Glossary of Tire Terminology
Cold Tire Pressure - The tire air
pressure when the vehicle has been
parked for at least three hours or
driven less than 1 mile (1.6km).
Load Rating - Means the maximum
load that a tire is rated to carry for a
given inflation presure.
Maximum Inflation Pressure - the
maximum tire air pressure that the
tire can hold.
Maximum Load Rating - Means the
load rating for a tire at the maximum
permissible inflation pressure for thattire.
Recommended Inflation Pressure -
The cold tire inflation pressure
recommended by the manufacturer.
Treadwear Indicators (TWI) - Means
the projections within the principal
grooves designed to give a visual
indication of the degrees of wear of
the tread.Tire Pressure Monitoring System(TPMS)
Each tire, including the spare (if
provided), should be checked
monthly when cold and inflated to
the inflation pressure recommended
by the vehicle manufacturer on the
vehicle placard or tire inflation
pressure label.
(If your vehicle has tires of a different
size than the size indicated on the
vehicle placard or tire inflation
pressure label, you should determine
the proper tire inflation pressure for
those tires.)
As an added safety feature, your
vehicle has been equipped with a tire
pressure monitoring system (TPMS)
that illuminates a low tire pressure telltale
when one or more of your tires is
significantly under-inflated.
Accordingly, when the low tire
pressure telltale illuminates, you
should stop and check your tires as
soon as possible, and inflate them to
the proper pressure.
Tire Labeling, Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)
－Required Federal Explanation
314
Table of Contents
Driving on a significantly under-
inflated tire causes the tire to
overheat and can lead to tire failure.
Under-inflation also reduces fuel
efficiency and tire tread life, and may
affect the vehicle's handling and
stopping ability.
Please note that the TPMS is not a
substitute for proper tire
maintenance, and it is the driver's
responsibility to maintain correct tire
pressure, even if under-inflation has
not reached the level to trigger
illumination of the TPMS low tire
pressure telltale.Your vehicle has also been equipped
with a TPMS malfunction indicator to
indicate when the system is not
operating properly. The TPMS
malfunction indicator is provided by
a separate telltale, which displays thesymbol
‘‘TPMS ’’when illuminated.
When the malfunction indicator isilluminated,
the system may not be able to detect
or signal low tire pressure asintended.
TPMS malfunctions may occur for a
variety of reasons, including the
installation of replacement or
alternate tires or wheels on the
vehicle that prevent the TPMS from
functioning properly. Always check the TPMS malfunction
telltale after replacing one or more
tires or wheels on your vehicle to
ensure that the replacement or
alternate tires and wheels allow the
TPMS to continue to functionproperly.
Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)
－Required Federal Explanation
315
Technical Information
Table of Contents
