What the LTO says about changing mag wheels, rims and tires of your car, motorcycle

The new LTO PMVIC, or the Land Transportation Office - Private Motor Vehicle Inspection Centers, has started operations in some parts of the country for inspections of cars and motorcycles due for registration renewal.

Dubbed as MVIS (Motor Vehicle Inspection System), it aims to test the roadworthiness of private and commercial vehicles prior to their registration. This also includes the checking of modifications, upgrades and accessories that have been installed on your vehicles - whether factory or aftermarket. If they don't meet LTO standards, you fail the test. Failing the MVIS test means you have to retake the inspection and worse, you can't register your vehicle any more.

For purposes of discussion, I chose to talk about wheels and tires because they are the most frequently modified parts of our cars and motorcycles.

Now comes the question: Is it considered illegal to replace your wheels with aftermarket mag wheels? Can those upgraded mag wheels and tires cause your vehicle to fail the MVIS test? What does LTO say about this?

LTO issues rules and regulation based on a specific law, Republic Act 4136, otherwise known as the "Land Transportation and Traffic Code". And it did say something about changing rim or tire sizes in one of its provisions.

Let me quote ad verbatim:
"SECTION 11. Additional Fees. – In addition to the fees elsewhere provided in this Act, for each change of registration, from private to for hire or vice-versa; revision of gross weight rating, change of tire size; transfer of ownership; replacement of a lost registration certificate, number plate, driver’s license or permit; badge; preparation of affidavit or certified copy of records, or for any similar circumstances requiring the issue, revision, or reissue of a certificate of registration, driver’s license, badge, permit, or other document, a fee of two pesos shall be collected."

An almost similar provision is also stated in LTO Department Order No. 2010-32 re: HARMONIZATION OF MOTOR VEHICLE (MV) CLASSIFICATIONS OF LTO AND LTFRB, which say:

"Section 5. Guidelines and Requirements in the Reclassification and/or Registration of Modified Motor Vehicles:
5.2 The modifications involving safety and environment shall not be allowed, such as the following:
5.2.1 Axle modification;
5.2.2 Chassis modification;
5.2.3 Extended chassis / body;
5.2.4 Additional sidings of dump trucks;
5.2.5 Extended overhang;
5.2.6 Change of rim size;
5.2.7 Modification of handle bar and muffler; and
5.2.8 Reconfiguration of body dimension and design."

Premises considered, the law does not actually say changing your factory wheels and tires into aftermarket replacements is illegal. What's not allowed is changing their sizes. So, it means you can get a new set of mag wheels for your ride as long as they retain their prescribed factory size specifications and as long as you pay the corresponding fees for them. For example, if your Mitsubishi Xpander has a size 16, you should get an aftermarket replacement of an equivalent size 16, too. Anything bigger or smaller is prohibited.

There is a rationale behind this prohibition. Vehicle manufacturers recommend you stick to the factory-size wheels and tires for your car or motorcycle. This is to avoid disruptions on certain components of the vehicle which were specifically designed for that specific size of wheel, particularly its diameter.

You see, a larger (or smaller) wheel other than the specified diameter size alters the entire travel rotation of the vehicle, and as a consequence, can give the wrong information to its computer and mechanical systems, altering most of its internal operations, such as:

• Speedometer
• Odometer
• Anti-lock brake system
• Torque
• Traction control
• Gearing settings
• Etcetera

I can't go deep into how they can affect operations like the braking system or the speedometer because it's going to be a very lengthy and technical discussion. Just bear in mind that whenever there are alterations, there's this possibility that certain things can go wrong in terms of overall safety and performance.

And of course, there's RA 4136 and LTO Department Order 2010-32 which says to keep all modifications within specs lest you want to fail the inspection test. Nothing more, nothing less.

So there you go. Hope this clarifies whatever's on your mind before you head on to your local LTO MVIS centers. It's a new thing, this MVIS, so let's expect some birth pains to go with it.

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This post originally appeared at https://emongsjournals.blogspot.com