MERCEDES-BENZ SLC-Class 2017 R172 Owner's Manual

Tire and LoadingInfor matio nplacard
:Recommended tire pressures
The Tire and Loading Informatio nplacard is on
the B-pillar on the driver's side (
Ypage 265).
The Tire and Loading Informatio nplacard con-
tains the recommende dtire pressures for cold
tires. The recommende dtire pressures ar evalid
for the maximum permissibl eloa da nd up to the
maximum permissibl evehicl espeed.
Tire pressure table
The tire pressure table is on the insid eofthe fuel
fille rflap. It shows the tire pressure for al ltires
permitted at the factory for thisv ehicle; see
illustratio n(example).
The tire pressure table contains the recommen-
de dp ressures for col dtiresfor various operat-
ing conditions, i.e .differin gloa da nd spee dcon-
ditions.
If at ire size precedes atire pressure, the fol-
lowing tire pressure informatio niso nlyv alid for
thatt ire size; see illustratio n(example).
The load conditions "partiall yladen "and "fully
laden" ar edefine dint he table for different num-
bers of occupants and amounts of luggage.T he
actual numbe rofseats mayd iffer.
Some tire pressure table sshowo nlyt he rim
diameters instea dofthe full tire size, e.g. R18.
Ri md iame terisp artoft he tire size and can be
found on the tire sidewall (
Ypage 269).
If the tire pressures have been set to the lower
values for lighte rloads and/or lowe rroad
speeds ,the pressures shoul dbereset to the
highe rvalues :
Rif youwanttod rive with an increased load
and/or
Rif yo uwanttod rive at highe rroa ds peeds
The tire pressures for increased load sand/or
highe rroa ds peeds, shown in the tire pressure
table ,mayhave anegative effect on driving
comfort.
If the tire pressure is not set correctly, thisc an
lead to an excessive buil dupofheata nd asud-
de nlossofp ressure.
For mor einformation, contact aquali fied spe-
cialist workshop.
Tire pressure259
Wheel sand tires
Z

Important notes on tire pressure
GWARNING
If th etirep ressur edrops repeatedly, th e
wheel, valv eortirem ay be damaged. Tir e
pressur ethatist oolow may result in atire
blow-out .Ther eisar iskofana ccident.
RCheckthe tire for foreign objects .
RCheckwhether th ewhee lislosing air or th e
valv eisl eaking .
If you are unable to rectify th edamage, con-
tac taq ualified specialist workshop.
GWARNIN G
If you fit unsuitable accessories onto tire
valves, th etirev alves may be overloaded and
malfunction ,whic hc an caus etirep ressur e
loss .Due to their design ,retrofitte dtirep res-
sur em onitors keep th etirev alveo pen .This
can also result in tire pressur eloss .Ther eisa
ris kofana ccident.
Only screw th estandard valv ecap or other
valv ecapsa pprove dbyMercedes-Ben zfor
your vehicl eontot he tire valve.
Use asuitable pressur egauge to chec kthe tire
pressure. The outer appearanc eofatired oes
no tp ermit any reliable conclusio nabout th etire
pressure. On vehicles equipped wit hthe elec -
tronic tire pressur emonitor, th etirep ressur e
can be checke dintheon-board computer.
The tire temperature and pressur eincreas e
when th evehicl eisinm otion.This is dependen t
on th edriving spee dand th eload.
Therefore, you should only correc ttirep res-
sures when th etires are cold.
The tires are cold:
Rif th evehicl ehas been parked wit hthe tires
out of direct sunligh tfor at least three hour s
and
Rif th evehicl ehas no tbeen driven further than
1m ile (1. 6km)
The tire temperature changes depending on th e
outside temperature, th evehicl espee dand th e
tire load. If th etiret
em p
erature changes by
18 ‡(10 †), th etirep ressur echanges by
approximately 10 kP a(0.1b ar/1.5 psi) .Take
this int oaccoun twhen checkin gthe pressur eof
warm tires .Onlyc orrect thet irep ressur eifitisto
ol ow for th ecurren toperating conditions. If
you chec kthe tire pressur ewhen th etires are
warm ,the resulting value will be higher than if
th et ires were cold. This is normal. Do no t
reduce th etirep ressur etothevalue specifie d
for cold tires .The tire pressur ewould otherwise
be to olow.
