Are 17 Inch Wheels Better Than 16
Now for topic stakes a 17 wheel will give better sidewall stability with a larger diameter tire than a 16 wheel will with the same diameter tire. you can actually feel the side flex difference between a 285-75-16 over the 285-70-17. the 17 wheel combo is much more stable while towing and under loaded conditions.
Reading Tire Size Documentation
What do all these letters and numbers mean? Heres all the information on the tire sidewall quickly decoded:
- 1) The width of the tires in millimeters
- 2) Percentage height of the sidewall in relation to the width
- 3) Radial construction
- 4) Rim diameter in inches
- 5) Load index
- 6) Speed index
- 7) Self-Supporting Run-flat tire
- 8) Mercedes Original Equipment key
- 9) Suitable for mud and snow conditions
- 10) Compliant with Department of Transportation motor vehicle safety standards
- 11) Week of manufacture
- 12) Year of manufacture
The documentation supplied with your vehicle outlines the recommended tire sizes for your car. Compatibility is determined according to its outer dimensions diameter/rolling circumference and width and labeled as a standardized tire size indicator on the sidewall.
Also, the size must comply with the vehicles requirements regarding speed rating and load range. Together, the load index and speed index make up the full service description for a passenger car tire. It must correspond to the information provided in the vehicle documents.
How To Read Tire Size
- Maintaining Your Vehicle
- XX
Installing the right tires on your vehicle is essential to the overall performance and safety of your vehicle. Your tire choice should reflect the conditions in which you drive and your preferences for vehicle response and handling. To make the most informed decision, though, you must understand how to read tire size when it’s time to buy tires.
Thankfully, determining the correct tire size for your vehicle is relatively simple. All the information you need is immediately available either in your owner’s manual or somewhere on the vehicle itself. Already know how to read tire size numbers? Skip the explanation and find the right Bridgestone tire for your vehicle online or by visiting a Bridgestone tire dealer near you.
While actual, physical measurements like width and diameter are factors in finding the right tire size, there are additional details to consider. Knowing how to read car tire sizes also means understanding terms like load index and speed rating that affect your vehicle’s overall capabilities.
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What To Consider When Changing Tire/wheel Size
There are many reasons that a person may change their tire/wheel size. Often, it is done for aesthetic reasons. When changing the size of a tire or wheel, it is important to take certain things into consideration. Otherwise, there can be significant consequences, such as increased wear and tear to the vehicle’s suspension and brake components , which can affect handling or cause other mechanical issues affecting the transmission of the car.
There are many different sizes of tires, and different sized tires can be used on the same rim, as long as the middle of the tire is the correct size. A common change is to increase the size of the rims. One of the key considerations when increasing the size of the rims of a car is the change to the tire size. Generally, larger rims must be used with thinner tires because the tires must be small enough to fit inside the wheel well of the car. Generally, it is recommended to go with tires that have a diameter within 3% difference from the factory recommended tires.
Where To Find A Car Tire Size
No matter what vehicle you drive, finding the manufacturer-recommended tire size should be easy. The best place to start looking is the owner’s manual.
Don’t worry if you can’t locate the manual you may also find a tire fit guide in these locations:
- The driver’s side door jamb
- Inside your glove box door
- Within your gas tank hatch
You can also find tire size data on the sidewall of your current tires . However, no matter where you find your tire size, you will have to decipher a sequence of numbers and letters. Don’t worry if it looks confusing at first â every letter and number has a straightforward meaning. Let’s break down how to read car tire size.
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No Letter Or P = Passenger Car Tire
Tire codes that have a P at the beginning are P-metric tires, which means they meet the specific U.S. standards forpassenger vehicles. These tires are best suited for cars, smaller SUVs or trucks, minivans, and crossovers.
What If You Dont See a Letter?
Tires that dont have a letter at the beginning are Euro-metric tires, also known as metric tires. Theyre measured inmillimeters, just like P-metric tires, but they have a different load index.
Generally, if a Euro-metric and a P-metric tire have the same size, speed rating, and similar construction, theyreconsidered equivalent. Just make sure you use them in axle pairs or sets of four. You shouldnt mix Euro- and P-metrictires on the same axle.
Tyre Markings: How To Find Your Tyre Size
The writing on your tyres can be confusing. The sidewall of typical tyre is imprinted with myriad codes and numbers that are used to identify the size and physical features of that tyre as well as details relating to its manufacture. Many of these tyre markings are of little or no importance to the driver while others are essential when it comes to choosing a replacement tyre.
If you are looking for new tyres you should familiarise yourself with the following tyre markings.
