What are OE (original equipment) tyres?
OE (original equipment) tyres are the tyres that are fitted to a car at the time of its manufacture.
Are marked tyres necessarily approved by individual car manufacturers?
Marked tyres are the result of a specific demand expressed by individual car manufacturers. They indicate that careful attention has been paid to the tyre and model package in order to deliver the level of performance owners expect. For example, 'N'-marked MICHELIN tyres are designed especially for Porsches, 'K'-marked tyres are designed for Ferraris and 'T'-marked tyres are designed for Teslas.
Marked tyres designed for different car models are the fruit of research carried out jointly by MICHELIN engineers and their counterparts at the carmaker in question. For instance, 'N'-marked tyres are approved by Porsche. Marked tyres are therefore approved by the manufacturer in question
Is there a difference between a tyre that has been approved by a car manufacturer and a type-approved tyre?
All tyres must comply with the legislation of the country or region where they are sold. This is not the same thing as a tyre being approved by an individual car manufacturer, which is not a mandatory process.