Observ ethe recommended tire pressures for
cold tires :
Ron theTirea nd Loading Information placard
on th eB-pillar on th edriver' sside
Rin th etirep ressur etable on th einside of th e
fuel filler flap
Rprinte dinyellow on th erim of th eemer-
gency/collapsible spar ewhee l(dependin gon
vehicl eequipment)
Underinflated or overinflated tires
Underinflated tires
GWARNIN G
Tires wit hpressur ethatist oolow can over-
heat and burs tasaconsequence .Inaddition ,
they also suffer from excessiv eand/o rirreg-
ular wear, whic hcan severely impair th ebrak -
ing properties and th edriving characteristics .
Ther eisar iskofana ccident.
Avoid tire pressures that are to olow in all th e
tires ,includin gthe spar ewheel.
Underinflated tires may:
Roverheat, leadin gtotired efects
Radversely affec thandlin g
Rwear excessively and/o runevenly
Rhav eana dverse effec tonfuel consumption
Overinflated tires
GWARNIN G
Tires wit hexces sively high pressur ecan burs t
because they are damaged mor eeasil yby
road debris, pothole setc.Ina ddition ,the y
also suffer from irregular wear ,whic hc an
severely impair th ebraking properties and th e
driving characteristics .Ther eisar iskofa n
accident.
260Tire pressure
Wheels and tires

Avoidtire pressures thata retoo high in al lthe
tires, including the spare wheel.
Overinflated tire smay:
Rincrease the braking distance
Radversel yaffect handling
Rwear excessivel yand/or unevenly
Rhave an adverse effect on rid ecomfort
Rbe more susceptibl etodamage
Maximum tire pressures
:Example: maximu mpermissibl etire pres-
sure
Never exceed the maximu mpermissibl etire
inflation pressure. Alway sobserve the recom-
mended tire pressure for your vehicl ewhen
adjusting the tire pressure (
Ypage 258).
iThe actual values for tire sarevehicle-spe-
cifi cand mayd eviate from the values in the
illustration.
Checkin gthe tire pressures
Important safety notes
Observ ethe notes on tire pressure
(Ypage 258).
Informatio nonairpressure for the tire sonyour
vehicl ecan be found:
Ron the vehicle's Tire and Loading Information
placard on the B-pillar
Ron the tire pressure labe lonthe fuel fille rflap
Rin the "Tire pressure" section
Checkin gtire pressure smanually
To determine and set the correct tire pressure,
procee dasfollows:
XRemove the valve cap of the tire thati stobe
checked.
XPress the tire pressure gaug esecurel yonto
the valve.
XRead the tire pressure and compar eittothe
recommende dvalue on the Tire and Loading
Informatio nplacard or the tire pressure table
(
Ypage 258).
XIf the tire pressure is too low, increase the tire
pressure to the recommende dvalue.
XIf the tire pressure is too high, release air. To
do so, press down the meta lpinin the valve,
using the tip of apen for example. The ncheck
the tire pressure agai nusing the tire pressure
checker.
XScrew the valve cap onto the valve.
XRepeat thes estep sfor the othe rtires.
Tire pressure loss warning system
(Canada only)
General notes
While the vehicl eisinmotion, the tire pressure
loss warning system monitors the set tire pres-
sure using the rotational speed of the wheels.
Thi senables the system to detect significant
pressure loss in atire .Ift he speed of rotatio nof
aw heel changesasa resultofa loss of pressure,
ac orresponding warning message will appear in
the multifunctio ndisplay.
Yo uc an recognize the tire pressure loss warning
by the Run Fla tIndicator Active Press
'OK'toR estartmessage which appear sin
the Serv.menu of the multifunctio ndisplay.
Informatio nonthe message display can be
found in the "Restarting the tire pressure loss
warning system "sectio n(
Ypage 262).
Important safety notes
The tire pressure warning system does not warn
youofani ncorrectly set tire pressure. Observe
the notes on the recommende dtire pressure
(
Ypage 258).
The tire pressure loss warning does not replace
the nee dtoregularly check the tire pressure. An
eve nlossofp ressure on severa ltire satt he
Tire pressure261
Wheel sand tires
Z

same time cannot be detected by the tire pres-
sure loss warning system.
The tire pressure monitor is not able to warn you
ofas udden loss of pressure, e.g. if the tire is
penetrated by aforeign object. In the event of a
sudden loss of pressure, bring the vehicle to a
halt by braking carefully .Avoid abrupt steering
movements.
