Emergency
Re moving the saf etyve st
The saf etyve sts are located in the saf etyve st
compart ments in the driver's and front
passenger door stowage compartments.
#Toremo ve:pull out safe tyvest bag 1by
loop 2.
#Open saf etyve st bag 1and pull out the
saf etyve st.
% There are also saf etyve st compart ments in
th ere ar door stowage compartments in
which saf etyve sts can be stowed.
1Maximum number of washes
2Maximum wash temp erature
3Do not bleach
4Do not iron
5Do not use a laundry dr yer
6Do not dr y-clean
7This is a class 2 vest The
requ irements defined bythe legal standard
are only fulfille difth e saf etyve st isthe cor rect
size and is fully closed.
Re place the saf etyve st if:
RIt is damaged or dirt on there flective strips
can no longer be remo ved.
RThe maximum number of washes is excee‐
ded.
RThe fluorescence of the saf etyve st has
fa ded.
Flat tire
Note s on flat tires
&
WARNING Risk of accident due toaflat
tire
A flat tire se verely affects the driving charac‐
te rist ics as well as thesteering and braking
of theve hicle.
Ti re s without run-flat characteristics:
#Do not drive on with a flat tire.
34 0
Breakdown assis tance
The tire pressuretable sho ws there commended
tire pressure for all tires app rove dfo rth is vehi‐
cle. The recommended tire pressures apply for
cold tires under various operating conditions, i.e.
loading and/or speed of theve hicle.
If one or more tire sizes precede a tire pressure,
th e tire pressure information following is only
va lid forth ose tire sizes.
The load conditions "partially laden" and "fully
laden" are defined in theta ble for dif fere nt num‐
be rs of passengers and amounts of luggage. The
actual number of seats may dif fer from this.
Some tire pressure tables only show therim
diame ter ins tead of the comple tetire size, e.g.
R18 . The rim diame ter is part of the tire size and
can be found on the tire side wall (
→page 375).
Be sure toalso observ eth efo llowing fur ther
re lated subjects:
RNo tes on tire pressure (→page 361)
RTire and Loading Info rmation placard
(→page 367)
RMaximum tire pressure (→page 374)
Che cking tire pressures manually
#Re ad the tire pressure forth e cur rent operat‐
ing conditions from theTire and Loading
Info rmation placard or the tire pressure
ta ble. Obser vethe no tes on tire pressure.
#Re mo vetheva lve cap of the tire tobe
ch ecked.
#Press the tire pressure gauge securely onto
th eva lve.
#Re ad the tire pressure.
#Ifth e tire pressure is lo werth an there com‐
mended value, inc rease the tire pressure to
th ere commended value.
#Ifth e tire pressure is higher than there com‐
mended value, release air. Todo so, press
down the me tal pin in theva lve, e.g. using
th e tip of a pen forex ample. Then check the
tire pressure again usingthe tire pressure
ga uge.
#Sc rew theva lve cap onto theva lve.
364
Wheels and tires
Further related subjects:
RNo tes on tire pressure (→page 361)
RTire pressure table (→page 363)
RTire and Loading Info rmation placard
(→page 367)
Ti re pressure moni toring sy stem
Fu nction of the tire pressure moni toring sys‐
te m
&
DANG ER Risk of accident due toincor‐
re ct tire pressure
Every tire, including the spare (if pr ovided),
should be checked when cold at least once a
month and inflated tothe pressure recom‐
mended bytheve hicle manufacturer (see
Ti re and Loading Info rmation placard on the
B-pillar on the driver ’sside or the tire pres‐
sure label on the inside of the fuel filler flap
of your vehicle). If your vehicle has tires of a
dif fere nt size than the size indicated on the
Ti re and Loading Info rmation placard or the
tire pressure table, you need todeterm ine
th e proper tire pressure forth ose tires.
As an added saf etyfe ature, your vehicle has
been equipped with a tire pressure monitor‐
ing sy stem (TPMS) that illuminates a low tire
pressure indicator lamp when one or more of
yo ur tires are signif icantly underinflated.
Ac cording ly, if the low tire pressure indicator
lamp lights up, you should stop and check
yo ur tires as soon as possible, and inflate
th em tothe proper pressure. Driving on a
significantly underinflated tire causes the tire
to ove rheat and can lead totire failure.
Un derinflation also increases fuel consump‐
tion and reduces tire tread life, and may
af fect theve hicle's handling and braking abil‐
ity. Please no tethat the TPMS is not a substi‐
tute for proper tire maintenance, and it is the
driver's responsibility tomaintain cor rect tire
pressure, even if underinflation has not
re ached the le velto trig ger illumination of
th e TPMS low tire pressure indicator lamp.
