Tyre sizes explained

What is the tyre size of a tyre? How to read the tyre sizes? Most tyre manufacturers follow an industry-standard method to state the information about each tyre , helping main dealers, independent garages, and personal buyers.

Let’s take the tyre above as an example. The first number is the width of the tyre in millimetres.

A brief snapshot of the available tyre sizes and prices shows that a number of factors contribute to the difference in price between one size and another. Although broadly speaking a wider and lower profile tyre will cost more than a narrower one, the popularity of a particular size can also play a big part in the cost. In this case, the tyre is guaranteed up to 149mph. There is a table of speed ratings below.

Sometimes it might be tempting to buy a lower speed rated tyre (in the same size ) for your car in order to cut the cost of your tyres. The load rating on a tyre converts to a maximum weight that each tyre is manufactured to support at a specified speed. The UK law requires the load rating to be equal to or higher than the tyre that is recommended by the vehicle manufacturer for the tyre size that is fitted.

Tyre Sizes Explained. Width: This is the overall width of the tyre , represented by the first digits on the sidewall of the tyre. Wider tyres offer better grip, but can create excessive amounts of road noise. Width 2indicates the section width of a tyre in millimetres.

C, which are all 32–622. Even worse, the same or very similar markings can sometimes be found on completely different sizes of tyre : e. It might be supposed that these two tyres are both notionally 26” diameter and one and a half inches in width, but 26×1½ is. The writing on your tyres can be confusing. The sidewall of typical tyre is imprinted with myriad codes and numbers that are used to identify the size and physical features of that tyre as well as details relating to its manufacture.

Cruisers are an exception. Though meant to be ridden on pavement, such as beach paths. Here we take a look at the importance of tyres , explain what the different tyre codes mean and provide motoring tips about your car tyres. It is important to know exactly what is meant by tyre size.

The code that is found on the tyres gives more than just the basic size. The size elements are essentially the tyre ’s height and width. Hardly user friendly but, when you know what it all means, you’ll realise it tells you useful information about the tyre ’s construction, size and type.

Cross section width. When changing a tyre size , you should ensure that the tyre and wheel assembly diameter of the same value so that the speedometer and gearing remain unchanged. For each 10mm boost to tyre width, a reduction of in the height of the sidewall is necessary, if the wheel size is unchanged. Of course, the tyres and wheels that you have selected must fit under the wheel arch without making contact.

Each tyre on your vehicle carries an imprint of various codes and numbers. While this can be confusing to understan tyre markings are important and carry a specific purpose. These markings are crucial when it comes to replacing.

A tyre size conversion calculator or tyre diameter calculator are the best ways to get the you are looking for. For each tyre size you input our tyre calculator suggests multiple tyre sizes that are with in one inch bigger and smaller of the entered tyre size. Making it as simple as possible to find the tyre that is just right for you.

When it comes to choosing the right tyre sizes , there may be several options that fit within your vehicle’s parameters. Indicates the maximum speed for the tyre when at full load. You can also use the vehicle registration lookup tool on the Blackcircles. This checks the data held by the DVLA to find out what tyre size is appropriate for your vehicle.

You can find the size by reading the markings on the side of your current tyres. Look at our free to use tyre size calculator, used to compare the differences between you OE fit tyres and other alternatives. As a rule, please only allow yourself a maximum of 2. Wheel markings : size , wheel hump and bead profiles. Except for wheel fanatics , making heads and tails of wheel markings may seem like a hopeless task.

The second value (55) is the tyre profile in percentage. The third value (16) is the rim diameter in inches. Make sure you choose the correct tyre size for your caravan’s load carrying capacity and speed. Each tyre has a full service description: The rim width of a caravan wheel determines the nominal section width of tyre to be used.

Normally a number of different tyre section widths are permissible on a given wheel rim width but one or two will be. To get the best feel and fit, the tyre must be wider than the width of the rim - measure your rim width and ensure you get a tyre size that is bigger. You also need to consider what will fit in your frame, as some bicycle frames have more clearance for larger tyres than others - the best way to do this is by trying larger sizes and seeing if there is still sufficient room for the wheel to. Therefore, this radial tyre has a width of 205mm. The ‘65’ confirms the height shown as a percentage of the full tyre width.

The following two numbers (“55”) represent the aspect ratio – or measurement of the sidewall height (in mm). Essentially, this is the ratio of the tyre’s cross-section to its width. So, in the above example, a tyre that has an aspect ratio of would have a height equal to per cent of its width. This number represents a percentage of the tread width. For example, the height of this tyre is of its width.

Low profile tyres have smaller aspect ratio percentages. One way to define it, popular in times past, was to measure the tyre’s outside diameter and its maximum width when inflate but this can be misleading. This time there are three parts to the tyre size , all in inches.

The next number shown is the tyre’s height, but this is expressed as a ratio rather than a measurement. Use our tool below to understand how to read and find your tyre size by dimensions, as you select each size the relevant section of the tyre size will be highlighted on the tool. The main piece of information is the size of the tyre. The size of a tyre is printed onto the side of the tyre – on the area known as the sidewall. Note, xxx is tread width in mm.

Although the numbers are on the sidewall, very few people know how to decipher them. Use our tyre size calculator to calculate the diameter, width, sidewall, circumference, and revolutions per mile of any tyre. Just type in a metric or standard size tyre and click calculate.

Inch measurement tyres are fairly easy to understand however metric tyres use a more difficult system to read. Tire Width Is the width of the tire measured in millimeters from sidewall to sidewall.