Consumer Information - Mercedes-Benz 300 E 1990 Owner's Manual

C onsum er Inform ation
This has been prepared as re­
quired of all manufacturers of
passenger cars under Title 49,
Code of U.S. Federal Regulations,
Part 575 pursuant to the "Nation­
al Traffic and Motor Vehicle
Safety Act of 1966" .
Uniform Tire Quality Grading
Relevant tire grade information on
tire sidewalls.
All passenger car tires must
conform to federal safety re­
quirements. In addition, consumer
information on treadwear, traction
and temperature must be pro­
vided.
Treadwear
The treadwear grade is a com ­
parative rating based on the wear
rate of the tire when tested under
controlled conditions on a speci­
fied government test course. For
example, a tire graded 150 would
wear one and a half ( 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
118
use, however, and may depart
significantly from the norm due to
variations in driving habits, ser­
vice practices and differences in
road characteristics and climate.
Traction "A ", " B " , " C "
The traction grades, from highest
to lowest, are " A " , " B " and " C "
and they represent the tire's abi­
lity to stop on wet pavement as
measured under controlled con­
ditions on specified government
test surfaces of asphalt and con­
crete. 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 corn­
ering (turning) traction.
Temperature " A " , " B" , " C "
The temperature grades of "A "
(the highest). " B" and " C " re­
presenting 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 tem­
perature can cause the material of
the tire to degenerate and reduce
tire life, and excessive tempera­
ture can lead to sudden tire
failure. The grade " C " corre­
sponds to a level of performance
which all passenger car tires must
meet under the Federal Motor
Vehicle Safety Standard No. 109
Grades " B" and " A " represent
higher levels of performance in
the laboratory test than the
minimum required by law.
Warning!
The temperature grade for this
tire is established for a tire
that is properly inflated and
not overloaded. Excessive
speed, underinflation, or ex­
cessive loading, either sepa­
rately or in combination, can
cause excessive heat build up
and possible tire failure.