What Do Tire Numbers Mean?

If you’ve ever looked at your tires or had to order them from a local Whitewater tire shop, you’ve probably seen a combination of numbers and letters on their sidewalls. As a result, you might be asking, “What do the numbers on tires mean?” This code spotlights the type of tire, its side, and its specific performance purpose.

For those wondering about their tire number meaning, Drive Burtness has a guide for you. Don’t forget to call us at or reach out online for more information!

What Do Tire Numbers Mean: Determining Tire Number Meanings

So, what do tire numbers mean for Orfordville drivers? A tire’s code utilizes a series of numbers and letters to inform your Orfordville service center of its size, load index, and tire type needed for your vehicle. For example, let’s take a look at this code: 

Example: P215/65R15 95H

While this might seem confusing, the tire number meaning is much more important. Each code section spotlights a piece of information to identify the type of tire it represents.

Decoding “P”

For starters, “P” stands for “P-Metric tire,” meaning that for use on passenger vehicles. By contrast, tires that read “LT,” stand for “light truck” and are for light-weight pickup trucks. For those Janesville area owners that don’t have a letter preceding the code, it’s a European-style tire, or Euro-Metric tire, featuring different load capacities. 

Decoding “215”

After “P” is the number “215,” which stands for tire width in millimeters from sidewall to sidewall. In our example, the tire’s width is 215 millimeters. 

Decoding “65”

Following the forward slash is the aspect ratio code, spotlighted in our example by “65.” Your tire’s ratio is the height of the tire’s cross-section to its width, so in our example, this tire will have an aspect ratio where the height will be equal to 65% of the tire’s width. The bigger your aspect ratio, the larger the sidewalls will be. 

Decoding “R”

“R” indicates your tire’s construction, with this letter representing that it’s a radial. 

Decoding “15”

“15” will spotlight the wheel size from one end to the other, informing us of what tire will be able to fit on this particular wheel. Our code tells us the tire is meant for a 15-inch wheel.

Decoding “95H”

The last part of the tire code is “95H,” which is the tire’s load index and speed rating. Your loan index, in this example “95,” will indicate how much weight the tire will support if it’s properly inflated, ranging from 75-105 for passenger vehicles. 

“H” indicates the speed rating, which is how fast a tire can go safely based on its load capacity. This rating is ranked by multiple letters. In this case, an “H” rating will be able to go up to a maximum speed of 130 mph.

What do Tire Numbers Mean: How to Check Tire Pressure

No matter how big your tires are, an easy way to keep them at peak performance around Whitewater is proper inflation. Nowadays, you can easily check your vehicle’s tire pressure thanks to your vehicle’s Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS).

If your tires are over or underinflated, you will receive a TPMS notification. You can then drive it to a nearby gas station to top off the air in your tires, or we can do it at one of our service center locations.

Turn to Drive Burtness for All Your Maintenance Needs

Now that you have an answer to “What do the numbers on tires mean?” there’s one Orfordville service center you can turn to. At Drive Burtness, we’re here to assist you, no matter what your vehicle needs. We offer multiple parts departments to get you the parts you need, and we even offer parts tips for your vehicle!