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A number and a letter after the size, giving load capacity and maximum speed.
Also known as: Load index, Speed rating
The number and letter that follow a tyre size are its service description: a load index and a speed symbol. The load index is a code rather than a weight — it looks up in a published table to a maximum load per tyre — and the speed symbol is a letter standing for a maximum speed rating. Both are minimums set for the vehicle rather than preferences: fitting a tyre below the manufacturer's specification is an offence in many jurisdictions and can invalidate insurance.
Gives a load index and a speed symbol, the first a code that looks up in a published table to a maximum load per tyre and the second a letter standing for a maximum speed.
Contexts: Road signage, Vehicle dashboard
States minimums set for the vehicle rather than preferences: fitting below the manufacturer's specification is an offence in many jurisdictions and can invalidate insurance, which is why the marking is worth reading before buying.
Contexts: Road signage, Vehicle dashboard
Uses a load index that is not a weight in itself. Two adjacent index numbers differ by a few dozen kilograms and the relationship is not linear, so a driver comparing tyres must use the table rather than the numbers.
Contexts: Road signage, Vehicle dashboard
Two or three numerals followed immediately by a single capital letter, moulded into the sidewall after the size string.
Both are read from the same sidewall string.