Section 175.174. Tires and wheels

(a) Condition of tires and wheels. Tires and wheels shall be in safe operating condition as described in § 175.190 (relating to inspection procedure).

(b) Tire conditions. The tires may not bear a marking or condition which may render the tire unsafe for highway use. The tires must be free of partial exposure of ply or cord; blow-out patches; bumps, bulges or separation; and regrooving and recutting below the original tread design depth.

(c) Tire standards. A vehicle specified under this subchapter shall have tires manufactured in conformance with standards in Chapter 159 (relating to new pneumatic tires). See 75 Pa.C.S. § 4525 (relating to tire equipment and traction surfaces). Tires with equivalent metric size designations may be used.

(d) Nonpneumatic tires. No vehicle specified under this subchapter operated on highway shall be equipped with nonpneumatic tires.

(e) Ice grips or studs. No tire shall be equipped with ice grips or tire studs of wear-resisting material which have projections exceeding 2/32 inch beyond the tread of the traction surface of the tire.

(f) Antique vehicle pneumatic tire exemption. An antique vehicle may be equipped with nonpneumatic tires if originally equipped by the manufacturer.

(g) Wheel conditions. The wheels shall conform to the manufacturer’s specifications and may not be bent, cracked, welded or damaged so as to affect safe operating conditions. The wheels shall be free of missing and loose studs and bolts or an improper thread engagement.

The provisions of this § 175.174 adopted October 29, 1982, effective February 1, 1983, 12 Pa.B. 3862; corrected November 12, 1982, effective February 1, 1983, 12 Pa.B. 3947; amended February 1, 1983, effective February 1, 1983, 13 Pa.B. 708 except subsection (c), effectiveness of which has been indefinitely postponed until further notice, to the extent that these portions of the regulations prohibit placement of oversize tires that remain within the body line of vehicles and require the rejection of inspected vehicles equipped with these tires; readopted December 2, 1988, effective December 3, 1988, 18 Pa.B. 5362; amended October 25, 2013, effective October 26, 2013, 43 Pa.B. 6349. Immediately preceding text appears at serial page (250424).

Notation

Authority

The provisions of this § 175.174 amended under the Vehicle Code, 75 Pa.C.S. § § 4103, 4301, 4501, 4521 and 6103.