How do I know which tires I can put on my car

All drivers ask themselves, at some point, the following questions: what tires can I put on my car? Which are best for my passenger vehicle? These doubts are indeed frequent, especially among new drivers.

When buying tires online it is very important to make sure that you choose the most suitable ones. Otherwise, they may not fit well on the rim, that all the power of the engine is not transmitted well and/or that they cause friction with other parts of the vehicle. And that’s not all, because you have to know that if you don’t have the right tires you won’t pass the MOT, not to mention that, even worse, you would then be endangering your own safety.

What tires can I put on my car?

On the side of the tires you will find different codes indicating their performance and characteristics. If your vehicle still has its original tires, you can guide yourself by their references to find out which are the most suitable, or if not, if it is easier for you, you can consult this information inside the driver’s door. If these two places show signs of wear and it is not possible to decipher the symbols correctly, you can consult the car’s user manual.

Finally, as a last option and if you do not have this manual, you can find the vehicle identification number which is normally found on the base of the driver’s side windshield, or on the engine block. So when the time comes to buy tires online you can know which ones to use. If in doubt, The House of Tires can help you: contact us and we will give you all the information you need.

Height; Letter and Diameter

The first three-digit number you will see corresponds to the width of the tire, expressed in millimeters. Usually this number is between 125 and 335 mm. New tires you buy should not protrude more than 30mm from those already fitted to your car. The second number that we see is the height of the wheel, and it is expressed as a percentage: this means that the height is that of a concrete percentage in relation to the total width. The letter indicates what type of tire it is. Most often you will see the letter R because most tires are radials, with inner layers oriented towards the central part. For their part, the diagonal tires are formed by different layers crossed and superimposed

The number that appears next expresses, in inches, the diameter of the inner edge of the rim. Usually this figure will fluctuate between 10 and 23 inches. The margin compared to the original tires must not be greater or less than 3.