Each tire has a label on its side wall like the one in the picture. This mark is the most important parameter when choosing the right tire for your car and it is written the tire dimension as well as the load and speed indices.

 

 

 

Before we start explaining the meaning of these markings, it is important to note that the tire dimension may be preceded by the mark P, which indicates that the tire is intended for passenger vehicles (from the English word passenger) or the mark LT, which indicates that the tire is intended for light trucks (from the English word Light Truck).

 

 

 

Looking at the label from the picture in order, the first set of tags is 225 / 45R17. The exact dimension and construction of the tires are written here.

 

 

 

225 - this mark shows the width of the tire expressed in millimeters. Not the width of the tread, but the width of the sidewalls of the tire

 

 

 

45 - this represents the height of the tire (profile), but not in millimeters as many believe, but in the percentage ratio between height and width. This means that the tire in the picture is 45% high from its width, which is 225mm, ie. 101.25mm. This shows us that not every tire profile, for example 45, has the same height, but it also depends on the width of the tire

 

 

 

R - this mark indicates that it is a tire of radial construction. In addition to these tires, there are diagonal tires that have a middle line (-) in their dimension instead of the letter R, which indicates that it is a diagonal tire, but this type of tire is used mainly for tires intended for work machines and agricultural vehicles.

 

 

 

17 - this represents the diameter of the tire and the rim on which the tire is mounted expressed in inches (1 inch = 2.54cm)

 

 

 

When we read the tire dimension, the following written on the sidewall of the tire are the indices that are read from the tables shown below. In this case it's 91H.

 

 

 

91 - this represents the load capacity of the tire and is shown as a number from the load capacity table.

 

 

 

H - this letter indicates the maximum permissible tire speed and as well as the load index is read from the table

 

 

 

 

 

 

     

 

 

Since we have example from the picture, we see next to the dimensions and index the mark M + S and the picture of three mountain peaks with a snowflake in the middle (3PMSF - 3 Peak Mountain Snow Flake). This label indicates that the tire is intended for winter conditions and that it has undergone a series of tests in cold weather to obtain this label. You can read more about the purpose of tires, M + S markings and all-season tires HERE (link to the text M + S markings and purpose of tires)

 

 

 

The tire from the picture also says Radial Tubeless, which means the construction of the tire, although knowing that all tires are radial and tubeless (tubeless - eng. Without inner tube), this label is not so important at this time.

 

 

 

In addition to these dimensional markings, there are many other letters, numbers and various markings on the sidewall of the tire which, let's be honest, can be a bit confusing and confusing and whose meaning to the end user is not very important. However, in the pile of these labels, there is something else worth mentioning, which our customers need to know. This is the date of manufacture - DOT.

 

In the picture we see an example of a DOT Tag. It contains a total of 12 characters, a combination of letters and numbers. The first eight characters, in this example B9YR UJNX, tell us nothing and represent a kind of tire serial number. The last four digits of this label are interesting to us and represent the date of production of the tire, in the form of the number of the week and year. In our example, those are the numbers 5008 and they tell us that the tire in the picture was produced in the 50th week of 2008. According to some rules, you should not use tires that are older than six years, but you can read more about the age of the tire HERE (link to the text DOT and the age of the tires)

 

 

 

In addition to the DOT mark, tire dimensions and index, it is also written on the side wall how the tire should be turned and that should be strictly respected. This mark can be in the form of an arrow drawn in the direction in which the tire should turn when the vehicle is moving forward or it can be in the form of an Inside / Outside mark, if the tire has an inner and outer side.

 

 

 

Some tires, depending on their construction and purpose, may have additional markings on the side wall that show this.

 

 

 

XL - tire designed for higher loads (English - Extra Load)

 

 

 

RunFlat - a special tire construction that allows you to continue driving even if the tire punctures. It is not a standardized label, so it differs from manufacturer to manufacturer, and some of them are RF, ROF, RFT, SSR, ZP, HRS ... You can read more about RunFlat tires HERE (link to the text RunFlat tires)

 

 

 

TL or TT - Tubeless or Tube Type designation indicates whether the tire is designed to be used with inner tube or not (tubeless - without inner tube)

 

 

 

Made in ... - this represents the country in which the tire was produced

 

 

 

We hope this text has helped you. If there is still something that is not clear to you or you are interested in the markings on the tires, do not hesitate and send us all your questions and dilemmas to the e-mail address onlineshop@kingtire.rs or call us at 015 / 370-789 to try together to find the best solution for you!