EU Label informs consumers about three important criteria of a tyre: rolling resistance, wet grip and noise emissions. But also other important properties are relevant to safety and should be taken into account when choosing new tyres, including aquaplaning properties, road grip, life expectancy and durability, steering precision, mileage, braking properties on dry and wet roads, as well as performance in winter conditions.
Manufacturers point out that the EU Tyre Label should not be considered as a substitute for further, more in-depth information that can be obtained from scientific sources such as tyre tests and journals. The Tyre Label can sometimes only give a limited overview of a tyre's performance, especially about winter tyres, as no form of performance in winter conditions is shown on the label.
Tyre tests conducted by automotive journals remain one of the most important and meaningful sources of information about a tyre's performance for the end consumer, as they often test up to 11 other safety-related tyre properties, compared to the three indicated on the tyre label.
At www.tyretest.com you will find a large international and independent consumer platform for tyre evaluation, where regular drivers have tested their tyres under normal driving conditions and given their ratings.
The loudspeaker symbol stands for the noise that a tyre produces when rolling on the road. This noise is measured in decibels (dB). The noise emitted by the tyres affects the general noise level of the vehicle. Not only does it influence the driving comfort, but also the noise level of the surroundings. The more black waves symbolised, the louder the tyre. The rolling noise of a tire (from A, B, C) is simple the loudness the tyre reaches when driving. The EU Tyre Label shows the level of the rolling noise in decibels. Besides the information provided by the EU Tyre Label, other factors should be taken into account when buying a tyre, such as tyre life and quality. Tyres designed for heavy snow conditions feature the "3 Peaks and Snow" or "Alpine" symbol on their sidewall. Nordic winter tyres for use on icy surfaces carry a new symbol representing an ice stalagmite. This classification corresponds to the EU standard limit value according to Directive "2001/43 / EC", which was valid until 10/2012 and updated from 2020 with legal activation from 2021.
The fuel pump symbol represents the rolling resistance of a tyre. The lower this is, the less energy it requires and the lower the fuel consumption. As such, this indicator provides consumers with information on both the energy efficiency of a tyre and its environmental compatibility in the form of lower CO2 emissions.
The fuel economy achieved by a tyre is rated in the same way as its safety performance. The classification in this case, however, is clarified by a coloured pictogram that corresponds to the EU-standardised pictogram for energy efficiency.
The rating is made in 5 classes from "A" to "E" from the 2021 updated categorisation. An improvement by one class means a saving of approx. 0.1 litres of fuel per 100 km and sometimes even more.
Class
Passenger car tyres Rolling resistance (CR) in kg/t
Light truck tyres Rolling resistance (CR) in kg/t
Truck tyres Rolling resistance (CR) in kg/t
- A -
≤ 6,5
≤ 5,5
≤ 4,0
- B -
6,6 - 7,7
5,6 - 6,7
4,1 - 5,0
- C -
7,8 - 9,0
6,8 - 8,0
5,1 - 6,0
- D -
-
-
6,1 - 7,0
- E -
9,1 - 10,5
8,1 - 9,2
6,1 - 7,0
Boundary values for classification of running friction
This symbol indicates the grip of a tyre on wet roads. Wet grip is an important factor when it comes to the safety performance of a tyre. The influence of wet grip on road safety is enormous because tyres with very good wet grip shorten the braking distance to a great extent.
The Tyre Label grading is divided into classes "A" to "E". The braking distance difference from one class to the next is between 1 and 2 vehicle lengths (3.0 - 6.0 m) on a wet road at an initial speed of 80 km/h, on average about 4.5 m.
The rating system of the EU Tyre Label consists of three components:
- Rolling resistance (fuel efficiency): The fuel pump symbol represents the rolling resistance of a tyre. The lower this is, the less energy it requires and the lower the fuel consumption. As such, this indicator provides consumers with information on both the energy efficiency of a tyre and its environmental compatibility in the form of lower CO2 emissions.
The rating is in classes from "A" to "E", where A stands for the lowest rolling resistance and E for the highest.
- Wet Grip This symbol indicates the grip of a tyre on wet roads. Wet grip is an important factor when it comes to the safety performance of a tyre. The influence of wet grip on road safety is enormous because tyres with very good wet grip shorten the braking distance to a great extent. The shorter the braking distance, the better the class. The tyre label grades are divided into classes "A" to "E". The wet grip classification refers to the braking distance compared to a reference tyre.
Class A tyres have a much shorter braking distance than class E tyres, which can save lives in an emergency.
- Noise Emissions The loudspeaker symbol stands for the noise that a tyre produces when rolling on the road. This noise is measured in decibels (dB). The noise emitted by the tyres affects the general noise level of the vehicle. Not only does it influence the driving comfort, but also the noise level of the surroundings. The more black waves symbolised, the louder the tyre. The rolling noise of a tire (from A, B, C) is simple the loudness the tyre reaches when driving. The EU Tyre Label shows the level of the rolling noise in decibels. Besides the information provided by the EU Tyre Label, other factors should be taken into account when buying a tyre, such as tyre life and quality. Tyres designed for heavy snow conditions feature the "3 Peaks and Snow" or "Alpine" symbol on their sidewall. Nordic winter tyres for use on icy surfaces carry a new symbol representing an ice stalagmite.
The loudspeaker symbol stands for the noise that a tyre produces when rolling on the road. This noise is measured in decibels (dB). The noise emitted by the tyres affects the general noise level of the vehicle. Not only does it influence the driving comfort, but also the noise level of the surroundings. The more black waves symbolised, the louder the tyre. 
The fuel pump symbol represents the rolling resistance of a tyre. The lower this is, the less energy it requires and the lower the fuel consumption. As such, this indicator provides consumers with information on both the energy efficiency of a tyre and its environmental compatibility in the form of lower CO2 emissions.
