1994 Pontiac Grand Am Owner's Manual - Page 203

Service & Appearance Care Uniform Tire Quality Grading (CONT.) Traction A, B, C The traction grades, from highest to lowest are: A, B, and C. They represent the tire's ability to stop on wet pavement as measured under controlled conditions on specified government test surfaces of asphalt and concrete. A tire marked C may have poor traction performance. Warning: The traction grade assigned to this tire is based on braking (straight-ahead) traction tests and does not include cornering (turning) traction. - The grade C corresponds to a level of performance which all passenger car tires must meet under the Federal Motor 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. Warning: The temperature grade for this tire is established for a tire that is properly inflated and not overloaded. Excessive speed, underinflation, or excessive loading, either separately or in combination, can cause heat buildup and possible tire failure. These grades are molded on the sidewalls of passenger car tires. Wheel Alignment and Tire Balance The wheels on your vehicle were aligned and balanced carefully at the factory to give you the longest tire life and best werall performance. [n most cases, you will not need to have your wheels aligned again. However, if you notice unusual tire wear or your vehicle pulling one wayor the other, the alignment may need to be reset. If you notice your vehicle vibrating when driving on a smooth road, your wheels may need to be rebalanced. While the tires available as standard or optional equipment on General Motors The temperature grades are A (the vehicles may vary with respect to these highest), B, and C, representing the tire's grades, all such tires meet General Motors resistance to the generation of heat and its performance standards and have been ability todissipate heat when tested under approved for use on General Motors controlled conditions on a specified vehicles. All passenger type (P Metric) indoor laboratory test wheel. Sustained tires must conform to Federal safety high temperature can cause the material requirements in addition to these grades. of the tire to degenerate and reduce tire life, and excessive temperature can lead to sudden tire failure. Temperature A, B, C - Wheel Replacement Replace any wheel that is bent, cracked or badly rusted. If wheel nuts keep coming loose, the wheel, wheel bolts, and wheel nuts should be replaced. If the wheel leaks air, replaceit (except some aluminum wheels, which can sometimes be repaired). See your Pontiac dealerif any of these conditions exist. ...202