Volkswagen Polo Service & Repair Manual: Winter Tires with Speed Symbol V

Volkswagen Polo Service & Repair Manual / Whels, Tires, Whel Alignment / Tire Information / Winter Tires with Speed Symbol V

Table. Refer to → Anchor.

The tire industry delivers winter tires with V-rating also. These tires can be applied up to the maximum permissible speed v_max = 240 km/h (149.13 mph) only under certain conditions.

Vehicles with V-tires:

Vehicles that require V-tires according to vehicle registration, can be driven with V winter tires without limitations up to speed rating “v”_max = 240 km/h (149.13 mph).

Vehicles with W-, Y- or ZR-tires:

Vehicles that require W, Y, or ZR tires according to vehicle registration, cannot be driven with V winter tires up to “v”_max = 240 km/h (149.13 mph) under certain conditions.

Why?

V summer tires and V winter tires without special designation guarantee 100% of the load capacity indicated by their Load Index (“LI”) only up to a speed of 210 km/h (130.48 mph).

Speeds above 210 km/h (130.48 mph) are only possible if the maximum load capacity of the tire is not exceeded. The load capacity of the tire decreases as the speed increases.

The maximum permissible axle load and the attainable maximum speed of certain vehicles are so high that the load capacity of V tires is not sufficient for speeds above 240 km/h (149.13 mph).

Example: Tires 205/55 R 16 91V

The Load index (LI) 91 for this tire indicates a load capacity of 615 kg (1355.84 lbs) per tire up to 210 km/h (130.48 mph).

At 240 km/h (130.48 mph), the load capacity of this tire is reduced to only 560 kg (1234.58 lbs). For this reason, the axle load can only be maximum 1,120 kg (2469.17 lbs).

The vehicle has an additional axle load of 1,150 kg (2535.31 lbs) and an attainable maximum speed of 232 km/h (144.15 mph). This vehicle can be driven with V winter tires up to a speed of 230 km/h (142.91 mph).

This Applies to All V Winter Tires That Do Not Have a Special Designation.

Winter tires identified with Extra Load XL. Refer to → Chapter „Tires, Reinforced, Extra Load“

Permission Stipulations in Germany

Only when using winter tires is it permitted that the highest speed attainable by the vehicle lies above the highest speed of winter tires specified by the speed rating.

In this case, a warning sign in the view of the driver must be applied with the following content:

Attention, Winter Tires!

Maximum permissible speed ...km/h

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