Tyre Sidewall Markings

Over the years these have become internationally accepted and despite using both metric and imperial measurements are now agreed upon and most importantly recognized by tyre manufacturers all around the world.

These codes provide an accurate description of the tyre’s dimensions, construction, load carrying and speed rating. These codes tell us important details about the tyre’s identity and capabilities. For example, if the sidewall on your tyre is P205/65R15 95H, it can be broken down as follows:

P: Indicates this is a passenger car tyre; however this is a North American marking only and has no major significance in Australia.

205: Indicates the section width of a tyre, measured from the widest part of the tyre and measured in mm.

65: Is the aspect ratio recorded as a percentage of the section height to the section width. This is sometimes also referred to as the ‘profile’ or ‘series’ of the tyre.

R: Indicates the construction of the tyre – in this case, a radial tyre.

15: the nominal rim diameter expressed in whole inches.

The final specification, the service description, relates to the tyre’s specific maximum speed and load carrying capacity.

95H: 95 – load index and H – speed rating