Uniform
Tire
Quality
Grading
The following information relates to
the
system
developed by the United States National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration which grades tires by
treadwear, traction and temperature performance.
(This
applies
only
to vehicles sold
in
the United States.)
Treadwear
The treadwear grade is a comparative rating based
on
the wear rate of the tire when tested under controlled
conditions on a specified government test course. For
example, a tire graded
150
would wear one and a half
(
1
1/2)
times as well on the government course as a tire
graded
100.
The relative performance
of
tires depends
upon the actual conditions of their use, however, and
may depart significantly from the norm due
to
variations
in
driving habits, service practices and differences
in
road characteristics and climate.
Traction
-
A,
B,
C
The traction grades, from highest to lowest are:
A,
B,
and
C.
They represent
the
tire’s ability to stop on wet
pavement as measured under controlled conditions
on
specified government test surfaces
of
asphalt and
concrete.
A
tire
marked
C
may have poor traction
performance.
Warning: The traction grade assigned to this tire is based
on braking (straight-ahead) traction tests and does not
include cornering (turning) traction.
Temperature
-
A,
B,
C
The temperature grades are A (the highest),
B,
and
C,
representing the tire’s resistance to the generation of
heat and its ability to dissipate heat when tested under
controlled conditions
on
a specified indoor laboratory
test wheel. Sustained high temperature can cause the
material
of
the tire to degenerate and reduce tire life, and
excessive temperature can lead to sudden tire failure.
The grade
C
corresponds
to
a level
of
performance
245
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