Tire Label Goof Gets Official Pass: No Recall Needed
Published Date: 11/28/2025
Notice
Summary
Continental Tire the Americas found that about 419 VanContact A/S tires made between May 2020 and May 2021 had a small labeling mistake—they missed the "LT" prefix on their sidewalls. After checking, the government agreed this slip-up doesn’t affect safety, so no recalls or fixes are needed. This means drivers and the company can keep rolling without extra costs or hassle.
Analyzed Economic Effects
4 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 3 costs, 0 mixed.
No Owner Notification or Remedy Required
NHTSA granted Continental Tire the Americas' petition finding the missing "LT" marking inconsequential for approximately 419 VanContact A/S tires manufactured between May 31, 2020 and May 22, 2021. As a result, Continental is exempted from the legal duties to notify owners or provide a free remedy under 49 U.S.C. 30118 and 30120 for those affected tires.
Dealers Still Barred from Selling Noncompliant Tires
Although Continental is exempt from owner notifications and remedies for the subject tires, NHTSA's decision does not relieve tire distributors and dealers of the legal prohibitions against selling, offering for sale, or introducing into interstate commerce the noncompliant tires that remain under their control after Continental notified them of the noncompliance.
Manufacturer Will Scrap Remaining Inventory
Continental states that all remaining inventory of the subject tires will be scrapped and that no additional tires will be manufactured or sold with the missing "LT" marking. This applies to the Continental VanContact A/S tires size LT245/70R17 119/116 Q produced May 31, 2020 to May 22, 2021.
Tires Were Only on Pre-Serial Test Vehicles
Continental confirmed that the affected tires were installed on pre-serial production vehicles that were not sold to end consumers and that none of the subject tires were sold into the replacement tire market. The tires were used in prototype testing (owned by Rivian and sent to Toyota Arizona Proving Grounds).
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Key Dates
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