Specifications for Retrofitting Wheel and Tire Combinations (Documents)
Legal Requirements
The manufacturer is granted general type approval for the whole vehicle including all parts and for specific retrofitting (general type approval according to 20 StVZO (Motor Vehicle Construction and Use Regulations or EU type approval).
Retrofitting to wheels and tires can only be made under certain circumstances. The following points must be taken into consideration:
- If the wheel and tires sizes along with the load index and speed symbol are contained in the general type approval or EU type approval, then this tire/wheel combination can be mounted on the vehicle.
It is Not Necessary to Install the Wheel/Tire Combination Specified in the Registration Certification Part I (Vehicle Registration). All Combinations in the General Type Approval or EU Type Approval can be Mounted on the Vehicle.
- There is no general type approval according to 22 StVZO for the retrofittings recommended (see approval certificate).
- If the wheels and/or tires are not contained in the general type approval or EU type approval, then vehicle cannot be retrofitted according to the Vehicle Registration Regulation (VRR) specifications.
These Statements Refer To Legal Requirements in the European Union. No claims are Made as to their Completeness. Other legal Requirements Apply Outside the European Union.
The tables of the approval certificate show the recommended and examined by the technical testing organization wheel and tire combinations for the vehicles and at the same time the conditions to be taken into account. The use of original disc wheels on a vehicle to which they have not been assigned is not permissible.
The possible retrofittings shown here are combinations which meet the requirements for handling and road safety. They are the results of practical tests and for this reason they are recommended.
Observe the Information Regarding New Vehicle Certification Documents Since 10/01/2005.
Technical Requirements
- The wheel and tire combinations or retrofittings listed in the individual vehicle tables refer exclusively to original disc wheels.
- Release of wheel/tire combinations or retrofittings with disc wheels from the accessories trade is not possible with the enclosed approval certificate.
- Tubeless radial tires may only be used with stepped rims with a bead retaining contour, for example a round hump.
- Run-flat tires (reinforced sidewall) may only be used on disc wheels with extended hump and vehicles with a tire pressure monitoring system.
- The correct tire inflation pressure values must be observed when the specified wheel and tire combinations are used. The tire pressures are listed on the tire pressure label on the inside of the fuel filler door and on the B-pillar on the driver side.
- Sufficient clearance between the wheels and tires and the wheel housing, suspension, and brake components is ensured if the instructions and conditions specified in the approval certificate are observed under all operating conditions.
- If not otherwise specified, snow chains may be mounted only on the drive wheels. If the vehicle has AWD, then snow chains may be used on the front wheels only.
Additional Wheel Housing Enlargement, FLAPS

On some vehicles with certain wheel/tire combinations, wheel housing enlargements (FLAPS) must be attached on the fenders or bumper for certification/technical reasons -arrows-.
Please check whether FLAPS must be installed.
The necessary wheel/tire combination information can be found in the overview table for the respective vehicle.
Load Rating Depending on Speed and Winter Tires
Winter Tires, Maximum Speeds for V and Extra Load
| Vehicle | Description | Driving Mode | Maximum Axle Load | Winter Tires | v max with V Winter Tires |
| Phaeton from MY 2003 3.2L/177 kW V6 | Sedan | Front Wheel Drive | 1420 kg (1.56 tons) | 235/60 R 16 100V | 240 km/h |
| Short and long wheel base | 235/55 R 17 99V | 235 km/h | |||
| 235/50 R 18 101V extra load | 240 km/h | ||||
| 245/45 R 19 102V extra load | 230 km/h | ||||
| 255/40 R 19 100V extra load | 240 km/h | ||||
| Phaeton from MY 2003 3.0L/165 kW V6 TDI | Sedan | 4MOTION | 1490 kg (1.64 tons) | 235/55 R 17 99V | 220 km/h |
| Short and long wheel base | 235/50 R 18 101V extra load | 240 km/h | |||
| 245/45 R 19 102V extra load | 230 km/h | ||||
| 255/40 R 19 100V extra load | 230 km/h | ||||
| Phaeton from MY 2003 4.2L/246 kW V8 | Sedan | 4MOTION | 1430 kg (1.58 tons) | 235/55 R 17 99V | 235 km/h |
| Short wheel base | 235/50 R 18 101V extra load | 240 km/h | |||
| 245/45 R 19 102V extra load | 230 km/h | ||||
| 255/40 R 19 100V extra load | 240 km/h | ||||
| Phaeton from MY 2003 4.2L/246 kW V8 | Sedan | 4MOTION | 1450 kg (1.59 tons) | 235/55 R 17 99V | 230 km/h |
| Long wheel base | 235/50 R 18 101V extra load | 240 km/h | |||
| 245/45 R 19 102V extra load | 230 km/h | ||||
| 255/40 R 19 100V extra load | 240 km/h | ||||
| Phaeton from MY 2003 5.0L/230 kW V10 TDI short wheel base | Sedan | 4MOTION | 1640 kg (1.8 tons) | 235/50 R 18 101V extra load | 210 km/h |
| Phaeton from MY 2003 5.0L/230 kW V10 TDI long wheel base | Sedan | 4MOTION | 1650 kg (1.81 tons) | 235/50 R 18 101V extra load | 210 km/h |
| Phaeton from MY 2003 6.0L/309 kW W12 | Sedan | 4MOTION | 1550 kg (1.7 tons) | 235/50 R 18 101V extra load | 235 km/h |
| 245/45 R 19 102V extra load | 230 km/h | ||||
| Short and long wheel base | 255/40 R 19 100V extra load | 220 km/h |
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 must be applied with the following content:
| Attention, Winter Tires! |
| Maximum permissible speed ...km/h |
Note
This warning sign must be in the driver's field of view!
