).
For information on calculating total and cargo
load capacities (

page 187).
G
Warning!
Do not overload the tires by exceeding
the specified load limit as indicated on
the Tire and Loading Information placard
located on the driver’s door B
pillar.
Overloading the tires can overheat them,
possibly causing a blowout. Overloading
the tires can also result in handling or
steering problems, or brake failure.

Tires and wheels
204
>> Operation Tire ply material
1
Plies in sidewall
2
Plies under tread
i
For illustration purposes only. Actual data
on tires are specific to each vehicle and may
vary from data shown in above illustration.
This marking tells you about the type of cord
and number of plies in the sidewall and under
the tread.
Tire and loading terminologyAccessory weight
The combined weight (in excess of those stan

dard items which may be replaced) of auto

matic transmission, power steering, power
brakes, power windows, power seats, radio,
and heater, to the extent that these items are
available as factory
installed equipment
(whether installed or not).
Air pressure
The amount of air inside the tire pressing
outward on each square inch of the tire.
Air pressure is expressed in pounds per
square inch (psi), or kilopascal (kPa) or bars.
Aspect ratio
Dimensional relationship between tire section
height and section width expressed in per

centage.Bar
Another metric unit for air pressure. There
are 14.5038 pounds per square inch (psi)
to 1 bar; there are 100 kilopascals (kPa)
to 1 bar.
Bead
The tire bead contains steel wires wrapped by
steel cords that hold the tire onto the rim.
Cold tire inflation pressure
Tire inflation pressure when your vehicle has
been sitting for at least 3 hours or driven no
more than 1 mile (1.6 km).
Curb weight
The weight of a motor vehicle with standard
equipment including the maximum capacity of
fuel, oil, and coolant, and, if so equipped, air
conditioning and additional optional equip

ment, but without passengers and cargo.