Tyres (tyre safety, wheels, winter use)

Tyre safety - wheels

The tyres are the only contact between the vehicle and the road, so it is essential to keep them in good condition.

You must strictly comply with the local rules set out in the highway code.

When replacement is necessary, only fit tyres of the same brand, size, type and construction to your vehicle.

They must either be identical to the original tyres or match those recommended by a Brand Representative.

Tyre maintenance

Tyres must be in good condition and their tread must have sufficient depth. Tyres approved by our technical departments have wear indicators 1, which are raised bars built into the thickness of the tread.

When the tread pattern has worn down to the level of the wear indicators (tread wear bars), these become visible 2: the tyres must then be replaced, as the tread depth is at most 1.6 mm, which results in poor grip on wet roads.

An overloaded vehicle, long motorway journeys especially in hot weather, and regular driving on rough tracks all contribute to faster tyre deterioration and affect safety.

Driving incidents such as hitting the kerb may damage the tyres and wheels and cause front or rear wheel alignment faults.

In this case, have their condition checked by a brand Representative.

Inflation pressures

Observe the inflation pressures (including the spare wheel). Check them at least once a month and before each long journey (refer to the label on the driver's door edge).

Insufficient pressure causes premature wear and abnormal tyre heating, with all the safety consequences that entails:

• poor handling,
• risk of tyre blowout or loss of tread.

The inflation pressure depends on the load and the driving speed.

Adjust the pressures according to the driving conditions (refer to the label stuck on the driver's door edge).

Pressures must be checked when the tyres are cold. Do not take into account the higher pressures reached in hot weather or after driving at high speed.

If the pressure cannot be checked on cold tyres, increase the indicated pressures by 0.2 to 0.3 bar (or 3 PSI).

Never deflate a hot tyre.

Special feature

Depending on the vehicle, you have an adapter that must be fitted to the valve before inflating the tyre.

Warning: a missing or incorrectly tightened valve cap may impair tyre sealing and cause pressure loss.

Always keep valve caps identical to the original ones and fully tightened.

Tyre replacement

For safety reasons, this operation must be carried out exclusively by a specialist.

Fitting a different tyre size or type may change:

• the vehicle's compliance with current regulations;
• its cornering behaviour;
• the steering weight;
• the fitting of snow chains.

Spare wheel

Refer to the "Spare wheel" and "Wheel change" sections in chapter 5.

Winter use

Snow chains

For safety reasons, it is strictly forbidden to fit snow chains to the rear axle.

Fitting tyres larger than the original size makes it impossible to fit snow chains.

"Snow" or "all-season" tyres

We recommend fitting tyres to all four wheels to preserve as much as possible the grip qualities of your vehicle.

Warning: these tyres sometimes have a direction of rotation and a maximum speed rating that may be lower than the maximum speed of your vehicle.

Studded tyres

This type of equipment may only be used for a limited period, as determined by local legislation. The speed limit set by the applicable regulations must be observed.

These tyres must be fitted to at least both front wheels.

In all cases, we recommend consulting a Renault dealer, who will advise you on the equipment best suited to your vehicle.Snow chains can only be fitted to tyres of the same size as those originally fitted to your vehicle.

Snow chains can be fitted, but only specific chains may be used. We recommend consulting a Renault dealer.

Wheel change

The tyre pressure monitoring system may take several minutes of driving to register wheel positions and pressures correctly. Check the tyre pressures after any work.