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surfaces that are not icy or covered with snow.Take appropriate care when driving.
Temperature
GWARNING
The temperature grade for this tire is estab-
lished for a tire that is properly inflated and
not overloaded. Excessive speed, underinfla-
tion, or excessive loading, either separately
or in combination, can cause excessive heat
build-up and possible tire failure.
The temperature grades are A (the highest), B,and C, representing the tire's resistance to thegeneration of heat and its ability to dissipateheat when tested under controlled conditionson a specified indoor laboratory test wheel.Sustained high temperature can cause thematerial of the tire to degenerate and reducetire life, and excessive temperature can lead tosudden tire failure. The grade C correspondsto a level of performance which all passengercar tires must meet under the Federal MotorVehicle Safety Standard No. 109. Grades Band A represent higher levels of performanceon the laboratory test wheel than the minimumrequired by law.
Tire labeling
Overview
CUniform Tire Quality Grading Standard(Ypage 311)
DDOT, Tire Identification Number(Ypage 310)
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Summertires
IndexSpeed rating
ZR...(..Y)over 186 mph (300 km/h)
ZRover 149 mph (240 km/h)
ROptionally, tires with a maximum speed ofover 149 mph (240 km/h) may have "ZR" inthe size description, depending on the man-ufacturer (e.g. 245/40 ZR18).
The service specification is made up of load-bearing index
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wall of the tire. You will find this after the let-ter that identifies the speed rating(Ypage 307).
RIf no specification is given: no text (as in theexample above), represents a standard load(SL) tire
RXL or Extra Load: represents a reinforcedtire
RLight Load: represents a light load tire
RC, D, E: represents a load range thatdepends on the maximum load that the tirecan carry at a certain pressure
iTire data is vehicle-specific and may devi-ate from the data in the example.
Maximum load rating
Maximum tire load Cis the maximum permis-sible weight for which the tire is approved.
Do not overload the tires by exceeding thespecified load limit. The maximum permissibleload can be found on the vehicle's Tire andLoading Information placard on the B-pillar onthe driver's side (Ypage 303).
iThe actual values for tires are vehicle-spe-cific and may deviate from the values in theillustration.
DOT, Tire Identification Number (TIN)
US tire regulations stipulate that every tiremanufacturer or retreader must imprint a TINin or on the sidewall of each tire produced.
The TIN is a unique identification number. TheTIN enables the tire manufacturers or retread-ers to inform purchasers of recalls and othersafety-relevant matters. It makes it possiblefor the purchaser to easily identify the affectedtires.
The TIN is made up of manufacturer identifica-tion code D, tire size
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