winter tires CHEVROLET CORVETTE 2006 6.G Owners Manual

Winter Driving
Here are some tips for winter driving:
Have your vehicle in good shape for winter.
You may want to put winter emergency supplies in
your vehicle.
Also seeTires on page 5-57.Include an ice scraper, a small brush or broom, a
supply of windshield washer uid, a rag, some winter
outer clothing, a small shovel, a ashlight, a red
cloth, and a couple of reective warning triangles. And,
if you will be driving under severe conditions, include
a small bag of sand, a piece of old carpet, or a couple
of burlap bags to help provide traction. Be sure you
properly secure these items in your vehicle.
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Winter Tires
If you expect to drive on snow or ice covered roads
often, you may want to get winter tires for your vehicle.
All season tires provide good overall performance on
most surfaces but they may not offer the traction
you would like or the same level of performance as
winter tires on snow or ice covered roads.
See your dealer for details regarding winter tire
availability and proper tire selection. Also, seeBuying
New Tires on page 5-70
If you choose to use winter tires:
Use tires of the same brand and tread type on all
four wheel positions.
Use only radial ply tires of the same size,
load range, and speed rating as the original
equipment tires.
Winter tires with the same speed rating as your original
equipment tires may not be available for H, V, W
and ZR speed rated tires. If you choose winter tires with
a lower speed rating, never exceed the tire’s maximum
speed capability.
Tire Sidewall Labeling
Useful information about a tire is molded into its
sidewall. The example below shows a typical passenger
(p-metric) tire sidewall.
(A) Tire Size:The tire size is a combination of letters
and numbers used to dene a particular tire’s width,
height, aspect ratio, construction type, and service
description. See the “Tire Size” illustration later in this
section for more detail.Passenger (P-Metric) Tire Example
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Buying New Tires
GM has developed and matched specic tires for your
vehicle. The original equipment tires installed on
your vehicle, when it was new, were designed to meet
General Motors Tire Performance Criteria Specication
(TPC spec) system rating. If you need replacement
tires, GM strongly recommends that you get tires with
the same TPC Spec rating. This way, your vehicle
will continue to have tires that are designed to give the
same performance and vehicle safety, during normal
use, as the original tires.
GM’s exclusive TPC Spec system considers over a
dozen critical specications that impact the overall
performance of your vehicle, including brake system
performance, ride and handling, traction control, and tire
pressure monitoring performance. GM’s TPC Spec
number is molded onto the tire’s sidewall by the
tire manufacturer. If the tires have an all-season tread
design, the TPC spec number will be followed by an
MS for mud and snow. SeeTire Sidewall Labeling
on page 5-58for additional information.
Winter tires with the same speed rating as your original
equipment tires may not be available for H, V, W, Y,
and ZR speed rated tires. If you choose snow tires with
a lower speed rating, never exceed the tire’s maximum
speed capability.{CAUTION:
Mixing tires could cause you to lose control
while driving. If you mix tires of different sizes
(other than those originally installed on your
vehicle), brands, or types (radial and bias-belted
tires), the vehicle may not handle properly, and
you could have a crash. Using tires of different
sizes (other than those originally installed on
your vehicle), brands or types, may also cause
damage to your vehicle. Be sure to use the
correct size, brand, and type tires on all
four wheels.
{CAUTION:
If you use bias-ply tires on your vehicle, the
wheel rim anges could develop cracks after
many miles of driving. A tire and/or wheel
could fail suddenly, causing a crash. Use only
radial-ply tires with the wheels on your vehicle.
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Uniform Tire Quality Grading
Quality grades can be found where applicable on the
tire sidewall between tread shoulder and maximum
section width. For example:
Treadwear 200 Traction AA Temperature A
The following information relates to the system
developed by the United States National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which grades
tires by treadwear, traction, and temperature
performance. This applies only to vehicles sold in the
United States. The grades are molded on the sidewalls
of most passenger car tires. The Uniform Tire Quality
Grading (UTQG) system does not apply to deep
tread, winter-type snow tires, space-saver, or temporary
use spare tires, tires with nominal rim diameters of
10 to 12 inches (25 to 30 cm), or to some
limited-production tires.
While the tires available on General Motors passenger
cars and light trucks may vary with respect to these
grades, they must also conform to federal safety
requirements and additional General Motors Tire
Performance Criteria (TPC) standards.
Treadwear
The treadwear grade is a comparative rating based on
the wear rate of the tire when tested under controlled
conditions on a specied government test course.
For example, a tire graded 150 would wear one and
a half (1.5) 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 signicantly from the norm
due to variations in driving habits, service practices, and
differences in road characteristics and climate.
Traction – AA, A, B, C
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 specied 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 straight-ahead braking traction tests, and does
not include acceleration, cornering, hydroplaning, or
peak traction characteristics.
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