Understanding what your tire speed rating means

Tire are the most important component of a vehicle as they are the only part of your car that is actually touching the road. If you look at your tire’s sidewall, you will see the tire’s specs which look like this: P 225/55/R18 97T.

The specs provide a host of useful information, including the maximum speed that particular tire can reach. Known as the speed rating, it is represented by the last letter in the tire specs.

Now, in Canada we have strict speed limits so most buyers never really worry about the tire speed ratings. On the other hand, the speed rating provides more information than just how fast a particular tire can go. Indeed, the higher the rating, the more performance you will get out of the tire, but the tire’s life will be significantly reduced compared to tires with lower speed ratings.

Moreover, if you plan to drive on the track, you will want to pay close attention to the speed rating as it dictates how fast you can safely go.

There are 14 tire speed ratings in total:

L : maximum 120 km/h

M : maximum 130 km/h

N : maximum 140 km/h

Q : maximum 160 km/h

R : maximum 170 km/h

S : maximum 180 km/h

T : maximum 190 km/h

U : maximum 200 km/h

H : maximum 210 km/h

V : maximum 240 km/h

Z: maximum 240 km/h +

W : maximum 270 km/h

Y : maximum 300 km/h

(Y): maximum 300 km/h +

Thank you to Morrey Infiniti for their help with this article.