How To Identify My Vehicle’s Tyre Size? And From Where Can I Buy Them?

Tyre size differs from vehicle to vehicle. You can find the tyre size on the sidewall of your vehicle’s tyres, which you want to replace. Alternatively, you can search your vehicle for the manufacturer’s placard to find a recommended tyre size and a minimum tyre size, weight and load rating. This is normally found under the bonnet, in the glove box or on the driver’s door; however, locations differ from manufacturer to manufacturer and between models.

Understanding the Tyre Code

The tyre size appears in a code stamped on your vehicle’s tyre’s sidewall rubber. It renders the essential details about the tyre’s intended use, dimensions, speed capability and load capacity. Well, there are two different methods to measure a tyre size viz. the wheel or rim size and the tyre diameter. The wheel size and diameter of the tyre are usually measured in inches. The wheel size measurement is widely used tyre size measurement method.

Checkout Below Example for Tyre Size Reading:

Generally, tyre codes start with a letter or letters that recognises the vehicle type and the use it’s made for. Typically, the common letters indicate the following:

Letter ‘P’ stands for ‘passenger vehicles’ that include cars, sport utility vehicles, minivans and light-duty pickup trucks.
Letter ‘LT’ stands for ‘light truck’, which means the tyre is made for vehicles that are capable of hauling heavy cargo or towing large trailers. This includes medium and heavy-duty pickup trucks, full-size vans and sport utility vehicles.
Letter ‘T’ stands for a ‘temporary spare’ or ‘space saver’ for temporary use only until the original tyre is replaced or repaired.

The Width of Tyre: The first letter is followed by a three-digit number, which indicates the tyre’s ‘section width’ or ‘cross-section’, in millimetres.

The Tyre of Radial Construction: The majority of the passenger tyres are radial tyres and are indicated by an R.

The Size of Tyre: The next thing in the tyre code is the wheel size or diameter of the tyre, measured in inches. You can consult the manufacturer’s guide to know the range of tyre sizes that you can safely fit to your vehicle.

Remember, when replacing the size of your vehicle’s tyre and wheel, vehicle’s tyre diameter should remain the same. To aid you to obtain the right measurement, tyre size calculators are available.

Speed Rating: Speed ratings can often be found at the end of the tyre code and it is indicated by a letter of the alphabet. Speed symbol examples are N, P, Q, R, S and more. Here the symbol ‘N’ indicates a top speed of 140 km/h, symbol ‘P’ indicates a top speed of 150 km/h, symbol ‘Q’ indicates a top speed of 160 km/h, symbol ‘R’ indicates a top speed of 170 km/h and symbol S indicates a top speed of 180 km/h and likewise.

The Bottom Line

If you aren’t sure about the size of your vehicle’s tyres that you want to get replaced then it is advisable to consult a reputed wheel and tyre shop for the right recommendation. You can buy light truck tyres from a reputed local tyre dealer for your vehicle or buy tyres online and take the benefit of discounted prices.