The function of the tire pressure loss warning
system is limited or delayed if:
Rsnow chains are mounted on your vehicle's
tires.
Rroad conditions are wintry.
Ryou are driving on sand or gravel.
Ryou adopt avery sporty driving style (corner-
ing at high speeds or driving with high rates of acceleration).
Ryou drive with aheavy load.
Restarting the tire pressure loss warn-
ing system
Restart the tire pressure loss warning system if
you have:
Rchanged the tire pressure
Rchanged the wheels or tires
Rmounted new wheels or tires
XBefore restarting, make sure that the tire
pressures are set properly on all four tires for
the respective operating conditions.
The recommended tire pressure can be found
on the Tire and Loading Information placard
on the B-pillar. Additionally, atire pressure
table is attached to the fuel filler flap. The tire pressure loss warning system can only give
reliable warnings if you have set the correct
tire pressure. If an incorrect tire pressure is
set, these incorrect values will be monitored.
XAlso observe the notes in the section on tire
pressures (Ypage 258).
XMake sure that the SmartKey is in position 2
in the ignition lock (Ypage 115).
XPress the =or; button on the steering
wheel to select the Serv.menu.
XPress the9or: button to select
Tire Pressure.
XPress the abutton.
The Run Flat Indicator Active Press
'OK' to Restartmessage appears in the
multifunction display. If you wish to confirm the restart:
XPress the
abutton.
The Tire Pressure Now OK?message
appears in the multifunction display.
XPress the 9or: button to select Yes.
XPress theabutton.
The Run Flat Indicator Restartedmes-
sage appears in the multifunction display.
After ateach-in period, the tire pressure loss
warning system will monitor the set tire pres- sures of all four tires.
If you wish to cancel the restart:
XPress the %button.
or
XIf the Tire Pressure Now OK?message
appears, use the 9or: button to
select Cancel
.
XPress the abutton.
The tire pressure values stored at the last
restart will continue to be monitored.
Tire pressure monitor
General notes
If at ire pressure monitor is installed, the vehi-
cle's wheels have sensors that monitor the tire
pressures in all four tires. The tire pressure mon-
itor warns you if the pressure drops in one or
more of the tires. The tire pressure monitor only
functions if the corresponding sensors are
installed in all wheels.
Information on tire pressures is displayed in the
multifunction display. After afew minutes of
driving, the current tire pressure of each tire is
shown in the Serv.
menu of the multifunction
display.
Example: current tire pressure display
For information on the message display, refer to
the "Checking the tire pressure electronically"
section (
Ypage 264).
262Tire pressure
Wheels and tires

Important safety notes
GWARNING
Eac htire, includin gthe spar e(if provided),
should be checke datleast once amonth
when cold and inflated to th epressur erec-
ommended by th evehicl emanufacturer on
th eT irea nd Loading Information placard on
th ed river' sdoor B-pillar or th etirep ressur e
label on th einside of th efuel filler flap .Ifyour
vehicl ehas tires of adifferen tsizet hant he
siz eindicated on th eTirea nd Loading Infor -
mation placard or th etirep ressur elabel, you
should determine th eproper tire pressur efor
those tires .
As an added safet yfeature, your vehicl ehas
been equipped wit hatirep ressur emonitoring
system (TPMS) that illuminate salow tire pres-
sur etelltale when on eormoreofy our tires
are significantly underinflated. Accordingly,
when th elow tire pressur etelltale illuminates,
you should stop and chec kyour tires as soo n
as possible ,and inflat ethemtot heproper
pressure. Drivin gonasignificantly underin-
flated tire causes th etiretoo verheat and can
lead to tire failure. Underinflation also
reduce sfuel efficiency and tire tread life ,and
may affec tthe vehicle's handlin gand stop-
pin gability.
Pleas enotet hatthe TPM Sisn otas ubstitut e
for proper tire maintenance ,and it is th edriv-
er' sre
sponsibilit ytom aintai ncorrect tire
pressure, eve nifunderinflation has no t
reached th elevel to trigge rillumination of th e
TPM Slow tire pressur etelltale.
Your vehicl ehas also been equipped wit ha
TPM Smalfunction indicator to indicat eifthe
system is no toperating properly. The TPM S
malfunction indicator is combined wit hthe
low tire pressur etelltale. When th esystem
detects amalfunction ,the warning lamp will
flas hfor approximately aminute and then
remain continuously illuminated. This
sequenc ewill be repeated every time th evehi-
cle is started as lon gasthemalfunction
exists.