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Car Tire Size Chart And Sizing Guide
When your cars tires are too small, it can be dangerous to drive on the highway. The car will be more difficult to control and you may end up in a serious accident. On the other hand, if your car has oversized tires, it may be too difficult to turn and accelerate. Your car could end up in a skid, which is dangerous as well. Read on how to use a car tire size chart to find the correct tire size for your car and for optimal performance.
Looking for branded Car tires sizes? Check the Michelin, Continental, Goodyear, size charts
How To Determine Tire Size
This article was co-authored by Howard Fleischmann and by wikiHow staff writer, Sophia Latorre. Howard Fleischmann is an Automotive Tire and Repair Specialist and the CEO of Community Tire Pros & Auto Repair, with ten locations throughout Phoenix, Glendale, Yuma, and Casa Grande, Arizona. Howard specializes in full-service auto repair and tire replacement and care for domestic/imported vehicles and large trucks. Howards dedication to Community Tire Pros & Auto Repair has earned their team multiple awards and features including the 2021 Phoenix Magazine AZ State 48 Best of the Best!, the 2020 Best of Phoenix in Auto Repair, the 2013 Master SBD award, the 2013 National Top Shop award by Tire Review, the 2012 Diversity Champions Phx Business Journal, the 2009 BBB Ethics award, the 2008 Phx Chamber of Commerce Impact Award – Small Business of the Year, and the 2008 ASU Spirit of Enterprise award. Howard is often referred to as The Car Guy for local TV stations and is a regular on TVs Channel 3 Sunday, Good Morning Arizona monthly. This article has been viewed 55,853 times.
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Can I Put Larger Tires On My Car
While it’s certainly possible to upgrade your tires’ size, it’s usually best to stick to your manufacturer-recommended tire size for optimal performance. Increasing the size of your tires may give your car more ground clearance, but it may also affect handling, drivetrain performance and fuel economy. Keep in mind the changes to key figures mentioned above, such as load index and speed rating, and how they may affect your vehicle’s capabilities if you decide to increase tire size.
Schedule Tire Service With Bmw Of Stratham
Now that you know what all those markings on the sides of your tires mean, you can find any of the above information whenever you need it.
If you live in the Stratham, Portsmouth and Exeter areas, dont hesitate to call or stop by BMW of Stratham with any questions you might have about how to read tire size.
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How Do I Find My Tyre Size
The size of a tyre is printed onto the side of the tyre on the area known as the sidewall. When looking for the size, you will see that it is made up of a series of numbers and letters.
In the above example, each section breaks down as follows:
205 – Width of the tyre in millimetres55 – Height of the tyre sidewall as a percentage of the width. In this case 55%. Also known as the aspect ratio.R16 – The diameter of the tyre’s inner rim in inches91 – Load Rating of the Tyre.V – Speed Rating. Indicates the maximum speed for the tyre when at full load.
You can also use the vehicle registration lookup tool on the Blackcircles.com homepage. This checks the data held by the DVLA to find out what tyre size is appropriate for your vehicle.
When using this tool, we recommend that you double check the size provided against what you currently have fitted to your vehicle as multiple sizes may be recommended dependent on the age and model of your vehicle.
How To Read Inch Sizes: 35x1250r15lt E
Diameter : 35The Diameter of this tire size is 35 inches.The first number in a high flotation tire size is the overall diameter of the tire.
Section Width : 12.50The width of this tire size is 12.5 inches.The second number in a high flotation tire size is the width of the tire in inches.
Tire Construction : RThe tire construction of this tire size is R for radial.This letter is for how the tire is constructed. Radial is the standard construction method for almost all tires.
Wheel Diameter : 15The wheel diameter of this tire size is 15 inches.The tire is designed to be mounted on an 15 inch wheel diameter.
Tire Class : LTThe tire class of this tire size is LT which means it is a Light Truck tire.
Load Range : ETire load range of this tire size is E which means it has a 10 ply tread. Other load ranges include B: 4 ply, C: 6 ply and D: 8 ply.
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Selecting The Right Tire Size For Your Car
There are three things to understand when buying new tires for your car the size, speed rating, and load index. Making the correct selection is very important to maintain optimal performance, safety, and fuel efficiency.
Fortunately, all of this information is easy to find. You can locate it inside the drivers door on your car, inside the fuel flap, or inside the glove compartment. Alternatively, you can consult your vehicle documentation and tire manufacturer specifications.
When considering tire size, there are two simple rules to follow.
Firstly, the replacement tires should be the same size, load index and speed rating specification as recommended by the vehicle or tire manufacturer.