Yo ur vehicle has also been equipped with a
TPMS malfunction indicator toindicate whenthe sy stem is not operating proper ly. The
TPMS malfunction indica tor is combined with
th e low tire pressure indicator lamp. When
th e sy stem de tects a malfunction, the indica‐
to r lamp will flash for app roxima tely a minute
and then remain continuously illumina ted.
This sequence will continue upon subsequent
ve hicle start-ups as long as the malfunction
ex ists.
When the malfunction indicator is illumina‐
te d, the sy stem may not be able todetect or
signal low tire pressure as intended. TPMS
malfunctions may occur for a variet yof rea‐
sons, including the ins tallation of incompati‐
ble replacement or alternate tires or wheels
on theve hicle that pr eventthe TPMS from
functioning properly.
Alw aysch eck the TPMS malfunction warning
lamp af terre placing one or more tires or
wheels on your vehicle toensure that the
re placement or alternate tires and wheels
allow the TPMS tocontinue tofunction prop‐
erly.
Wheels and tires 365
#Step 1: Locate thest atement "The combined
we ight of occupants and cargo should ne ver
exc eed XXX kgor XXX lbs." ("The combined
we ight of occupants and cargo should ne ver
exc eed XXX kgor XXX lbs.") on your vehicle's
Ti re and Loading Info rmation placard.
#Ste p 2: Determ ine the combined weight of
th e driver and passengers that will be tra vel‐
ing in your vehicle.
#Ste p 3: Subtract the combined weight of the
driver and passengers from XXX kgor
XXX lbs.
#Ste p 4: Theresulting figure equals the per‐
missible cargo and luggage load capacity. For
ex ample: If "XXX" equals 1400 lbs and there
are five occupants in your vehicle with a
we ight of 150 lbs each, the maximum cargo
and luggage load capacity is 650 lbs (1400 -
75 0 (5 x 150) = 650 lbs).
#Ste p 5: Determ ine the combined weight of
luggage and cargo that theve hicle will be
car rying. For saf etyre asons, this we ight may
not safely exceed theav ailable cargo and lug‐
ga ge load capacity calculated in step 4. Even if
you ha vecalculated thetot al load care‐
full y,yo u should still make sure that the maxi‐
mum permissible gross mass and the maximum
permissible axle load of your vehicle are not
exc eeded. De tails can be found on theve hicle
identification plate.
#Ha ve your loaded vehicle – including driver,
occupants and load – weighed on a vehicle
we ighbridge.
The measured values may not exceed the
maximum permissible values stated on the
ve hicle identification plate.
Fu rther related subjects:
RCalculation example for de term ining the max‐
imum load (→page 369)
RTi re and Loading Info rmation placard
(→page 367)
RTi re pressure table (→page 363)
RVe hicle identification plate
Calculation example for de term ining the
ma ximum load
The following table sho wsexamples of how to
calculate tota l and load capacities with varying
seating con figurations and dif fere nt numbe rs
and sizes of occupants. The following examples
use a maximum load of 1500 lbs (680 kg).This
is for illustration purposes on ly.Make sure
yo u are using the actual load limit foryo ur vehi‐
cle stated on your vehicle's Tire and Loading
Info rmation placard (
→page 367).
The higher thewe ight of all the occupants, the
smaller the maximum load for lug gage .
Wheels and tires 369
Tire labeling
Overview of tire labeling
1Uni form Ti reQuality Grading Standard
(→page 372)
2DO T,Tire Identification Number
(→page 373)
3Ma ximum tire load (→page 374)
4Maximum tire pressure (→page374)
5Ma nufactu rer
6Characteristics of the tire (→page 375)
7Tire size designation, load-beari ng capacity,
speed rating and load ind ex(→page 375)
8Tire name
% The da tashown in the image is example
data.
Ti re Quality Grading
In accordance with the US Department of Trans‐
por tation's "Unifo rm TireQuality Grading Stand‐
ards", tire manufacturers are requ ired tograde
th eir tires on the basis of thefo llowing thre e per‐
fo rm ance factors:1Tread weargrade
2Traction grade
3Te mp erature grade
% The data shown in the image is example
data.
% The classification is not legally stipulated for
Canada, but it is general lystated.
Tr ead weargrade
The tread wear grade is a comparative rating
based on thewe arrate ofthe tire when tested
under controlled conditions on a specified test
track of the US Department of Transpor tation.
Fo rex ample, a tire graded 150wo uld wear one
372
Wheels and tires
%The data shown in the image is example
data.
The TIN is a unique identification number to
identify tires and comprises thefo llowing:
RDOT (Department of Transport ation):tire
symbol mar ks1 indicating that the tire
complies with therequ irements of the US
Department of Transpor tation.
