United Tire and Service News

No matter what type of vehicle you drive, it has tires to make it roll smoothly and absorb bumps. Yet, like many car owners, you might wonder: What do the numbers on tires mean? Those tires are specifically sized to match your car, truck, minivan, SUV, or other type of vehicle.

 

Those tires tell you a lot about themselves beyond the name brand. You get lots of useful information that tells you how to maintain your tires and what kind of new tire to purchase when they are worn out. Unfortunately, many car owners do not realize their tires have so much to tell them. Here is a closer look at the information virtually all tires have that you need to know and use for the best driving results. 

 

To roll smoothly down the road, you need four tires that are the same size. A tire usually shows its width with a three-digit number, such a 225. That means the tire is 225 millimeters wide. That number is followed by a slash and a smaller, two-digit number. That number is a percentage that tells you how tall the tire is in relation to its width.

 

A tire with a 225/60 number indicated tells you the tire is 225 millimeters wide and 135 millimeters tall. Those dimensions help ensure all four tires are exactly the same width and height for smooth rolling.

 

They might be preceded by a letter, such as P for “passenger,” LT for “light truck,” or AT for “all-terrain.” They often are followed by another letter, that indicates the tire type, such as an R for a “radial” tire. Following that will be another two-digit number, which usually ranges from 13 to 20. That number tells you the tire diameter in inches so that you can match it to the wheels of the same size.

 

Your tires also will tell you how fast they can go and how much weight they can carry through the tire speed rating. That usually is a two-digit number ranging from 70 to 126 on most passenger vehicles. The higher the number, the more weight the tires can carry. A tire with a 70 rating can carry a 739-pounds load, while a 126 rating indicates 3,748 in load-carrying capacity. Anything more than the indicated load index might cause a tire failure.

 

A speed rating indicated by a single letter usually follows the load index. A light truck would have an L rating, which indicates a maximum speed of 75 mph. A sports car might have a V-rated tire, which can go up to 149 mph.

 

No matter which size tire you need, we have the right ones in stock. Just stop in at United Tire for a full tire service. United Tire has 13 independently owned tire shops located in the Greater Philadelphia area. We can mount, balance, and rotate your tires and have you rolling smoothly again on good matching tires.