FAQ : All about your car and its specifications

Before it's too late!

There are 3 main reasons to change your car tyres:

The first reason is legal:
As soon as the depth of your tyres reaches 1.6 mm, and the tread wear indicators reach their limit, it's illegal to drive with your tyres.
You could be fined and face points on your licence.

The 2nd reason is safety:
The more your tyres wear out, the more your wet braking distance will increase, and the more likely you are to aquaplane.
So it's very important to change your tyres before you reach this limit.

The 3rd reason is technical:
If you get a flat tyre, an expert needs to see the condition of your tyres and the location of the puncture.
If the puncture is located on the sidewall of the tyre, or if there are traces of marbling, then your tyre is beyond repair and will need to be replaced.

Keeping your tyres in good condition guarantees safety, and costs you less than causing an accident would.

Remember: your tyres are your only contact with the ground!

Checking your tyre pressure at least once every 2 months is essential for several reasons:

Tyres naturally lose a little pressure.
Even if tubeless tyres are almost perfectly airtight, they do have areas of weakness (valves, beads between tyres and rims).
Your driving style (mounting the pavement repeatedly...) may also accentuate this natural loss of pressure.

Tyres can experience slow punctures.
You drive over a blunt object, your valve has deteriorated faster than expected, you lose your valve caps, a nail or screw has got into the tread.
All these incidents require serious attention.

Temperature changes cause air molecules to vary in size.
This means that your tyres will need more air in winter, because the temperatures are colder than in summer, when the air molecules in your tyre expand.

We recommend that you regularly check your pressure at a petrol station or garage to catch potential problems with your tyres as early as possible and readjust your pressure accordingly.

Several factors contribute to the wearing of your tyres:

• The weight transported: the heavier the load transported (empty vehicle weight + load), the more the tyres will have to carry and cushion this weight.
• The type of route taken: driving in the city and in the mountains is more wearing for tyres (acceleration, change of direction, braking) than driving at a constant speed in a straight line on the motorway.
• Driving style: the more incisive, jerky or brutal your driving style, the more stress you put on your tyres.
• The condition of the undercarriage (shock absorbers, braking system, alignment, ball joint condition, wheel balancing, tyre pressure, etc.). A new car therefore consumes fewer tyres than a poorly maintained vehicle.
• The season, model and brand of tyres fitted to your car: the softer your rubber compound, the more quickly you'll get through your tyres.

All these factors combined will impact the speed at which your tyres wear out. As you can see, this wear and tear develops over time.

Many motorists are concerned about the cost of tyres.

Whether you have summer, winter or all-season tyres, calculating your costs can be a complicated matter.

In fact, the cost of your tyres can vary according to several factors:

• Your rim diameter.
• The dimensions and size of your tyres.
• Your desired brand.
• Your selected tyre profile.
• Your desired season.

In short, tyres can cost anything from a few pounds to several hundred pounds.

When you use our website for your tyre purchases, you can enjoy the benefit of our advice to get swift answers to all your questions.

You've just bought a car and want to change the tyre size or rim size.

This is possible under certain conditions, here's how to do it:

• Take your original measurements.
• Go to our measurement conversion chart which shows you all the necessary approvals.
• List all possible approved dimensions.
• Once you've made your choice, check the compatibility with your current wheels or your new rims.
• Visit our website to find your tyres or complete wheels.

So, whatever your main reason (giving your car a new look, finding something for the winter or saving money), TyreLeader will assist you and find the approved solutions.

Be careful, don't use your current fitting, use the tyre size approved by the manufacturer of your vehicle. Also remember to respect the speed rating and load index of your original tyres.

The original tyre fitting on your car is the fitting that the car manufacturer chose to design, develop and approve the vehicle.

All other equipment is therefore not original, but may be approved.

This means that the size can be fitted to your car without danger or risk to the driver and passengers.

The original fitting (or Original Equipment) is the size, make and model of tyres fitted to your car when it was delivered new.

It's not an obligation to keep Original Equipment.

The following markings tell you if a tyre is or has been developed for a particular car (the markings are specified on the sidewalls of the tyres and product information sheets):

• Alfa Romeo tyres: sidewall marking AL
• Aston Martin tyres: sidewall markings AM8, AM9, AMS, AMP
• Audi tyres: sidewall markings AO, RO1, RO2, B, EZ
• Bentley tyres: sidewall markings B, B1, BC, BL
• BMW tyres: sidewall markings *, M3
• Citroën tyres: sidewall marking SI
• Chrysler tyres: sidewall marking C1
• Ferrari tyres: sidewall markings F, K1, K2, K3, KA
• Fiat tyres: sidewall marking G1
• Ford tyres: sidewall markings FI, FO
• Honda tyres: sidewall marking DZ
• Jaguar tyres: sidewall markings JRS, J
• Lamborghini tyres: sidewall marking L
• Lancia tyres: sidewall marking LZ
• Lotus tyres: sidewall marking LS
• Mazda tyres: sidewall markings DZ, EZ
• McLaren tyres: sidewall markings MC, MC1
• Maserati tyres: sidewall markings K1, K2, K3, KA
• Mercedes tyres: sidewall markings MO, MO1, MOE, G1, EXT
• Mitsubishi tyres: sidewall marking MZ
• Opel tyres: sidewall marking OP
• Porsche tyres: sidewall markings N0, N1, N2, N3, N4, N5, N6
• Renault tyres: sidewall markings G1, RE
• Seat tyres: sidewall marking SE
• Subaru tyres: sidewall marking CZ
• Suzuki tyres: sidewall marking SU
• Toyota tyres: sidewall markings DZ, MZ
• Volkswagen tyres: sidewall markings VO, V0, VW, G

When changing tyres, be sure to fit the same tyres on the same axle to avoid vibration or unstable driving.

We recommend that for sports and high performance vehicles, you keep tyre sets with these specific original markings.

Keeping the tyre valve in a good state is a guarantee that your tyres will stay at the right pressure.

Over the years and miles driven, your rubber valve wears out.

It's therefore very important to change it when you change your tyres.

Metal valves are in turn more hard-wearing.

When changing tyres, however, your fitter must still check that they are waterproof.

The size of your tyres is indicated on the sidewall.

There you'll find all the useful information you need to know in order to change your tyres properly:

• The width (in millimetres)
• The aspect ratio (in %)
• Rim diameter (in inches)
• The load index
• The speed rating

For example: 225/45R17 94W corresponds to:

• Tyre width: 225
• Aspect ratio: 45
• Rim diameter: 17
• Load index: 94
• Speed rating: W