Tire code

Automobile tires are described by an alphanumeric code which is generally molded into the side-wall of the tire. This code specifies the dimensions of the tire and some of its key limitations such as load bearing ability and maximum speed. Sometimes the inner sidewall contains information not included on the outer sidewall — and vice versa.

The code has grown in complexity over the years as is evident from the mix of metric and imperial units and ad-hoc extensions to lettering and numbering schemes. New automotive tires frequently have ratings for traction, treadwear, and temperature resistance (collectively known as The Uniform Tire Quality Grade (UTQG) ratings).

The meaning of tire codes

Tire identification diagram

Tire identification diagram, light truck specific features

The tire code consists of a string of letters and numbers, as follows:

• An optional letter (or letters) indicating the intended use or vehicle class for the tire
  • 'P' – Passenger
  • 'LT' – Light Truck
  • 'ST' – Special Trailer
  • 'T' – Temporary
• The width of the tire in millimeters, from sidewall edge to sidewall edge.
• A slash character ('/').
• The ratio of the sidewall height to the total width of the tire as a percentage. If this is missing, it is assumed to be 82%. If the number is larger than 200, then this is the diameter of the entire tire in millimeters.
• Construction of the fabric of the tire
  • 'B' – bias belt
  • 'D' – diagonal
  • 'R' – radial
• Diameter of the rim that this tire is designed to fit – in inches.
• Load index.
• Speed rating – one or perhaps two letters (see table below).
• Additional marks.

Load Index

The load index on a tire is a numerical code associated with the maximum load the tires can carry.

Load Index

Code	Pounds	Kilograms		Code	Pounds	Kilograms
71	761	345		91	1,356	615
72	783	355		92	1,389	630
73	805	365		93	1,433	650
74	827	375		94	1,477	670
75	853	387		95	1,521	690
76	882	400		96	1,565	710
77	908	412		97	1,609	730
78	937	425		98	1,653	750
79	963	437		99	1,709	775
80	992	450		100	1,764	800
81	1,019	462		101	1,819	825
82	1,047	475		102	1,874	850
83	1,074	487		103	1,929	875
84	1,102	500		104	1,984	900
85	1,135	515		105	2,039	925
86	1,168	530		106	2,094	950
87	1,201	545		107	2,149	975
88	1,235	560		108	2,205	1,000
89	1,279	580		109	2,271	1,030
90	1,323	600		110	2,337	1,060

Speed rating codes

The code is made up of one or two letters, it indicates the maximum speed that the tire can sustain for a ten minute endurance without being a danger.

Tire speed rating codes

Code	mph	km/h		Code	mph	km/h
A1	3	5		L	75	120
A2	6	10		M	81	130
A3	9	15		N	87	140
A4	12	20		P	94	150
A5	16	25		Q	100	160
A6	19	30		R	106	170
A7	22	35		S	112	180
A8	25	40		T	118	190
B	31	50		U	124	200
C	37	60		H	130	210
D	40	65		VR	over 130	over 210
E	43	70		V	149	240
F	50	80		W	168	270
G	56	90		Y	186	300
J	62	100		ZR	over 186	over 300
K	68	110

Codes VR and ZR appear in place of R in the size designation. Still, a maximum speed letter may appear after the weight code placing a corresponding limit.

Additional marks

There are numerous other markings on a typical tire, these may include:

• M&S: On winter tires, at the end of the above mentioned codes the following abbreviation can be found: M&S for Mud and Snow. On spike tires there is an additional E after the S.
• E4 – Tire approved according ECE-regulations, (the number indicates the country of approval).
• 030908 – Approval number of the tire
• DOT code: All tires imported into the USA have the DOT code, as required by the Department of Transportation (DOT). It specifies the company & factory, mold, batch, and date of production (2 digits for week of the year plus 2 digits for year; or 2 digits for week of the year plus 1 digit for year for tires made prior to 2000)
• TL – Tubeless
• TT – Tubetype, tire with an inner-tube
• Made in – Country of production
• C (commercial) – Tires for light trucks (Example: 185 R14 C)
• B – Bias Belted tires for motorcycles (Example: 150/70 B 17 69 H)=diagonal construction with belt added under the tread
• SFI – abbr. for "side facing inwards" = inside of asymmetric tires
• SFO – abbr. for "side facing outwards" = outside of asymmetric tires
• TWI – Tread Wear Indicator, an indicator in the main tire profile which shows when the tire is worn down and needs to be replaced
• SL (standard load): Tire for normal usage and loads
• XL (extra load): Tire for heavy loads
• rf – Reinforced tires
• Arrows – Some tread designs are designed to perform better when driven in a specific direction (clockwise or counter-clockwise). Such tires will have an arrow showing which way the tire should rotate when the vehicle is moving forwards. It is important not to put a 'clockwise' tire on the left hand side of the car or a 'counter-clockwise' tire on the right side.

Tire geometry

When referring to the purely geometrical data, a shortened form of the full notation is used. To take a common example, 195/55R16 would mean that the width of the tire is 195 mm at the widest point, the height of the side-wall of the tire is 55% of the width (107 mm in this example) and that the tire fits 16 inch diameter wheels.

Less commonly used in the USA and Europe (but often in Japan for example) is a notation that indicates the full tire diameter instead of the side-wall height. To take the same example, a 16 inch wheel would have a diameter of 406 mm. Adding twice the tire height (2x107 mm) makes a total 620 mm tire diameter. Hence, a 195/55R16 tire might alternatively be labelled 195/620R16.

Whilst this is theoretically ambiguous, in practice these two notations may easily be distinguished because the height of the side-wall of an automotive tire is typically much less than the width. Hence when the height is expressed a percentage of the width, it is almost always less than 100% (and certainly less than 200%). Conversely, vehicle tire diameters are always larger than 200 mm. Therefore, if the second number is more than 200, then it is almost certain the Japanese notation is being used - if it's less than 200 then the US/European notation is being used.

Example

The tires on a Mini Cooper might be labelled:

P195/55R16 85H

• 'P' these tires are for a passenger vehicle.
• 195 – the width of the tire is 195 mm at the widest point.
• 55 – indicates that the height of the side-wall of the tire is 55% of the width - 107 mm.
• R – this is a radial tire.
• 16 – this tire fits 16 inch diameter wheels.
• 85 – the load index, a maximum of 515 kg per wheel in this case.
• H – the speed index, this means the maximum permitted speed, here 210 km/h (130 mph).

See also

• Tire
• Tire manufacturing
• Wheel sizing

External links

• Tire / Wheel Size Calculator
• The Uniform Tire Quality Grade (UTQG) ratings
• Car Bibles: The Wheel and Tyre Bible
• "Better Living by Reading Sidewalls" from Golden Gate Lotus Club