Secondly, the replacement tires must never be of a smaller size or load-carrying capacity than the original specification.
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Are 18 Wheels Better Than 17
While larger-diameter wheels and tires should improve handling and high-speed performance, lower-profile tires also tend to have a firmer ride and may be noisier than the smaller, standard rubber. An 18-inch tire, for example, will probably weigh at least a couple of pounds more than a 16- or 17-inch tire.
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How To Read A Tire Size On A Tires Sidewall
The numbers and letters representing your tire size do have meaning. Learn how to read a tire sidewall and find what the numbers on a tire mean using the detail below.
Uniform Tire Quality Grading
Another group of stamping on certain types of tires is the Uniform Tire Quality Grading or UTQG. This grading and stamping is required for passenger car tires in the all season and summer categories. Dedicated winter tires, Light Truck and Motorcycle tires are excluded from this requirement.
Quality grading is designed to make the tire purchase decision easier for you. Ideally, the system is intended to provide simple, comparative data so you can make an intelligent buying decision. However, the ratings are based upon test results achieved under special conditions. This means its possible to misinterpret the comparative data as it relates to your individual driving habits, conditions, etc. You should still rely on your service or tire professional for assistance.
Quality grading designates the comparative performance levels of a tire based on government-specified tests but commissioned by the individual tire manufacturers. All tire manufacturers are required to grade regular and all-season passenger tires in three categories:
UTQG
Traction Grades AA, A, B and C The traction grades from highest to lowest are AA , A, B and C. They represent how well tires stop on wet pavement as measured under controlled conditions on specified government test surfaces of asphalt and concrete. C-rated tires will have the lowest traction performance.
WARNING: THE TRACTION GRADE ASSIGNED IS BASED ON A WET BRAKING TRACTION TEST AND DOES NOT INCLUDE CORNERING TRACTION.
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How To Calculate Tire Size
Let’s learn how to find tire sizes. We’ve got the tire code and the data required for us to calculate various tire measurements, such as the tire diameter and sidewall height.
To calculate the sidewall height, we multiply the profile ratio by the tire width . The formula is, therefore:
- sidewall height = profile ratio × width / 100
So, for the tire code shown in the figure above, P215/65R15, you would calculate the sidewall height as:
- sidewall height = 65 × 215 / 100 = 139.75 mm
Converting to inches , that’s 5.5 inches. We know the diameter of the wheel is 15 inches, so the diameter of the tire is given by:
- tire diameter = wheel diameter +
So, for our example, that’s:
- tire diameter = 15 + = 26 inches
To calculate the circumference, we use the classic circle equation:
- circumference = × diameter
How To Find & Understand Tire Sizes
Pro Tip: Finding and understanding your tire size is easier than you might think.
Rule #1: Tire sizes are NOT vehicle make/model specific.
Your tire size can be found on the sidewall of your tire, and it will look similar to the illustration.
Don’t just look at your owner’s manual to determine your tire size look at the actual tire on your vehicle. If the OEM tires and wheels on your vehicle have been changed, your owner’s manual may not accurately reflect the tire size that is actually installed on your vehicle. If you have any questions regarding tire sizes, please call us at 678-2359.
Once youve located your tire size, understanding what it all means comes next.
Pro Tip: There are three different types of tire sizes: Metric, Flotation & Numeric.
Metric Sizing
The most common type of tire size is metric. Metric sizing is represented with three sets of numbers as shown in the illustration , and can have letters such as P for passenger, LT for light truck, and/or R for radial.
Examples: 235/75-15, P235/75-15, 235/75R15, LT235/75R15
The first number is the width of the tire in millimeters. This is measured from sidewall to sidewall, NOT by the tread width.
The third number is the diameter of your wheel in inches. The tire size in our example has a wheel diameter of 15.
Flotation Sizing
Examples: 31X9.5X16, 20X10X9, 26X8X12
All of the measurements for this tire size type are in inches.
Numeric Sizing
Examples: 11-22.5, 8-19.5, 35X12.50-17
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Tire Size Explained: What The Numbers Mean
Tire size can be confusing. Some numbers on the sidewall are listed in millimeters while others are inches. Plus, the right size for your car, truck, or trailer can differ depending on where and how you drive.
You can see your original equipment tire size in your owners manual or on the placard generally located on the drivers side door jam. This is the sizing recommended by the vehicle manufacturer.
If youre interested in switching out your tires for a different look or performance, a good place to start is the numbers and other indicators on your existing tires sidewall. Next, have a tire professional help you determine a tire size range that will fit your vehicle and driving needs.