On the side of a passenger car tire is called a marking. It consists of several numbers, letters and graphic elements, the number of which sometimes reaches 12-15.
Country and manufacturing company
All manufacturers put their logo and name on the side of the wheel.
Many firms have factories in different countries, and the quality of their products can vary significantly. For example, Japanese Bridgestone tires can be produced in Italy, France, Finland, Thailand, Malaysia and many other countries.
Some tires have the inscription “Made in …”, but if it is not there, you can find out in which country the rubber was produced by the DOT code. Thanks to it, you can also find out the series, plant and date of manufacture of a particular instance.
The country of manufacture is encrypted in the form of 2 letters, which are located immediately after the abbreviation DOT. For example:
Each manufacturer has its own naming system for their plants. So the famous brand Bridgestone puts such codes on board
- 1D; EH; EJ; EK; EL; EM; EN; EP; H4 - country of origin Japan;
- 0B; 0w; 1C; 2C; 2M; 3M; 4D; 5D; 7B; 8B; D2; HY; VA; VD; V.E.; W1; W2 - USA;
- 1U - China;
- 1V,A7 - Thailand;
- 3Y,7G, E2 - Poland;
- 5T, 6T - Brazil;
- VN, 9B - Canada;
- A8 - Indonesia;
- J2 - Singapore;
- L5 - Türkiye;
- LH-Australia.
Model and type of protector
In addition to the brand name, manufacturers indicate its model on the tire. Most brands have several model lines (or lines) that differ:
- pattern and type of tread;
- the composition of the material used;
- purpose;
- seasonality.
Within one model, the buyer can choose the diameter and profile of the wheel that suits him.
Each line is designed for a specific user for whom speed, durability or economy are important. For example, Michelin has in its range the Energy model, which is environmentally friendly and saves fuel.
For lovers of fast and hard driving, the Michelin Primacy model is intended, providing a high speed index and handling during maneuvers.
The model name has numeric and alphabetic designations. They are registered immediately after the name of the manufacturer.
By the name of the model, it is easy to determine the pattern and type of tread.
The tread with a directional surface has an arrow indicating the direction of rotation and the inscription "Rotation".
Asymmetric tires are equipped with Outside and Inside markers, which help to properly mount the rubber.
Speed limit of car tires
Speed designation Correspondence to the designation of the speed of its indicators can be found in the table:
| Maximum speed (km/h) | Speed index |
| 120 | L |
| 130 | M |
| 140 | N |
| 150 | R |
| 160 | Q |
| 170 | R |
| 180 | S |
| 190 | T |
| 200 | U |
| 210 | H |
| 240 | V |
| 270 | W |
| 300 | Y |
| More than 300 | Z |
The marking indicates what maximum speed can be developed on certain tires. It has the form of Latin letters and is indicated on the rubber board.
Maximum load table
| Index | Weight | Index | Weight | Index | Weight | Index | Weight | Index | Weight |
| 62 | 265 | 75 | 387 | 88 | 560 | 101 | 825 | 114 | 1180 |
| 63 | 272 | 76 | 400 | 89 | 580 | 102 | 850 | 115 | 1215 |
| 64 | 280 | 77 | 412 | 90 | 600 | 103 | 875 | 116 | 1250 |
| 65 | 290 | 78 | 425 | 91 | 615 | 104 | 900 | 117 | 1285 |
| 66 | 300 | 79 | 437 | 92 | 630 | 105 | 925 | 118 | 1320 |
| 67 | 307 | 80 | 450 | 93 | 650 | 106 | 950 | 119 | 1360 |
| 68 | 315 | 81 | 462 | 94 | 670 | 107 | 975 | 120 | 1400 |
| 69 | 325 | 82 | 475 | 95 | 690 | 108 | 1000 | 121 | 1450 |
| 70 | 335 | 83 | 478 | 96 | 710 | 109 | 1030 | 122 | 1500 |
| 71 | 345 | 84 | 500 | 97 | 730 | 110 | 1060 | 123 | 1550 |
| 72 | 355 | 85 | 515 | 98 | 750 | 111 | 1090 | 124 | 1600 |
| 73 | 365 | 86 | 530 | 99 | 775 | 112 | 1120 | 125 | 1650 |
| 74 | 375 | 87 | 545 | 100 | 800 | 113 | 1150 | 126 | 1700 |
This parameter is responsible for the load capacity of the tire. The tire load index is expressed as a number and is located in the area before the speed indicator.
By their structure, tires can be radial and diagonal. Most modern models have a radial cord intersection.
On the wheel, the marking is indicated:
- R– radial design;
- D- diagonal.
Tire sizes. How to find out the profile of a tire?
Car tires have their own diameter, width and height. The bore diameter is measured in inches (equal to 25.4 mm) and must match the size of the rims. On board, it is indicated by numbers: 15, 17, 20, etc.
Size designation You can choose the appropriate sizes according to the table:
The profile is called 2 numbers on tires, for example, 225/40. The first means the width of the rubber, and the second its height as a percentage. This suggests that with a width of 225 mm, the height will be 40%, that is, 90 mm.
