Tire Buying Guide: What Are the Best Tires for Your Car?

Evelyn

Mar. 07, 2024

If you are looking for the best tires for your car, you should answer two main questions first:

Do your current tires highlight and enhance your vehicle’s specifications?
Do your current tires fulfill all your needs?

If both answers are “YES”, then stick with your current tires and you will never make a mistake. If at least one of the answers is “NO”, it’s time to search for better tires. Your new choice will depend on:

The vehicle you drive
The climate in your area
Your driving style and needs
The surface you drive on.

Combining these factors, you will be able to choose the most suitable tires among thousands of models.

Choosing the Best Tires for Your Car

According to Your Vehicle

Different vehicles require different performance, tread, stiffness, etc., from tires. Using the right type will help you achieve the best fuel economy and improve safety.

Passenger Vehicles: Sedans, Crossover Utility Vehicles (CUVs), Minivans

These cars need adequate wet and dry surface traction, and often snow grip as well. Some luxurious sedans may also need a higher speed rating. These vehicles don’t require high load-carrying capacities, except for the minivans.

For a passenger vehicle you may need:

Touring tires.
Touring or grand touring tires provide all-season traction and aim for the highest comfort of ride. They are more responsive, which makes it easier to handle turns and stop faster. Such tires often come with asymmetrical tread patterns, which help them be as quiet as possible. They will be the best tires for your car if you prefer quiet street use, or if you often go on tours with your family in a minivan.
Performance tires.
Performance tires provide superior handling and performance, at the expense of ride comfort. They are mainly for all-season or summer use, equipped with larger grooves for more grip on wet surfaces. These tires are rich in silica, which is aimed at great performance no matter the weather. Such tires usually have lower profiles, to improve their looks and function. Performance tires are best if you have a sports sedan, as they have higher speed ratings than touring tires.

On- and Off-Road Vehicles: Light Trucks, Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs), Pickup Trucks

These vehicles need greater load-carrying capacities and tread patterns for on- and off-road use. The more you use the vehicle off the road, the more aggressive tread you need. Such cars will need used light-truck tires, with the letters LT as the beginning of their tire code on the sidewall. The following types of tires can be called ATV or UTV (all-terrain vehicle and utility terrain vehicle) tires.

On- and off-road vehicles may need:

Highway light-truck (LT) tires.
These will become the best tires for your car if you drive loaded and need adequate performance on highways all year. They work towards stabilizing a massive vehicle on paved roads. Such tires have a long lifespan, as they are enriched with harder rubber compounds that resist uneven wear. Their tread also has sipes to provide traction on ice and snow.

Ribbed tires.
These tires are also for highway use, providing great handling and lasting a long time. They have solid well-formed ribs, which provide stability to the vehicles carrying heavy loads. Ribbed tires also channel water well, due to their tread pattern. These are the best tires for your car if you drive a commercial heavy-load car that does lots of highway mileage.

Sport truck tires.
Sport truck tires are quite similar to highway and ribbed tires, but with higher speed ratings. They also have less sipes than highway tires. Still, their tread pattern design is for all-season use. Some of these tires have asymmetrical tread patterns, which create less noise.

All-purpose or trail tires (AP).
These are for more on-road, and less off-road, use. They are more aggressive than highway LT tires, but not as tough as all-terrain or mud-terrain tires. They have sipes and overlapping blocks, which provide adequate performance on most surfaces, in most weather conditions.

All-terrain tires (AT, A/T).
All-terrain tires usually provide all-season traction on all surfaces. These are best if you drive equally on- and off-road. They have aggressive tread patterns that continue to the edges of the sidewalls. In the center, the pattern changes to smaller tread blocks and thinner grooves, to provide traction on made roads. You can learn more about all-terrain tires from this article.

Mud-terrain tires (MT, M/T).
These tires are more for off-road use, as their tread is more aggressive, so to channel mud, dirt, debris, etc., through their grooves. MT tires will move you through sand dunes, muddy areas, wavy rocks, and a variety of other off-road surfaces. Their tread cleans itself, due to the special construction that pushes rocks and mud out of the channels. Their construction is extremely tough, with reinforced sidewalls, and the tires are also puncture-resistant.

Sports Vehicles: Sports Coupes, Sedans, Sports Modifications of On- and Off-Road Cars

Most types of vehicles have sports versions, or may be tuned to appear so. They will need tires aimed at performance, not at comfort, noise, or tread life.