Vehicle Registration Documents Since 01/10/2005
The implementation of EU guideline 1999/37/EG "Vehicle registration documents" in national legislation and legal data protection requirements have made the introduction of new, fraud resistant registration documents necessary.
Since 01/10/2005, the new documents are issued by the authorities in the case of new registrations, change of owner, entry of technical changes and all other changes.
The new registration documents consist of:
- the registration certificate part I, which replaces the vehicle registration and
- the registration certificate part II that supersedes the vehicle title.
Registration Certificate Part I (Vehicle Registration)
- contains all technical vehicle data that must be present to register a vehicle in Europe but only a standard approved wheel/tire combination is specified
- has the EU-wide alphanumeric codes allocated to the technical data so that the German registration document can be converted without problems in the foreign countries of the EU into the registration document required there
- contains a field to document the temporary or final decommissioning of the vehicle and is no longer drawn in the case of a temporary or final decommissioning.
Registration Certificate Part II (Vehicle Title)
- contains information that the bearer of the registration certificate is not declared the owner
- only contains the current and, if available, last vehicle owner, the actual number of previous owners is indicated numerically
- only contains a small portion of the technical vehicle data
- does not document temporary vehicle decommissioning In the future, the vehicle and body type listed under digit 1 in the old vehicle documentation will no longer exist. It is replaced in the new documents with EU-standardized vehicle classes with body type
The introduction of the new registration documents results in hardly any changes for the driver.
As with the old vehicle registration the registration certificate part I (vehicle registration) should be kept in the vehicle and presented to responsible persons upon request.
It is Not Necessary to Install the Wheel/Tire Combination Specified in the Registration Certification Part I (Vehicle Registration). All Combinations Approved According to the Vehicle General Type Approval or EU type Approval Maybe be Used.
The permissibility of a wheel/tire combination that deviates from the vehicle general type approval or EU type approval must be verified with an entry in the registration certificate part I (vehicle registration), an installation certificate due to a parts certificate or a general type approval for the wheel/tire combination.
Certificate of Conformity
The vehicle manufacturer must request an EU type approval for all passenger vehicles (vehicle class M1).A certificate of conformity is produced based on this type approval.
This document confirms that the vehicle conforms to the EU operating license and is registered in every EU country without the need for individual approval.The issuing applies to all vehicles that were produced in accordance with the EU operating license.
These vehicles have an EU type plate (black sticker) in the driver door area or in the engine compartment on older vehicles.The certificate of conformity has the same importance as the operating license, so the original should not be kept in the vehicle.
In the certificate of conformity additional technical data and all permitted wheel/tire combinations are listed.Certificate of Conformity
The vehicle manufacturer must request an EU type approval for all passenger vehicles (vehicle class M1).A certificate of conformity is produced based on this type approval.
This document confirms that the vehicle conforms to the EU operating license and is registered in every EU country without the need for individual approval.The issuing applies to all vehicles that were produced in accordance with the EU operating license.
These vehicles have an EU type plate (black sticker) in the driver door area or in the engine compartment on older vehicles.The certificate of conformity has the same importance as the operating license, so the original should not be kept in the vehicle.
In the certificate of conformity additional technical data and all permitted wheel/tire combinations are listed.EU Type Approval Number, Sales Code and Sales or Trade Name
The Additional Descriptions Only Apply to VW Vehicles.
Since 01/01/1998, all passenger vehicles licensed for road use within the European Union must possess type approval according to EU guidelines . Vehicles licensed for road use with single-vehicle approval according to 21 StVZO in Germany are excepted.Therefore, the same guidelines apply to all automobile manufacturers. Consequently, international trade within the EU has been simplified.
The certificate of conformity contains the EU type approval number and detailed technical information about the vehicle such as the emissions category and all permitted wheel/tire combinations.
| EU Type Approval Number (Type Approval) | Sales Type | Sales/Trade Designation |
| AA | 121 | up! From MY 2012 |
| AA | BL1 | e-up! From MY 2014 |
| 6R | 6R | Polo from MY 2010 |
| 6R | 6C | Polo from MY 2014 |
| 1K | 5K | Golf from MY 2009 |
| AU | 5G | Golf from MY 2013 |
| AU | BE1 | e-Golf from MY 2014 |
| AUV | BA5 | Golf Wagon from MY 2014 |
| 1K | 517 | Golf Cabriolet from MY 2012 |
| 16 | 162 | Jetta from MY 2011 |
| 16 | 5C1 | Beetle from MY 2012 |
| 1KM | AJ5 | Golf Wagon from MY 2010 |
| 1KP | 521 | Golf Plus from MY 2005 |
| AUV | AM1 | Golf Sportsvan from MY 2015 |
| 1T | 1T | Touran from 2003; Cross Touran from 2008 |
| 13 | 137 | Scirocco from MY 2009 |
| 13 | 138 | Scirocco from MY 2015 |
| 1F | 1F | Eos from MY 2006 |
| 3C | 362 | Passat Sedan from MY 2011 |
| 3C | 365 | Passat Wagon from MY 2011 |
| 3C | 3G2 | Passat from MY 2015 |
| 3C | 3G5 | Passat Wagon from MY 2015 |
| 3CC | 357 | Passat CC from MY 2009 and CC from MY 2010 |
| 3CC | 358 | CC from MY 2012 |
| 3D | 3D | Phaeton from MY 2003 |
| 5N | 5N | Tiguan from MY 2008 |
| 7N | 7N | Sharan from MY 2011 |
| 7P | 7P | Touareg from MY 2010, Touareg from MY 2015 |
Test yourself
A quick Volkswagen Tiguan quiz: every answer comes with an explanation and a link to the manual page.