1997 Toyota Avalon Owners Manual

This information has been prepared in ac- cordance with regulations issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Adminis- tration of the U.S. Department of Trans- portation. It provides the purchasers and/ or prospective purchasers of Toyota vehicles with information on uniform tire quality grading. Your Toyota dealer will help answer any questions you may have as you read this information. DOT quality grades—All passenger vehicle tires must conform to Federal Safety Requirements in addition to these grades. These quality grades are molded on the sidewall. Treadwear—The treadwear grade is a comparative rating based on the wear rate of the tire when tested under con- trolled conditions on a specified govern- ment test course. For example, a tire graded 150 would wear one and a half (1-1/2) times as well on the government course as a tire graded 100. The relative performance of tires depends upon the actual conditions of their use, however, and may depart significantly from the norm due to variations in driving habits, service practices and differences in road characteristics and climate.

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Traction A, B, C—The traction grades, from highest to lowest, are A, B, and C, and they represent the tire’s ability to stop on wet pavement as measured under controlled conditions on specified govern- ment test surfaces of asphalt and con- crete. A tire marked C may have poor trac- tion performance. Warning: The traction grade assigned to this tire is based on braking (straight ahead) traction tests and does not include cornering (turning) traction. Temperature A, B, C—The temperature grades are A (the highest), B, and C, rep- resenting the tire’s resistance to the gen- eration of heat and its ability to dissipate heat when tested under controlled condi- tions on a specific indoor laboratory test wheel. Sustained high temperature can cause the material of the tire life, and ex- cessive temperature can lead to sudden tire failure. The grade C corresponds to a level of performance which all passenger car tires must meet under the Federal Mo- tor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 109. Grades B and A represent higher levels of performance on the laboratory test wheel than the minimum required by law.