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Tyres

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Tyres

Tyre and wheel safety
The tyres are the only contact between the vehicle and the road, so it is essential to keep them in good condition.
You must make sure that your tyres con- form to local road traffic regulations.

Maintaining the tyres

The tyres must be in good condition and the treads must have sufficient depth: tyres approved by our Technical Department include wear warning strips 1 which are indicators moulded into the tread at several points.
When the tyre tread has been worn to the level of the wear indicators, they become visible 2: it is necessary to replace your tyres because the tread rubber is 1.6 mm deep at most, resulting in poor road-holding on wet roads.
An overloaded vehicle, long journeys by motorway, particularly in very hot weather, or continual driving on poorly surfaced minor roads will lead to more rapid tyre wear and affect safety.
WARNING
Incidents which occur when driving, such as striking the kerb, may damage the tyres and wheel rims, and could also lead to misalignment of the front or rear axle geometry. In this case, have the condition of these checked by an approved dealer.

Tyre pressures

Adhere to the tyre pressures (including the emergency spare wheel). The tyre pressures should be checked at least once a month and before using the vehicle on a circuit or before a long journey (refer to the label attached to the driver's door edge, or, depending on the vehicle, on the bottom of the driver's door).
WARNING
Incorrect tyre pressures lead to abnormal tyre wear and unusually hot running. These are factors which may seriously affect safety and lead to:
  • poor road holding;
  • the risk of blow-outs or of throwing a tread.
The pressure depends on the load and the speed of use. Adjust the pressures according to the conditions of use (refer to the label affixed to the edge of the driver's door, or, depending on the vehicle, on the bottom of the driver's door).
Pressures should be checked when the tyres are cold. Ignore higher pressures which may be reached in hot weather or after driving at high speed.
If tyre pressures cannot be checked when the tyres are cold, assume an increase of 0.2 to 0.3 bar (or 3 PSI).
Never deflate a hot tyre.
WARNING
Please be aware that a poorly tightened or missing valve cap can make the tyres less airtight and may lead to pressure loss.
Always use valve caps identical to the originals and screw them down fully.
Vehicle fitted with a tyre pressure monitoring system
If the tyres are under-inflated (puncture, low pressure, etc.), the warning light appears on the instrument panel: refer to the information on "Tyre pressure monitoring system" in Section 2.

Emergency spare wheel

Refer to the information on the "Emergency spare wheel" and "Changing a wheel" in Section 5.

Exchanging the right-hand and left-hand wheels

This practice is not recommended.
WARNING
The front and rear wheels have different dimensions. For safety reasons, it is not permitted to exchange the front wheels (tyres and/or rims) with the rear wheels.

Fitting new tyres

WARNING
For your safety reasons.
Only tyres identical to those fitted originally or recommended by an approved dealer must be used.
Failure to follow these instructions could endanger your safety. This could adversely affect stability, behaviour, braking or the clearance between the bodywork and the tyres.
Some of these effects could lead to the loss of control of the vehicle under certain driving conditions.
WARNING
For your safety and to comply with the law.
When they need to be replaced, only tyres of the same make, size, type and profile should be used on a single axle.
They must have a load capacity and speed rating at least equal to those of the original tyres and correspond to the tyres recommended by an approved Dealer.
Failure to heed these instructions could endanger your safety and affect your vehicle's roadworthiness.
Risk of loss of control of the vehicle.

Use in winter

Chains
For safety reasons, the fitting of snow chains to the rear axle is a requirement. It is strongly recommended that they also be fitted to the front axle.
Chains cannot be fitted to tyres which are larger than those originally fitted to the vehicle.
WARNING
If you wish to fit snow chains, you must use special equipment.
Consult an approved dealer.
"Snow" or "Winter" tyres
We would recommend that these be fitted to all four wheels to ensure that your vehicle retains maximum adhesion.
Caution: these tyres sometimes have a specific direction of rotation and a maximum speed index which may be lower than the maximum speed for your vehicle.
Studded tyres
This type of equipment may only be used for a limited period and as laid down by local legislation. It is necessary to observe the speed specified by current legislation.
These tyres must, at a minimum, be fitted to the two rear wheels.
Tip
In all cases, we would recommend that you contact an approved Dealer who will be able to advise you on the choice of equipment which is most suitable for your vehicle.