When th emalfunction indicator is illuminated,
th es ystem may no tbeable to detec torsignal
low tire pressur easintended. TPM Smalfunc -
tion smay occur for avariet yofr easons,
includin gthe installation of incompatible
replacemen toralternate tires or wheels on
th ev ehicl ethatp reven tthe TPM Sfromf unc-
tioning properly. Always chec kthe TPM Smal-
function telltale after replacing on eormore
tires or wheels on your vehicl etoensuret hat
th er eplacemen toralternate tires and wheels
allow th eTPM Stoc ontinue to function prop-
erly.
It is th edriver' sresponsibilit ytos et th etire
pressur etothatrecommended for cold tires
whic hiss uitable for th eoperating situation
(
Ypage 258). Not etha tthe correc ttirep ressur e
for th ecurren toperating situation must first be
taught-in to th etirep ressur emonitor. If there is
as ubstantial loss of pressure, th ewarning
threshold for th ewarning message is aligned to
th er eferenc evalue staught-in .Restart th etire
pressur emonitor after adjusting th epressur eof
th ec oldt ires (
Ypage 264). The curren tpres-
sures are saved as ne wreferenc evalues. As a
result ,awarning message will appear if th etire
pressur edrops sign ifica
ntly.
The tire pressur emonitor does no twarn you of
an incorrectl yset tire pressure. Observ ethe
note sont herecommended tire pressur e
(
Ypage 258).
The tire pressur emonitor is no table to warn you
of as udde nloss of pressure, e.g. if th etirei s
penetrated by aforeign object. In th eevent of a
sudde nloss of pressure, brin gthe vehicl etoa
halt by braking carefully. Avoid abrup tsteering
movements.
The tire pressur emonitor has ayellow warning
lamp in th einstrumen tcluste rfor indicating
pressur eloss or amalfunction .Whether th e
warning lamp flashes or lights up indicates
whether atirep ressur eistoolow or th etire
pressur emonitor is malfunctioning :
Rif thewarning lamp is lit continuously, th etire
pressur eononeor mor etires is significantly
to ol ow. The tire pressur emonitor is no tmal-
functioning .
Rif thewarning lamp flashes for aroun da
minute and then remain slit constantly, th e
tire pressur emonitor is malfunctioning .
Tire pressure263
Wheels and tires
Z

In addition to the warning lamp,amessage
appears in the multifunction display. Observe
the information on display messages
(
Ypage 196).
It may take up to ten minutes for amalfunction
of the tire pressure monitor to be indicated .A
malfunction wil lbeindicated by the tire pres-
sure warning lamp flashing for approximately
one minute and then remaining lit. When the
malfunction has been rectified, the tire pressure
warning lamp goes out after afew minutes of
driving.
The tire pressure values indicated by the on-
board computer may differ from those meas-
ured at agas station with apressure gauge. The
tire pressures shown by the on-board computer
refer to those measured at sea level.Ath igh
altitudes, the tire pressure values indicated by a
pressure gauge are higher than those shown by the on-board computer. In this case, do not
reduce the tire pressures.
The operation of the tire pressure monitor can
be affected by interference from radi otransmit-
ting equipment (e.g. radi oheadphones, two-way
radios) that may be being operated in or near the vehicle.
Checking the tire pressure electroni-
cally
XMake sure that the SmartKey is in position 2
in the ignition lock (Ypage 115).
XPress the =or; button on the steering
wheel to select the Serv.menu.
XPress the9or: button to select
Tire Pressure.
XPress the abutton.
The current tire pressure of each tire is shown
in the multifunction display.
If the vehicle has been parked for over
20 minutes, the Tire pressure will be
displayed after driving afew minutesmessag eappears.
After ateach-in process, the tire pressure mon-
itor automatically detects new wheelsorn ew
sensors. As long as aclear allocation of the tire
pressure valu etothe individual wheel sisnot
possible, the Tire
PressureMonitorActivedisplay messag eisshown instead of the tire
pressure display. The tire pressures are already
being monitored.
If an emergency spare wheel is mounted, the
system may continue to show the tire pressure of the wheel that has been removed for
afew
minutes. If this occurs, note that the valu edis-
played for the positionw here the spare wheel is
mounted is not the same as the current tire
pressure of the emergency spare wheel.
