AVON TYRE QUESTION OF THE WEEK--Why do tires have a directional arrow on the sidewall?

The arrow indicates the direction in which the tire should be mounted on the wheel. When the tire is built the tread is joined with the tread overlapping in so that when the tire is mounted on the front wheel the braking forces acting on the tire keep the tread splice together and when it is on the rear wheel is it overlapped to work with the acceleration forces acting on the rear tire. See photo.

If a tire is mounted incorrectly a tread splice can result.

Sukoshi Fahey (Ms.)
Sales Manager, North America
www.avonmotorcycle.com