tire guide

[pntbllrules53]

im looking for new tires, i look in every magazine and website i get my hands on. i keep seeing something like 31x10.50R15LT i kinda understand what it means - 31in high 10.50in wide and 15in rims ... i get confused with the ones like LT235/85R16 what does that translate into????

 

[Roadkill]

LT235/85R16 what does that translate into????

LT=Light Truck

235=width (in milimeters)

85=% of width that sidewall is tall

R=Radial

16=rim diameter in inches

The % thing sounds wierd so here is what it means:

235mm X .85 = 199.75mm

sidewall is 199.75mm high

Once you convert milimeters to inches, a LT235/85R16 would be roughly a 32x9.25 tire for a 16 inch rim

Edit:

I left out that sidewall height should be multiplied by two before adding to rim size to get overall height.

 

[pntbllrules53]

oh ok, now its not greek to me anymore, thanks.

 

[rubberdust]

section width (235) in mm divide by 25.4 = inches

section width multiply by aspect ratio in this case .85 = section height

section height mutiplied by 2 plus rim diameter (16) = OD or tire height

or something that is close to a 32X9.50R16

 

[Roadkill]

section width (235) in mm divide by 25.4 = inchessection width multiply by aspect ratio in this case .85 = section height

section height mutiplied by 2 plus rim diameter (16) = OD or tire height

or something that is close to a 32X9.50R16

Good catch on my math error, Rubberdust. I should have noticed something amiss when I came up with only a 24" tire.