The next time you're in the market to buy tires, be sure to print out these Tire Buyers' FAQ to equip yourself with key purchasing information about tires. Once you've selected the right tires for you and your vehicle, our Congratulations on Your New Tire Purchase Handout can help you locate and record important information that you'll need throughout the service life of your new tires. This will vary by where you live and the typical weather you drive in.

• All-season tires can handle a variety of road conditions. They have some mud and snow capabilities.
• Winter tires are more effective than all-season tires in deep snow.
• Summer tires are warm-weather tires that are not designed to operate in temperatures below freezing, or on snow and ice.
• All-terrain tires are mainly used on four-wheel drive vehicles. They provide a good compromise between on-road driving and off-road capability.

Many tires are rated by the U.S. Government on treadwear, traction performance and temperature resistance. It's called the Uniform Tire Quality Grading Standards (UTQGS) (PDF 5 MB), and the tire ratings are on the sidewall of every passenger vehicle tire sold in the United States. Check your owner's manual or the Tire and Loading Information Label located on the driver's side door edge or post to find the correct size for your car or truck.

The Uniform Tire Quality Grading System (UTQGS) allows consumers to compare tire treadwear, traction performance, and temperature resistance. The federal government requires tire manufacturers to grade their tires in these three areas and place the information on the sidewall of the tire.

Download the 2015 Consumer Guide to Uniform Tire Quality Grading System

To assist consumers purchasing new vehicles or replacement tires, NHTSA has rated more than 2,400 lines of tires, including most used on passenger cars, minivans, SUVs and light pickup trucks.

Lookup Tire Ratings

Temperature grades are an indication of a tire's resistance to heat. Sustained high temperature (for example, driving long distances in hot weather), can cause a tire to deteriorate, leading to blowouts and tread separation. From highest to lowest, a tire's resistance to heat is graded as "A", "B", or "C".

Of current tires:

• 27% are rated "A"
• 9% are rated "B"
• 11% are rated "C"

Traction grades are an indication of a tire's ability to stop on wet pavement. A higher graded tire should allow a car to stop on wet roads in a shorter distance than a tire with a lower grade. Traction is graded from highest to lowest as "AA", "A", "B", and "C".

Of current tires:

• 3% are rated "AA"
• 75% are rated "A"
• 22% are rated "B"
• only 1 line of tires rated "C"

Treadwear grades are an indication of a tire's relative wear rate. The higher the treadwear number is, the longer it should take for the tread to wear down.

A control tire is assigned a grade of 100. Other tires are compared to the control tire. For example, a tire grade of 200 should wear twice as long as the control tire.

Of current tires:

• 15% are rated below 200
• 25% are rated 201 - 300
• 32% are rated 301 - 400
• 20% are rated 401 - 500
• 6% are rated 501 - 600
• 2% are rated above 600