RManufacturer identi fication code: manu‐
fa cturer identification code 2contains
de tails of the tire manufacturer. New tires
ha ve a code with two symbols. Retreaded
tires ha vea code with four symbols. Further
information on retreaded tires (
→pa ge 380).
RTire size: identifier 3describes the tire
size.
RTi re type code: tire type code 4can be
used bythe manufacturer as a code to
describe specific characteristics of the tire.
RManufacturing date: manufacturing date
5 prov ides information about the age of a
tire. The 1st and 2nd positions represent the
calendar week and the 3rd and 4th positions
st ate theye ar of manufacture (e.g. "3208"
re presents the 32nd week of 2008).
Information on the maximum tire load
%
The data shown in the image is example
data.
Maximum tire load 1isthe maximum permissi‐
ble weight for which the tire is appr oved.
Do not overload the tires by exceeding the speci‐
fi ed load limit. The maximum permissible load
can be found on theve hicle's Tire and Loading
Info rmation placard on the B-pillar on the driv‐
er's side (
→page 367).
Specifications for maximum tire pressure
%
The da tashown in the image is example
data.
37 4
Wheels and tires
Neverexc eed maximum tire pressure 1speci‐
fi ed forth e tire.
Information on tire characteristics
%
The data shown in the image is example
data.
This information descri besthe type of tire cord
and the number of la yers in side wall1 and
under tire tread 2.
Tire size designation, load-bearing capacity,
speed rating and load index
&
WARNING Risk of injury thro ugh exceed‐
ing the specified tire load rating or the
permissible speed rating
Exceeding the specified tire load rating or
th e permissible speed rating may lead totire
damage andtothe tires bur sting.
#Therefore, only use tire types and sizes
appr ovedfo ryo ur vehicle model.
#Obser vethe tire load rating and speed
ra ting requ ired foryo ur vehicle.
1Preceding letter
2Nominal tire width in millime ters
3Aspect ratio in %
4Tire code
5Rim diame ter
6Load-bearing index
7Speed rating
8Load ind ex
% The data shown in the image is example
data.
Info rmation about reading tire data can be
obtained from any qualified specialist workshop.
Wheels and tires 37
5
these are ins talled on theve hicle, but does not
include passengers or luggage.
Maximum tire load: the maximum tire load is
th e maximum permissible weight in kilog rams or
lbs for which a tire is appr oved.
Maximum permissible tire pressure: maxi‐
mum permissible tire pressure for one tire.
Maximum load on one tire: maximum load on
one tire. This is calculated bydividing the maxi‐
mum axle load of one axle bytwo.
PSI (pounds per square in ch):standard unit of
measurement for tire pressure .
Aspect ratio: ratio between tire height and tire
width in pe rcent.
Ti re pressure: pressure inside the tire applying
an outward forc eto eve rysquare inch of the tire.
The tire pressure is specified in pounds per
square inch (psi), in kilopascals (kPa) or in bar.
The tire pressure should only be cor rected when
th e tires are cold.
Cold tire pressure: the tires are cold when the
ve hicle has been par kedfo r at least 3 hours without direct sunlight on
the tires or theve hicle
has been driven for less than 1 mile (1.6 km).
Ti re contact sur face: the part of the tire that
comes into con tact wi th thero ad.
Ti re bead: the purpose of the tire bead is to
ensure that the tire sits securely on the wheel
ri m. There are se veral wire cores in the tire bead
to pr
eve ntthe t
ire fromchanging length on the
wheel rim.
Side wall:the part of the tire between the tread
and the tire bead.
We ight of optional equipment: the combined
we ight of the optional equipment weighing more
th an there placed standard parts and more than
5 lbs (2.3 kg).This optional equipment, such as
high-per form ance brakes, le vel control sy stem, a
ro of luggage rack or high-per form ance batte ries,
is not included in the curb weight and thewe ight
of the accessories.
TIN (Tire Identification Number): a unique
identification number which can be used bya
tire manufactu rerto identify tires, forex ample,
in a product recall, and thus identify the pur‐
ch asers. The TIN is made up of the manufactur‐ er's identity code, tire size, tire type code and
th
e manufacturing date.
Load-bearing index: the load-bearing index is a
code that con tains the maximum load-bearing
capacity of a tire.
Tr action: traction is the grip resulting from fric‐
tion between the tires and thero ad sur face.
We ar indicator: narrow bars (tread wear bars)
th at are distributed overth e tire conta ct surface.
If th e tire tread is le vel with the bars, thewe ar
limit of 1/ 16in (1.6 mm) has been reached.
Distribution of vehicle occupants: distribution
of vehicle occupants ov
er design
ated seat posi‐
tions in a vehicle.
Maximum permissible pa yload weight: nomi‐
nal load and luggage load plus 150 lb (68 kg)
multiplied bythe number of seats in theve hicle.
Wheels and tires 37
9