EU TYRE LABELLING LEGISLATION – WHY YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT NEW TYRE LABELLING – SAFETY MATTERS!
On 1st November 2012 the new EU Tyre Labelling legislation came into force. All new car, 4×4, SUV, van and most truck tyres manufactured after 1st July 2012 must carry a new ‘tyre label’ which is similar to the energy stickers that appear on white goods. The new label will provide you with objective, reliable and comparable information about your new tyre purchase. Tyres manufactured before 1st July 2012 may still carry an old style label.
Your Drive to Purchase
The tyre label will focus on three areas of performance and will raise some very important questions when making your tyre purchase.
- Fuel Efficiency – How economic is this tyre? – Savings
- Wet Grip – How quickly can the tyre stop in wet conditions? – Safety
- Exterior Noise – How noisy is the tyre? – Sound
Fuel Efficiency
Tyres are responsible for approximately 20% of a vehicle’s fuel consumption, mainly due to their rolling resistance. Rolling resistance is the resistance between the tyre and the road surface, and can be affected by the material the tyre is made from. Tyre manufacturers carry out vast amounts of research into their production materials, with one of their aims being to reduce rolling resistance. Reducing rolling resistance can help improve fuel efficiency. So if you opt for tyres classed as ‘A’ instead of ‘F’ – this could help save you 80 litres of fuel per year based on 10,000 miles in a petrol vehicle.
Wet Grip
Tyres play a crucial role in a vehicle’s stopping distance. It takes longer to stop in wet conditions compared to dry due to the amount of water held on the tyres and lying on the road surface. The patterns cut into a tyre’s surface (treads) are designed to aid water dispersal, and this is another key research area for tyre manufacturers. So now you will be able to compare how efficiently a tyre will perform in wet braking. For example, the difference in the wet braking distance between a car fitted with tyres classed as ‘A’ compared to ‘F’ is over 10 metres i.e. the equivalent to 2 car lengths! When braking at speed, clearly this make a big difference to your road safety.
Noise
