Wheels
For example: Tr ead wea r 200, Traction AA, Tem
pe rature
A .
All passenge r ca r tires m ust conform to Federa l
Safety Requi rements in addition to these g rades.
Tread wear
The tread wear grade is a comparat ive rat ing
based on the wear rate of the t ire when tested
unde r contro ll ed conditions o n a specified gov
e rnmen t test co urse.
For example, a tire graded 150 would wear one
and one ha lf ( 11/2) t imes as well on the gove rn
ment course as a tire g raded 1 00.
The relative performance of t ires depends upon
the actual condi tions of their use, howeve r, and
may depart s ignificant ly from the norm d ue to
va ria tions in driving hab its, service pra ctices and
d ifferences in road ch aract eris tics and clim ate.
Traction
The traction grades, from highest to lowest, are
AA, A, Band
C. T hose grades represent the t ire's
ab ility to stop on wet pavement as meas ured un
de r contro lled condi tions o n specified gove rn
men t tes t su rfa ces of asp ha lt and conc re te. A tire
mar ked C m ay have poor trac tion pe rforma nce
q _&. ,
Temperature
The temperature grades a re A (t he highest), B,
and C, rep resent ing the tire' s resistan ce to t he
gener ation o f heat and it s abili ty to d iss ipate
heat when tested unde r controlled condi tions on
a specified in door laboratory test whee l.
Susta ined hig h tem perature can cause t he ma te
r ial of the t ire to dege nerate and re duce tire life,
an d excess ive temperatu re can lead to sudden
tire fai lure
q .&. .
The gr ade C co rresponds to a leve l of perfor m
a nce wh ich all passenge r car tir es mus t mee t un
der t he Fede ra l Mo tor Vehicle Safety Standar d
No . 109 . Grades Band A represent higher leve ls
of perfo rmance on the labo rato ry test w heel than
the min imum required by law.
218
A WARNING -
The tract io n grade assigned to this t ire is
based on straight-a head braking traction
tes ts, a nd does no t in clude acceleration, cor
ne ring, hy droplaning or pea k traction cha rac
teris tics.
A WARNING
The tem perat ure grade fo r thi s tire is estab
lishe d fo r a t ire th at is p roperl y infl ated and
n ot overloaded . Excessive s peed, under infla
tion, o r excessive loa ding, either separate ly or
i n comb inat io n, can cause heat bu ildup and
possib le t ire fai lure.
A WARNING
-
-
Tempe rature grades app ly to t ires that are
proper ly inflated a nd not over or under inflat
ed .
Tire pressure monitoring
system
ill General notes
Each tire, including the spare (if prov ided),
shou ld be checked monthly when cold and inflat
ed to the i nflat ion press ure recommended by the
vehicle manufacture r on the veh icle placard or
ti re infla tion p ressure labe l. (If your ve hicle has
t ir es of a diffe rent size t han the si ze ind icated on
t h e ve hicle placard or tire i nflat io n press ure la
bel, you sho uld dete rm ine the proper tire in fla
tion press ure for those tires) .
As a n ad ded safety featu re, you r vehicle has been
equipped wi th a t ire p ress ure mon itor ing system
(TPMS) t hat ill umi nates a low tire p ressure tell
ta le w hen one or mo re of your tires is s ignificant
l y under -inflated. According ly, w hen the low ti re
pressure telltale illum inates, you sho uld stop and
c h eck your t ires as soon as possible, and inflate
them to the proper pressure. Dr iv ing on a sign ifi
cant ly under -inflated t ire ca uses the t ire to over
heat and ca n lead to tire fa ilu re . U nder-inflation
also red uces fue l eff ic iency a nd tire tread life,
and may affect t he ve hicl e's handling a nd s top-
ping ability.
II>-
