Tire-Wheel
How to Read a Tire Sidewall: Every Marking Decoded
A sidewall carries about six independent specifications plus manufacturing data. Here is what each marking governs, in the order you meet it.
Latest
Find Your Numbers
Door Jamb Sticker Missing? What to Do (Not Order One)
A reproduction label carries no authority. Recover the information first from the manual, the manufacturer and a dealer, then decide about a replacement.
Find Your Numbers
How to Tell What Trim Your Car Is (Badges Lie)
A badge is the weakest evidence on the car. Here is the evidence hierarchy for verifying trim, and why trim decides which part or spec applies to you.
Find Your Numbers
How to Check Recalls by VIN (Free, and What It Misses)
The official US recall check is free and takes a VIN. How to run it, why it misses service bulletins, and what a recall obliges the manufacturer to do.
Find Your Numbers
Why Two Websites Give Your Car Two Different Numbers
Five structural reasons published car specs disagree, and a ranking system for deciding which of the sources in front of you to believe.
Find Your Numbers
Model Year vs Build Date: Why Your Car Won't Match the Chart
Model year is a designation. Build date is a fact. Here is where each is recorded on your vehicle and why parts catalogues care about the second one.
Find Your Numbers
How to Find Your Engine Code: Three Sources That Should Agree
Your VIN, the under-hood label and the engine itself each identify the engine. Here is how to read all three, and what it means when they disagree.
Find Your Numbers
The Under-Hood Emissions Label: What It Actually Tells You
The Vehicle Emission Control Information label is a regulatory sticker that is also one of the most useful references on your car. How to read it.
Find Your Numbers
Owner's Manual vs Service Manual: Which Has Your Spec
Three documents, three different readers. Which tier holds which kind of spec, and how an individual gets access to the one above the owner's manual.
Find Your Numbers
Where to Get Your Owner's Manual Free, by Manufacturer
Most manufacturers host owner's manuals free by VIN or by model. Here is the search pattern that works, and why market matters more than you think.
Find Your Numbers
GM RPO Codes: Where to Find and How to Read Them
The RPO sticker is your vehicle's factory build list. Here is where it hides, how a code is structured, and how to use it to answer one specific question.
Find Your Numbers
How to Get a Build Sheet for Your Car
A build sheet is the assembly record, not the window sticker. Here is what it holds, the four routes to getting one, and what to do when none exists.