2013 SKODA FABIA wheel alignment

Wheels
Tyres and rims
Introduction
This chapter contains information on the following subjects:
Tyre service life
174
New tyres
175
Unidirectional tyres
176
Tyre pressure monitor
176
Spare wheel
177
Full wheel trim
178
Wheel bolts
178
Hubcaps
178
Wheel bolts
179WARNING■ National legal requirements must be observed for the use of tyres.■Observe the national legal regulations relating to the use of snow chains
and the maximum vehicle speed with snow chains.WARNINGThe following instructions for the use of tyres must be observed.■During the first 500 km, new tyres do not offer optimum grip and appropri-
ate care should therefore be taken when driving – there is the risk of an acci-
dent.■
On all four wheels, use only radial tyres of the same type, size (rolling cir-
cumference) and the same tread pattern.
■
For safety reasons, do no replace tyres individually.
■
Never exceed the maximum permissible load bearing capacity of the tyres
fitted – there is the risk of an accident.
■
Never exceed the maximum permissible speed of the tyres fitted – there is
the risk of an accident.
WARNING (Continued)■ Incorrect wheel alignment at the front or rear impairs handling – there is the
risk of an accident.■
Unusual vibrations or pulling of the vehicle to one side could be a sign of
tyre damage. If there is any doubt that a wheel is damaged, immediately re-
duce your speed and stop! If no external damage is evident, drive slowly and
carefully to the nearest specialist garage to have the vehicle checked.
■
Only use those tyres or wheel rims which have been approved by ŠKODA for
your model of vehicle. Failure to observe this instruction will adversely affect
the road safety of your vehicle – there is the risk of an accident.
WARNINGObserve the following information regarding tyre damage and wear.■Never use tyres if you do not know anything about the condition and age.■
Never drive with damaged tyres – there is the risk of an accident.
■
Immediately replace damaged wheel rims or tyres.
■
You must have your tyres replaced with new ones at the latest when the
wear indicators have been worn down.
■
Worn tyres do not provide the necessary grip particularly at high speeds on
wet roads. “Aquaplaning” (uncontrolled movements of the vehicle – “swim- ming” on a wet road surface) could be the result.
WARNINGObserve the following information regarding the tyre pressure.■The tyre control display does not absolve the driver of the responsibility to
ensure the correct tyre inflation pressure. Check the tyre pressure at regular
intervals.■
Pressures that are too low or too high impair handling – there is the risk of
an accident.
■
If the pressure is too low, the tyre must overcome a greater rolling resist-
ance. This will heat the tyre up, especially at higher speeds. This can result in tread separation and a tyre blowout. 
173Wheels

Always check the inflation pressure when the tyres are cold. Do not reduce the
higher pressure of warm tyres.
Adjust the tyre pressure accordingly if you are carrying a greater load.
Driving style
Fast cornering, sharp acceleration and braking increase the wear of your tyres.
Balancing wheels
The wheels of a new vehicle are balanced. There are a wide range of influences
when the car is being driven which may result in an imbalance. This may become
apparent by “vibration” in the steering.
Have the wheels rebalanced after replacing the tyres.
Wheel alignment errors
Incorrect wheel alignment at the front or rear leads to excess wear on the tyres.
Tyre damage
Drive over kerbs and other such obstacles slowly and at right angles wherever
possible in order to avoid damage to tyres and wheel trims.
We recommend checking your tyres and wheel rims for damage (punctures, cuts,
splits and bulges, etc.) on a regular basis. Remove foreign bodies (e.g. small
stones) from the tyre profile immediately.
Swapping wheels around
If significantly greater wear is present on the front tyres, we recommend swap-
ping the front wheels with the rear wheels as shown in the diagram » Fig. 133.
You will then obtain approximately the same life for all the tyres.
We recommend that you swap the tyres around every 10,000 km in order to ach-ieve even wear on all tyres and to obtain optimal tyre life.
Storing tyres
Mark the tyres as you remove them so that you are able to refit them to run in the
same direction.
Always store wheels or tyres in a cool, dry and, where possible, dark place. Tyres which are not fixed to a wheel trim should be stored upright.
Wear indicators
The base of the tread of the tyres has 1.6 mm high wear indicators installed.
These wear indicators are arranged evenly spaced around the circumference of
the tyre a number of times depending on the make » Fig. 132 - 
. Markings on the
walls of the tyres through the letters “TWI”, triangular symbols or other symbols identify the position of the wear indicators.Tyre age
Tyres age losing their original characteristics, even if they are not used. There-
fore, we recommend that you do not use summer or winter tyres that are older
than 6 years or 4 years respectively.
New tyres
First read and observe the introductory information and safety warn-
ings
on page 173.
Only fit radial tyres of the same type, size (rolling circumference) and the same
tread pattern on one axle on all four wheels.
The tyre/wheel combinations which are approved for your vehicle are indicated in
your vehicle documents.
Where possible replace tyres by axle. Always fit the tyres with the deeper tread
depth to the front wheels.
Explanation of tyre markings
185/65 R 14 86 T
What this means is:
185Tyre width in mm » Fig. 132 on page 174 - 65Height/width ratio in % » Fig. 132 on page 174 - RCode letter for the tyre construction – Radial » Fig. 132 on page 174
- 14Diameter of wheel in inches » Fig. 132 on page 174 - 86Load index » TSpeed symbol »
The date of manufacture is stated on the tyre wall (possibly only on the inside of
wheel ). e.g.
DOT ... 10 13...
means, for example, that the tyre was manufactured in the 10th week of 2013.
Load index
This indicates the maximum permissible load on each individual tyre. 487 kg
515 kg 
8385175Wheels