"Tyre markings explained in detail"
"Maxxis Tyres Bridge of Don, Tyres Bridge of Don (650 Words)"
[ "Tyre markings explained in detail;PART 1/2: INTRODUCTIONWe aren't going to bore you with lots of technical and boring details. I will assume that we all know what a tyre is and roughly how it works for this article. There are various markings found on the sidewalls of Tyres Bridge of Don. These markings can be cryptic and difficult to understand at times, so hopefully, this article will go some way towards explaining things clearly. Before we get started, though, let's just quickly cover the basics:;The tyre industry uses a numbering system for tyre sizes, which dictates the width and diameter of a particular tyre (this ISO standard). This means that, for instance, a tyre marked 185/65 R 14 is 65mm wide with an aspect ratio of 65% and has a section width of 185mm. The number 185 refers to the height of the sidewalls in millimetres (185mm)An appropriate tyre would have a diameter of 1450mm and would be fitted on a rim with an inner diameter of 568.4mm  this can all be calculated using simple moths. This system allows tyres from different manufacturers to provide the same size wheel. However, rims must always match the exact markings on the tyre sidewall as incorrect combinations may damage your car or even you as a driver! It's also worth noting that some tyres now feature load indexes; these are different numbers that reflect the tyre's maximum load capacity. This is particularly important for truck drivers who need to know how much weight a particular tire can supportIn addition, you will often find two different numbers on your sidewall: this indicates the aspect ratio (or profile) of the tyre. If a tyre features a 45 aspect ratio, it means that its height is 45% of its width  so a 185/65 R 14 would have an aspect ratio of 0.45 x 0.65 = 0.2955.To work out the height in millimetres, multiply by ten and add it to the diameter measurement. In other words: 1450mm x 1 + 185mm = 1535mm or just over 53 inches high from rim to the top of the tyreA lower aspect ratio means that the sidewall is more vertical than a 'square' profile tyre, which would have an aspect ratio of 0.50 (or 50%)  so our example 185/65 R 14 above would have an aspect ratio of 0.70 (or 70%). The benefit of wider tyres with a less aspect ratio is better cornering and stability. In contrast, narrower tyres with higher aspects are generally more effective for adhesion in the wet. They will produce less road resistance due to their greater contact area on the tarmacHowever, those tyre aspect ratios are NOT directly related to the size of the tyre  you can easily fit a large-sized square profile tyre on your car. This brings us neatly onto our first example: this is an unmarked tyre - i.e. one with no additional markings displayed on the sidewall whatsoever. What does this mean?;Well, it could be any number of things, really; perhaps it's just standard, maybe it's designed for off-roading only, or perhaps you're running low profile tyres mounted over deep dish wheels... It all depends on who made the tyre and whether they chose to mark them in any way. The width measurements are always correct, though!This particular example looks like a 175/65 R 14 tyre. The 175 refers to the sidewall height, while the 65 is the aspect ratio that indicates this particular tires sidewall shape. If you were to convert these into millimetres, you'd get a sidewall height of 175mm and an aspect ratio of 0.50. So it is pretty much identical in appearance to our previous example with no markings at all.The second marking on this particular tyre is 145/80 R 13. Again there are two numbers here: 145 represents the sidewall height (or profile), and 80 represents its width  again converted into millimetres, we end up with a 144mm high sidewallIn our last example, we've gone from a tyre with no markings to one designed for off-roading. This particular tyre features a load index of 95 and a speed rating of Q (or 110 km/h). The load index number refers to how much weight the tyre can support, while the speed rating indicates the maximum allowed speed when you're pushing your vehicle's limits. In this case, the sidewall height is 150mm and its width 70%  so converted into millimetres, we get a sidewall height of 135mm and an aspect ratio of 0.56. This means that it looks similar to our previous example with 145/80 R 13, but it's almost certainly from a larger Maxxis Tyres Bridge of Don !;" ]