If you own a sports vehicle, the best tires for your car may be:

Performance tires.
Tires aimed at handling and sharp responsiveness have the following sub-types:
- Extreme performance.
  These tires are only for summer/three-season and dry road use. They provide extreme responsiveness, and high speed ratings. However, they have less hydroplaning resistance and ride comfort, but more noise.
- Max performance.
  These tires provide excellent traction on both wet and dry surfaces, but less performance than the previous type. They are also only for summer/three-season use.
- Ultra-high performance (UHP).
  These tires have the same characteristics as max performance tires, but they may also provide all-season use, at the expense of dry traction at high speeds.
- High performance (HP).
  These have all the same features as above, but often with better all-season use. These tires are closer to those more adequate for regular highway and street use.
- Performance.
  These tires provide all-season traction and adequate performance on made roads.

- Track and competition tires.
  As their name suggests, such tires aren’t usually used on streets. They provide permanent traction on dry roads, as they have almost no tread pattern, so to have as much contact patch area as possible. They have extremely high speed ratings and temperature resistance. However, they wear really fast, due to the soft rubber compounds used for their manufacturing.
  These tires are DOT-approved (Department of Transportation), but are usually used on cars that take part in racing series’ or amateur racing competitions. They will be the best tires for your car if you are a racer.

According to Climate

Hot, mild, and cold climates require tires to have different rubber compounds and tread patterns. If you have cold winters and warm/hot summers, and you want good traction during both, you may need two sets of tires. In fact, some states even require them.

For different seasons and climates, you may need:

All-season tires.
All-season tires provide adequate on-road grip all year. They ride smoothly and quietly, providing a high level of comfort. Such tires also last long and help balance the fuel consumption of your car. These are the best tires for your car if you live in an area with a mild climate.
Snow/winter tires.
These are the best tires for your car if you need greater snow traction. They provide stability and remain pliable in temperatures below 7C. Such tires have better winter performance than all-season tires, but don’t last as long—they can only be used for 3-4 seasons. When their treadwear reaches 4/32”, they are already bald and will no longer bite into snow sufficiently.
Snow/winter studded tires.
For areas with lots of ice and snow, there are studded tires equipped with metal studs around the tread. They are quite noisy, but provide superior traction on icy surfaces. You shouldn’t use them on pavement though, as they can damage the road and cause vibrations.
Summer/three-season tires.
Summer tires are for warm seasons, and provide superior grip on wet and dry surfaces. Their compounds also adapt only to warm temperatures, which makes them best for your car if you live in a hot climate. They last longer than all-season tires, due to harder rubber compounds. Three-season tires also have a greater contact patch area with circumferential grooves. This provides hydroplaning resistance.

NOTE: There are touring, performance, and ATV/UTV tires, with seasonal features, so combine them to choose the type of tire you need.

According to Driving Style and Needs

A particular type of tires may work well for a particular driving style:

HP and UHP tires will be the best tires for your car if you are a rough driver. They provide good responsiveness and performance, sharp reaction, and little braking distance.
Touring tires will be best if you like quieter drives on streets or highways. They give stability, good handling, and greater ride comfort.
ATV tires are best if you own a heavier vehicle and like both highway speeds and off-road curvy drives. They provide superior stability, tough rubber, and universal tread patterns, which can carry you anywhere.
AP tires are good if you drive on roads the most. All-terrain tires are suitable if you drive 50/50 on- and off-road. Mud-terrain tires will work well on any terrain if you use your vehicle mostly off-road.
Any type + winter tires are best if you have to drive on snow and ice. They have lots of sipes and grooves to bite and channel snow, as well as soft rubber compounds for below-zero temperatures.
Any type + summer tires are best if you like or have to drive more in summer, on clean wet or dry roads. They provide adequate speed ratings, good wet traction and hydroplaning resistance, and high temperature resistance.

According to the Road Surface

There are two huge divisions according to the surface you most often drive on: on-road and off-road. They may all be all-season, summer/three-season, winter/snow, and even some with performance features.

According to the descriptions above, the best tires for your car for on-road use are:

Touring tires.
Performance tires.
Highway LT tires.
Ribbed LT tires.
Sports truck tires.
Track and competition tires.

For balanced on- and off-road use, you may need:

All-purpose or trail tires.
All-terrain tires.
Mud-terrain tires (some models).

For tough off-road use, you should consider:

All-terrain tires (tougher models).
Mud-terrain tires.

You can learn more about the versatility of off-road tires and the sub-types for specialized use (e.g. for sand) here.