Tire pressure monitor warning mes-
sages
If the tire pressure monitor detects apressure
loss in one or more tires, awarning messag eis
shown in the multifunction display. The yellow
tire pressure warning lamp then lights up.
RIf the Please Correct Tire Pressuremessag eappears in the multifunction display,
the tire pressure in at least one tire is too low.
The tire pressure must be corrected when the
opportunity arises.
RIf the Check Tiresmessag eappears in the
multifunction display, the tire pressure in at
least one tire has droppeds ignificantly. The
tires must be checked.
RIf the WarningTireMalfunctionmessage
appears in the multifunction display, the tire
pressure in at least one tire has droppeds ud-
denly.T he tires must be checked.
Observe the instructions and safety notes in the
display messages in the "Tires" section
(
Ypage 196).
If the wheel positions on the vehicle are rotated,
the tire pressures may be displaye dfor the
wrong positions for ashort time. This is rectified
after afew minutes of driving, and the tire pres-
sures are displaye dfor the correct positions.
Restarting the tire pressure monitor
When you restart the tire pressure monitor, all
existing warning messages are deleted and the
warning lamp sgoout. The monitor uses the cur-
rently set tire pressures as the reference values for monitoring. In most cases, the tire pressure
monitor wil lautomatically detect the new refer-
ence values after you have changed the tire
pressure. However, you can also define refer-
ence values manually as describedh ere. The tire
pressure monitor then monitors the new tire
pressure values.
XSet the tire pressure to the valu erecommen-
ded for the corresponding driving situation on
the Tire and Loading Information placard on
the driver's side B-pillar(
Ypage 258).
264Tire pressure
Wheelsa nd tires

Additionaltire pressure values for different
load scan also be found on the tire pressure
table on the insid eofthe fuel fille rflap
(
Ypage 258).
XMake sure thatt he tire pressure is correct on
al lf ou rw heels.
XMake sure thatt he SmartKeyisinp osition2
in the ignition lock.
XPress the =or; button on the steering
whee ltoselect the Serv.menu.
XPress the 9or: button to select
Tir ePressure.
XPress the abutton.
The multifunctio ndisplay shows the current
tire pressure for the individual tire sorthe
Tir epressure wil lbedisplayed
after drivin gafew minutesmessage.
XPress the :button.
The UseCurrentPressuresasNewRef‐erenceValuesmessage appear sinthe mul-
tifunctio ndisplay.
If youw ishtoc onfirm the restart:
XPress the abutton.
The TirePress.MonitorRestartedmes-
sage appear sinthe multifunctio ndisplay.
After driving for afew minutes, the system
checks whethe rthe current tire pressures are
withint he specified range.T he new tire pres-
sures ar ethen accepte dasreference values
and monitored.
If youw ishtoc ancelthe restart:
XPress the %button.
The tire pressure values stored at the last
restart will continue to be monitored.
Radio type approval fort he tire pres-
sure monitor
CountryRadio type approval number
USAFCC ID: MRXMW2433A
FCC ID: MRXGG4
FCC ID: MRXMC34MA4
CanadaIC:2 546A-MW2433A
IC:2 546A-GG4
IC:2 546A-MC34MA4
Loadin gthe vehicle
Instructio nlabel sfor tiresa nd loads
GWARNING
Overloaded tire scan overheat, causing a
blowout. Overloaded tire scan also impai rthe
steering and driving characteristics and lead
to brake failure. There is ariskofa ccident.
Observ ethe load rating of the tires. The load
rating must be at leas thalfoft he GAW Rof
your vehicle. Never overload the tire sby
exceeding the maximu mload.
Twoi nstructio nlabel sony ourvehicl eshowt he
maximu mpossibl eload.
(1) The Tire and Loading Informatio nplacard is
on the B-pillar on the driver's side .The Tire
and Loading Informatio nplacard shows the
maximu mpermissibl enumbe rofoccu-
pants and the maximu mpermissibl evehicle
load .Italsoc ontains details of the tire sizes
and corresponding pressures for tires
mounted at the factory.
(2) The vehicl eide ntificatio nplate is on the
B-pillar on the driver's side .The vehicle
identificatio nplate informs yo uofthe gross
vehicl eweigh trating .Iti smadeupoft he
vehicl eweigh t, allvehicl eoccupants, the
fuel and the cargo. Yo ucan also find infor-
matio nabout the maximu mgross axle
weight rating on the front and rea raxle.
