Size on Tires

Oh man, I think that we have the most calls about used tires and how to get their size. Lucky for you, I’m going to help you determine the size of your tires - new or used tires.





The Tire Size of your new or used tires is usually on the sidewall. The tire size can usually include information about the actual purpose of your new & used tires, the load capacity, dimensions, and even the durability of the tire. There are a number of ways the tire size can be expressed on a tire, so we’re just going to cover all of the basic ways.





P225/50R16 91S





Usually, when a tire size begins with the letter "P", it means that the tire you have or the new / used tires you’re looking at have a "P-metric" size that was specifically designed to be fitted on cars that are mainly used as passenger cars. These cars include the regular mid-sized cars, minivans, some SUV’s, and some light duty pick up trucks. Manufacturers of new and used tires started using the P-metric system around the late 1970s.





225/50R16 92S





If there isn’t a letter at the beginning of the tire size (like above), it means that the new or used tires that you’re looking at is a "Metric" size. Even though Metric sizes are usually used on European cars, they’re used on vans and some SUV’s. Usually, the Metric Sizes are pretty equal to the P-metric sizes that are used here in the U.S.; the only difference is that they are ordinarily different in load carrying capabilities.





T125/90D16 98M





When you see the size of new or used tires starts with the letter "T", it means that it’s a temporary spare. If you don’t know what a spare is, it means that you can’t use this as a regular tire. You have to go to your closest New or Used Tire Warehouse and replace it immediately - before you cause any further damage.





LT245/75R16 108/104S





If you ever see a tire that starts the two letters "LT", it means that the new or used tires are a "Light Truck-Metric" size that were originally designed to be used on cars that can either carry a heavy cargo or tow pretty big trailers. These cars include the medium and heavy-duty pickup trucks, SUV’s, and the full-size vans. Random Fun Fact : The new and used tires with "LT" branded on them are the "little brothers" of the big tires that go on the 18-wheelers. Isn’t it funny how each thing has a gender?





ST225/75R15





When you see a tire with "ST" at the beginning of the size on your new or even used tires that are installed on your car, it doesn’t mean that you have to just drive it on the street. It actually means that the new and used tires it’s on is a "Special Trailer Service" size that was meant to be designed so it would only be used on boats or utility trailers. These specific new or used tires should never be installed on cars, vans, or even light trucks.





No matter what, you should make sure that you’re absolutely positive on what size tire you have and what size tire that you need. The last thing you want is to drive out of the tire shop and your tires be the wrong one .. then your car brakes. I bet this article makes you think twice, right?