Tire Codes and Ratings - The Basics

Most of us rarely, if ever, think of our tires as long as they hold air. The time they enter our consciousness is usually when they're making the "flubbidy-dubbity" sound, signaling the end of their lifecycle—and a smooth trip. Yet, in the time it takes you—out there on the highway, in the rain, hazard lights flashing, changing your flat tire or watching the AAA person do it—you could be educating yourself.


Did you know that those letters and numbers on the sidewall of your tires offer all kinds of useful information?

Tire Codes
Molded into every tire sidewall is a series of codes that give valuable information to the consumer regarding that specific tire, such as name of the tire, its size, whether it is tubeless or its tube type, the tire grade, speed rating, the maximum load, maximum inflation, important safety warnings, etc. Let's look at a typical passenger car tire to see what those letters and number really mean:


Example: P255/60R15 102T


"P" means this is a passenger car tire (as opposed to a tire made for a truck or other vehicle). P-metric is the U.S. version of a metric tire-sizing system. LT designates the tire as a light truck (or SUV) tire.