The maximu mgross axl eweigh trating is
the maximu mweigh tthatc an be carrie dby
one axl e(
fro
nt or rea raxle) .Never exceed
the maximu mloadort he maximu mgross
axl ew eigh trating for the front or rea raxle.
:B-pillar, driver's side
Loadin gthe vehicle265
Wheel sand tires
Z

Maximum permissible gross vehicle
weight rating
XSpecification for maximumgross vehicle
weight :is listed in the Tire and Loading
Informatio nplacard: "The combined weight of
occupants and cargo should never exceed
XXX kilograms or XXX lbs."
The gross weight of all vehicleo ccupants, load
and luggage must not exceed the specified
value.
iThe specifications shownont he Tire and
Loading Informatio nplacard in the illustration
are examples. The maximu mpermissible
gross vehiclew eight rating is vehicle-specific
and may diffe rfrom that in the illustration.
You can find the vali dmaximu mpermissible
gross vehiclew eight rating for you rvehicl eon
the Tire and Loading Informatio nplacard.
Number of seats
Maximu mnumber of seats :indicates the
maximu mnumber of occupants allowe dto
travel in the vehicle. This information can be
found on the Tire and Loading Informatio nplac-
ard.
iThe specifications shownont he Tire and
Loading Informatio nplacard in the illustration
are examples. The number of seats is vehicle-
specific and can diffe rfrom the details shown.
The number of seats in you rvehicl ecan be
found on the Tire and Loading Information
placard.
Determinin gthe correct load limit
Step-by-ste pinstructions
The following steps have been developed as
required of all manufacturers under Title 49,
Cod eofU .S. FederalR egulations, Part 575 pur-
suant to the "National Traffi cand Motor Vehicle
Safety Act of 1966".
XStep 1: Locate the statement "The combined
weight of occupants and cargo should never
exceed XXX kg or XXX lbs." on you rvehicle’s
Tire and Loading Informatio nplacard.
XStep 2: Determine the combined weight of
the drivera nd passengers that wil lberiding in
you rvehicle.
XStep 3: Subtract the combined weight of the
drive rand passengers from XXX kilograms or
XXX lbs.
XStep 4: The resulting figure equals the avail-
abl eamount of cargo and luggage loa dcapa-
city. For example, if the "XXX "amount equals
1400 lbs and there wil lbefive 150-lb pas-
sengers in you rvehicle, the amount of avail-
abl ecargo and luggage loa dcapacity is
650 lbs (1400 -750 (5 x150) = 650 lbs).
XStep 5: Determine the combined weight of
luggage and cargo being loaded on the vehi-
cle. That weight may not safel yexceed the
available cargo and luggage loa dcapacity cal-
culated in step 4.
Example :steps 1to3
The following table showse xamples on how to
calculate total and cargo loa dcapacities with
varying seating configurations and number and
size of occupants. The following examples use a
loa dlimi tof1 500 lbs (680 kg). This is for illus-
tration purposes only. Make sure you are
using the actua lloadl imitfor you rvehicl estated
on you rvehicle's Tire and Loading Information
placard (
Ypag e265).
266Loading the vehicle
Wheels and tires

The greater the combined weight of the occu-
pants, the lower the maximum luggage load.
Step 1
Example 1Example 2
Combined max-
imum weight of
occupants and
cargo (data
from the Tire
and Loading
Information
placard)1500 lbs
(680 kg)1500 lbs
(680 kg)
Step 2
Example 1Example 2
Number of peo-
ple in the vehi-
cle (driver and
occupants)12
Weight of the
occupantsOccu-
pant 1:
175 lbs
(80 kg)Occu-
pant 1:
175 lbs
(80 kg)
Occu-
pant 2:
195 lbs
(88 kg)
Gross weight
of all occupants175 lbs
(80 kg)370 lbs
(168 kg)
Step 3
Example 1Example 2
Permissible
load (maxi-
mum gross
vehicle weight
rating from the
Tire and Load-
ing Information
placardminus
the gross
weight of all
occupants)1500 lbs
(680 kg) Ò
175 lbs
(80 kg) =
1325 lbs
(600 kg)1500 lbs
(680 kg) Ò
370 lbs
(168 kg) =
1130 lbs
(512 kg)
Vehicle identification plate
Even if you have calculated the total cargo care-
fully, you should still make sure that the gross
vehicle weight rating and the gross axle weight
rating are not exceeded. Details can be found on
the vehicle identification plate on the B-pillar on
the driver's side of the vehicle (
Ypage 265).
