Winter operation
General notes
Have your vehicle winterproofed at a quali-
fied specialist
workshop at the onset of win-
ter.
Observe the notes in the "Changing a wheel"
section (Y page 206).
Driving with summer tyres
At temperatures below +7
†, summer tyres
lose elasticity and therefore traction and
braking power. Change the tyres on your vehi-
cle to M+S tyres. Using summer tyres at very
cold temperatures could cause tears to form,
thereby damaging the tyres permanently.
smart cannot accept responsibility for this
type of damage.
G
WARNING
Damaged tyres can cause tyre inflation
pressure loss. As a result, you could lose
control of your vehicle. There is a risk of
accident.
Check
the
tyres regularly for signs of dam-
age and replace any damaged tyres imme-
diately.
M+S tyres
G
WARNING
M+S tyres with a tyre tread depth of less
than
4
mm are not suitable for use in winter
as they do not provide sufficient traction.
There is a risk of accident.
M+S tyres with a tread depth of less than
4 mm must be replaced.
At temperatures below +7 †use winter tyres
marked with M+S.
Only winter tyres bearing the i snowflake
symbol in addition to the M+S marking pro-
vide the best possible grip in wintry road
conditions. Only these tyres will allow driv-
ing safety systems such as ABS and ESP
®
to
function optimally in winter. These tyres
have been developed specifically for driving
in snow.
Use M+S tyres of the same make and tread on
all
wheels
to maintain safe handling charac-
teristics.
Always observe the maximum permissible
speed specified for the M+S tyres you have
fitted. Therefore, only use tyre types and
sizes approved for smart. Observe the tyre
load rating and speed rating required for
smart.
Tyres with a specified direction of rotation
have additional benefits, e.g. if there is a
risk of aquaplaning. These advantages can
only be gained if the tyres are fitted corre-
sponding to the direction of rotation.
An arrow on the sidewall of the tyre indicates
its correct direction of rotation.
If you fit M+S tyres that have a lower maximum
permissible speed than that of the vehicle,
affix an appropriate warning label in the
driver's field of vision. This can be obtained
at a qualified specialist workshop.
Under these circumstances, you should also
use the speed limiter to restrict the maximum
speed of the vehicle (depending on the model
type) so that it does not exceed the maximum
permissible speed for the M+S tyres
(Y page 114).
When you have fitted the M+S tyres:
X
Check the tyre pressures (Y page 203).
X
Restart the tyre pressure monitor (vehicles
with monochrome display) (Y page 205).
X
Restart the tyre pressure monitor (vehicles
with colour display) (Y page 205).
Snow chains
G
WARNING
If you have fitted snow chains to the front
wheels,
they
may scrape against the vehicle
body or chassis components. This could
cause damage to the vehicle or the tyres.
There is a risk of an accident.
To avoid hazardous situations:
R
never fit snow chains on the front wheels
R
fit snow chains to the rear wheels in
pairs.
!
Vehicles with steel wheels: if you fit snow
chains on steel wheels, you may damage the
202
Winter operation
>> Wheels and tyres.
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