Tire type: chambered and tubeless
Modern tires are mostly tubeless, but you can still find options with tubes on the roads, the advantage of which is their low cost (from $12) (price is valid as of 10/22/18).
- Tubeless referred to as TL (Tubeless). They keep the air inside due to the tight fit of the rubber edge to the rim and a special elastic layer.
- Chamber marked with letters TT (TubeType). They consist of two parts: a tire and an inner tube made of thin rubber that holds air.
Designation of tubeless tires
Compared to tubeless tires, tubed tires lose in terms of speed, reliability and safety.
How else does the manufacturer label tires?
Other marking options Additional characteristics:
- TREADWEAR - wear resistance index. Indicates the degree of wear resistance and can range from 100 to 500 units or more. The higher the rate, the slower the tires will wear out, but this largely depends on the driving style, road surface quality and weather conditions.
- Temperature (temperature indicator). Indicates the heat resistance of rubber at high speeds. There are 3 types: A, B and C, in which A is the best indicator, and C, respectively, the worst.
- "MaxPressure" - the highest pressure indicator inside the wheel. It is expressed in kilopascals (kPa) or bars.
- Reinforced - reinforced rubber. It speaks of strengthening the tire with an additional layer of cord or other auxiliary elements.
- Mounting exclusively on the front axle is indicated by the letter "F" or the phrase "Frontwheel", on the back - the inscription "Rear wheel".
- Sometimes the factory indicates the material from which the tires are made. For example, the inscription "2 POLYESTER CORD + 2 STEEL CORD", means that the rubber has 2 layers polyester cords and 2 steel cords.
American tire marking
American designations In the USA, a different marking of passenger car tires has been adopted than in Europe and the post-Soviet countries.
For example, it may look like: 30 x 9.5R 16 LT
You can decrypt it like this:
- 30 - outer dimension (wheel diameter in inches);
- 9,5 - tire width (also in inches);
- R- radial intersection of cord threads;
- 16 - inner diameter (in inches);
- LT- for which transport is suitable. In this case, it is a commercial vehicle (LightTruck).
What do the colored marks on the wheel mean?
On many tires you can see small colored marks. They help with proper installation and come in red, green and yellow.
- The circle or triangle in yellow indicates the easiest place, against which the disc spool should be located.
- The red mark is the densest place. During installation, it must be installed opposite the L mark, which is located on the disk.
- Green circle - factory designation for the initial installation of the tire.
red colored label Many drivers notice colored stripes on the working surface of the rubber. These marks do not carry a semantic load, they are used in factories and warehouses to perform loading and unloading operations and store tires.
Date of manufacture
Even without being installed on a car, rubber loses its properties over time. If tires are stored in a warehouse for a long time, they lose their elasticity, and, accordingly, driving performance.
You can calculate the date of manufacture of a tire by marking DOT. The last 4 digits of the American code, enclosed in a semi-oval, indicate the week and year of production. For example, if this number is 2216, then the tire left the factory on week 22, 2016.
Tire seasonality
Marking passenger tires by seasonality usually looks like this:
- Snowflake inside a schematic piece of ice. Marks winter tires that have a deeper tread (8 - 10 mm), soft rubber and a different pattern of the working surface.
- Sun pictogram. Indicates summer tires that do not melt at high temperatures (+25 ... +40 °C), have a large contact patch with the surface and special grooves for water drainage.
- Allseason or Allweather means that the tire is all-weather. Such rubber is used at average temperatures in the range from -7 to +25 ° C.
On tires you can often find the designation S + M, which stands for Snow and Mud (snow and mud). These tires are suitable for severe weather conditions. There is also a special anti-rain rubber, on the sidewall of which a drop of water or an umbrella will be painted.
Analysis of marking on an example
To finally understand the decoding of sizes and other characteristics of car passenger tires, let's look at a real example. Let's say we have a tire with the following markings:
Marking value What can we learn?
- Tire size. Landing diameter 16 inches. The width of the tire is 205 mm, and the height is 55% of the width - 110 mm.
- Construction type - radial.
- The load index is 91, which means a maximum allowable load of 615 kg (see table above).
- Speed index V (240 km/h).
- Wear index 360 - medium wear resistance.
- Temperature mode A - the best resistance to high temperatures.
- Tubeless - tubeless tires.
In the photo you can also see the inscription Outside, which means that the tires have an asymmetric tread. The brand and model in the picture is not visible, but it will not be difficult to determine it even for a completely inexperienced driver.
Choosing your own tires
As we have seen, decoding tire markings for passenger cars is not a difficult process. Knowing the nuances of tire designation will help you to purchase not just a suitable, but the best and high-quality set of all offers, without relying entirely on the advice of a not always experienced and honest seller.
Each vehicle owner is guided by the choice of their personal preferences and financial capabilities. The only rule for all car brands without exception is to choose tires that strictly comply with the manufacturer's recommendations.
| Video - What does tire marking mean? |
| Video - Designations and decoding on tires |
