Mercedes-Benz 2009 SLK 300, Operator'S Manual

Page: 243 / 364

Tires and wheels
241
Tire size designation, load and speed
rating
1
Tire width
2
Aspect ratio in %
3
Radial tire code
4
Rim diameter
5
Tire load rating
6
Tire speed rating
i For illustration purposes only. Actual data
on tires are specific to each vehicle and
may vary from data shown in above illus-
tration.
General: Depending on the design standards
used, the tire size molded into the sidewall
may have no letter or a letter preceding the
tire size designation.
No letter preceding the size designation (as
illustrated above): Passenger car tire based
on European design standards.
Letter “P” preceding the size designation:
Passenger car tire based on U.S. design
standards.
Letter “LT” preceding the size designation:
Light Truck tire based on U.S. design stand-
ards.
Letter “T” preceding the size designation:
Temporary spare tires which are high pres-
sure compact spares designed for temporary
emergency use only.
Tire width
Tire width
1
indicates the nominal tire width
in millimeters.
Aspect ratio
Aspect ratio
2
is the dimensional relation-
ship between tire section height and section
width and is expressed in percentage. The
aspect ratio is arrived at by dividing section
height by section width.
Tire code
Tire code
3
indicates the tire construction
type. The “R” stands for radial tire type. Letter
“D” means diagonal or bias ply construction;
letter “B” means belted-bias ply construction.
At the tire manufacturer’s option, any tire
with a speed capability above 149 mph
(240 km/h) can include a “ZR” in the size
designation (for example: 245/40 ZR 18). For
additional information, see “Tire speed rat-
ing” (
Y
page 242).
Rim diameter
Rim diameter
4
is the diameter of the bead
seat, not the diameter of the rim edge. The
rim diameter is indicated in inches (in).
Tire load rating
G
Warning!
The tire load rating must always be at least
half of the GAWR of your vehicle. Other-
wise, tire failure may be the result which
may cause an accident and/or serious
injury to you or others.
Always replace rims and tires with the same
designation, manufacturer and type as
shown on the original part.
G
Warning!
Do not overload the tires by exceeding the
specified load limit as indicated on the Tire
Operation
Z