1996 Buick Century Owner's Manual

When It’s Time for New TiresI 1One way to tell when it’sdtime for new tires is tocheck the treadwearindicators, which willappear when your tires haveonly 1/16 inch (1.6 mm) orless of tread remaining.You need a new tire if any of the following statementsare true:You can see the indicators at three or more placesaround the tire.0 You can see cord or fabric showing through thetire’s rubber.The tread or sidewall is cracked, cut or snagged deepenough to show cord or fabric.0 The tire has a bump, bulge or split.The tire has a puncture, cut or other damage thatcan’t be repaired well because of the size or locationof the damage.Buying New TiresTo find out what kind and size of tires you need, look atthe Tire-Loading Information label.The tires installed on your vehicle when it was new hada Tire Performance Criteria Specification (TPC Spec)number on each tire’s sidewall. When you get new tires,get ones with that same TPC Spec number. That wayyour vehicle will continue to have tires that are designedto give proper endurance, handling, speed rating,traction, ride and other things during normal service onyour vehicle. If your tires have an all-season treaddesign, the TPC number will be followed by an “MS”(for mud and snow).If you ever replace your tires with those not having aTPC Spec number, make sure they are the same size,load range, speed rating and construction type (bias,bias-belted or radial) as your original tires.5-41