The EU is readying legislation that will label tires according to their impact on the environment. The idea is to create a label that would spot three values, two of them inspired by current energy efficiency ratings of domestic appliances:
  • The first value, using letters from A to G will refer to rolling resistance. It would spot a gas pump symbol, indicating that the most fuel-efficient tire is the one with letter A. The difference between each level will be a meager 0.1 l/100 km in fuel consumption.
  • The second value, also graduated using letters A to G will inform the consumer on wet weather road grip, being A the best performer under the rain. It will spot a tire and raindrops. It will be measure as how many times 8 meters (24ft) the tire takes to brake the car from 80km/h (50mph) to 0.
  • The third value will refer to noise pollution will mark the noise level (in dB) of the tire.
The idea is for this label to become mandatory in 2012 and, although it opens the door to specific taxes for specific models, manufacturers such as Michelin and Goodyear seem to be ready to back it.

[Source: Le Figaro]