Permissible gross vehicle weight: the gross
weight of the vehicle, all passengers and the
load must not exceed the permissible gross
vehicle weight.
Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR): the maxi-
mum permissible weight that can be carried by
one axle (front or rear axle).
To ensure that your vehicle does not exceed the
maximum permissible values (gross vehicle
weight and maximum gross axle weight rating),
have your loaded vehicle (including driver, occu-
pants and the load) weighed on asuitable vehi-
cle weighbridge.
All about wheels and tires
Uniform Tire Quality Grading Stand-
ards
Overview of Tire Quality Grading Stand-
ards
Uniform Tire Quality Grading Standards are U.S. government specifications. Their purpose is to
provide drivers with uniform reliable information
on tire performance data. Tire manufacturers
have to grade tires using three performance fac-
tors: :tread wear grade, ;traction grade and
= temperature grade. These regulations do not
apply to Canada. Nevertheless, all tires sold in
North Americaa re provided with the corre-
sponding quality grading markings on the side-
wall of the tire.
All about wheelsa nd tires267
Wheels and tires
Z

Quality grades can be found,where applicable,
on the tire sidewall between tread shoulde rand
maximum sectio nwidth.
Example:
RTreadwear grade: 200
RTractiongrade: AA
RTemperature grade: A
All passengerc ar tires must conform to the stat-
utory safety requirements in additio ntothese
grades.
iThe actua lvalues for tires are vehicle-spe-
cific and may deviate from the values in the
illustration.
Treadwear
The treadwea rgrad eisac omparativ erating
based on the wea rrate of the tire whe ntested
unde rcontrolled conditions on aspecified U.S.
government course. For example, atire graded
150 would wea rone and one-half times as well
on the government test track as atire graded
100.
The relative performance of tires depends upon
the actua lconditions of their use ,however, and
may depart significantly from the norm duet o
variations in driving habits, service practices
and differences in road characteristics and cli-
mate.
Traction
GWARNING
The tractio ngrad eassigne dtothis tire is
based on straight-ahead braking traction
tests, and doesn ot include acceleration, cor-
nering, hydroplaning ,orpeaktractio nchar-
acteristics.
!Avoid wheelspin. Thisc an leadtodamage to
the driv etrain.
The tractio ngrades –from highest to lowest –
are AA, A, Band C. Thoseg rades represent the
tire's ability to stop on wet pavement as meas-
ure dunde rcontrolled conditions on specified
government test surfaces of asphal tand con-
crete. Atire marked Cmay have poort raction
performance.
The safe speedonaw et, snow coveredoricy
road is always lower than on dry road surfaces. You should pay speciala
ttentiontoroadc ondi-
tions whe ntemperatures are around freezing
point.
Mercedes-Benz recommends aminimum tread
depth of ãin (4 mm )onallfour winter tires.
Observe the legally required minimum tire tread
depth (
Ypag e256). Winter tires can reduce the
braking distance on snow-covered surfaces in
compariso nwiths ummer tires. The braking dis-
tance is stil lmuch furthe rthan on surfaces that
are not icy or coveredw iths now. Take appro-
priate care whe ndriving.
Temperature
GWARNING
The temperature grad efor this tire is estab-
lished for atire that is properly inflated and
not overloaded. Excessiv espeed, underinfla-
tion, or excessive loading ,eithe rseparately or
in combination, can cause excessive heat
build-up and possibl etire failure.
The temperature grades are A(the highest),B ,
and C, representing the tire's resistance to the
generation of heata nd its ability to dissipate
heatw hent ested unde rcontrolled conditions
on aspecified indoor laboratory test wheel. Sus-
taine dhight emperature can cause the material
of the tire to degenerate and reduce tire life, and
excessive temperature can lea dtosudden tire
failure. The grad eCcorresponds to aleve lof
performance which al lpassengerc ar tires must
meet unde rthe Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard No. 109. Grades BandArepresent
higher levels of performance on the laboratory
test wheel than the minimum required by law.
268Al la bout wheelsa nd tires
Wheels and tires