Mitsubishi MOTORS Outlander 2019 Owner's Manual page 403

EXAMPLE: DOT MA L9 ABCD
1504
Department of Transporta-
tion
This symbol certifies that
the tire is in compliance
DOT
with the U.S. Department
of Transportation tire safety
standards, and is approved
for highway use.
Code representing the tire
MA manufacturing location. (2
digits)
Code representing the tire
L9 size. (2 digits)
ABCD Code used by tire manufac-
turer. (1 to 4 digits)
Number representing the
15 week in which the tire was
manufactured. (2 digits)
Number representing the
04 year in which the tire was
manufactured. (2 digits)
Treadwear, Traction and Temper-
ature Grades
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 one-
1
half (1 / ) times as well on the gov-
2
ernment 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
The traction grades, from highest to
lowest, are AA, A, B and C. Those
grades represent the tire's ability to
stop on wet pavement as measured
under controlled conditions on speci-
fied government test surfaces of
asphalt and concrete. A tire marked
C may have poor traction perfor-
mance.
Temperature
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 condi-
tions on a specified indoor laboratory
test wheel. Sustained high tempera-
ture 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 cor-
responds to a level of performance
which all passenger car tires must
meet under the Federal Motor Vehi-
cle Safety Standard No. 109. Grades
B and A represent higher levels of
performance on the laboratory test
wheel than the minimum required by
law.
Vehicle care and maintenance
Tires
9
9-19