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Last updated 11/03/2023 - Originally published 9/23/2020
Written by SimpleTire
Here you go - a tire dictionary with everything you ever wanted to know about tire definitions, all in SimpleTire's tire glossary of tire terms. Some of it is a bit technical, and a lot of it you don't really need to know unless you're just a tire nerd like we are.
If you have any questions, one of our tire experts is just a click away.
B
- Balancing: Using weights to correct mass distribution imbalance on a spinning wheel and tire assembly.
- Bead: The bead of the tire clamps securely to the wheel and creates an air-tight seal.
- Bias Tires: Bias ply tires were the earliest form of automotive tires with the crown and sidewall plies overlapping supporting both the tread and sidewall, resulting in a stiffer sidewall and higher puncture resistance.
- Bias-Belted Tires
C
- Camber Thrust
- Centrifugal Thrust
- Circle of Forces
- Contact Patch: The portion of the tire in actual contact with the road surface.
- Cornering Force
D
- DOT Code: U.S. required serial number that identifies where it was manufactured, the size & manufacturer's code, along with the week and year it was manufactured. Example "DOT AF WD9E 0517" indicates the tire was made in the 5th week of 2017.
F
I
L
- Load Rating: The tire load rating refers to the amount of weight each tire can safely carry when properly inflated.
- Load Sensitivity
- Lug Tread
M
P
- Ply: Layers of materials (such as nylon, rayon, kevlar) that, along with the belts, give a tire it's shape and strength once inflated.
- Pneumatic Trail
R
- Radial: Radial ply tires (today's standard) use separated sidewall and crown plies to give improved comfort, sidewall flexibility, better handling and heat dissipation.
- Rain Groove
- Relaxation Length
- Retread
- Rims
- Rolling Resistance
S
- Self-Aligning Torque
- Semi-Pneumatic Tires
- Serial Number
- Service Description
- Shoulder
- Sidewall
- Sipe
- Slip Angle
- Snow Chains
- Solid Tires
- Speed Rating
- Stopping Distance
T
- Tire Code
- Tire Ratings
- Tire Rotation: Moving tires from one axle to the other to ensure even tire wear.
- Traction
- Tread
- Tread Void
V
W
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