5 Best Worldwide Tire Brands

The best tire company advice is to go with an established brand with proven quality. Here are five such companies that can provide you with the best tires for your car:

Michelin

Michelin is a France-based tire company that tops most ratings. They own many brands worldwide, including BFGoodrich, Uniroyal, Tigar, Kormoran, Kleber, and Riken. Michelin manufactures tires for all uses, including touring, performance, ATV, for all seasons and specific temperatures. Some of the best tires for your car from Michelin may be:

All-season Defender.
All-season performance Premier A/S.
Winter/snow X-ice.
All-season truck LTX.

Pirelli

Pirelli is an Italy-based tire company, now a subsidiary of Chinese ChemChina. They manufacture different types of tires but no other rubber products. You can see Pirelli tires on cars and motorcycles, especially racing ones, as the company has been a sponsor for sport competitions since 1907. The most popular lineups by the company are:

All-season P4.
Summer UHP Pirelli P Zero.
Performance all-season Cinturato P7.
Truck all-season Scorpion Verde.

Goodyear

Goodyear is an all-American tire company, meaning it wasn’t bought with a foreign company and wasn’t merged with one. They own brands like Dunlop and Kelly Springfield, among other less popular brands. Goodyear manufactures tires for all uses and vehicles, including on- and off-road cars, motorcycles, planes, etc. Their most popular lineups, which may be the best tires for your car, are:

Truck all-season Assuarance.
All-terrain Wrangler.
UHP summer Eagle.
Touring Assurance ComforTred.

Bridgestone

Bridgestone is the largest tire company in the world. It’s Japan-based and owns a large American tire brand, Firestone. Bridgestone tires and Firestone tires are high-quality tires that are used not only in Japan. They manufacture all kinds of tires and kept their best-in-the-world place for 8 years straight, as of 2016. Their most popular lineups appearing in the ratings are:

All-season Ecopia
Touring Turanza.
Winter/snow Blizzal.
SUV Dueler.

Continental

Continental is a German-based company manufacturing tires, braking systems, and other auto parts. The company is the 4th largest tire brand worldwide. Continental tires are famous for superior wet and dry grip, but their tread life is slightly shorter than that of other tires in the niche. Their most popular lineups as of today, which are potentially the best tires for your car, are:

All-season True Contact.
Performance all-season Pure Contact.
Winter/snow Winter Contact SI.
Truck all-season Cross Contact.

You can learn more about the brands that manufacture tires in the US from this article. Also, if you need to learn about officially assessed tires, visit this NHTSA website.

Tips on Choosing the Best Tires for Your Car

Mix Tires Wisely

When choosing the best tires for your car, you may consider mixing tires a good way to improve performance. This is mostly suitable for sports vehicles, but there are some rules:

Don’t mix radial and bias-ply tires. (If you must drive like that for some time, make sure the tires of the same type are on the same axle.)
If you buy tires of different sizes, make sure the larger ones are on the rear axle.
The larger tires have to be no more than ½-1” bigger on the outer circumference than the smaller ones.
Don’t mix off-road and touring tread patterns.

Choose the Right Specs

Choose the right size, speed rating, and load index when searching for the best tires for your car. The right size will help you get the best performance and function from your vehicle. The proper speed rating will help avoid tire overheating and provide as much speed as your car can give, or as much as you need. The right load index will ensure your safety and provide stability, if you don’t overload the vehicle.

All the information about the tire you are about to buy is on its sidewall, as part of three main codes. They are the size code, the DOT code, and the Uniform Tire Quality Grading rating. You can learn more about which information a tire may give you from this article.

Read Your Owner’s Manual for Answers

Every vehicle comes with an owner’s manual, where you can find recommendations on tires, load, speed, etc. Pay attention to the tips in the manual to avoid mistakes in choosing tires, inflating them, and loading the vehicle. In the manual you will find the tire sizes the wheels can wear, the average and maximum inflation rate, and load capacity.

Some information is also available on the car itself – look at the door jamb or the rear edge of the door. Before choosing the best tires for your car, make sure you know what the manufacturer recommends.

Think About Fuel Economy

Changing tires to achieve certain results may impact your fuel economy, making it better or worse. Bill VandeWater at Bridgestone Firestone North America warns tire choice can impact fuel consumption by up to 15-20%. Think about whether this is a high priority for you, and of your other priorities while choosing new tires.

Also, for the future, remember fuel economy doesn’t depend solely on the type of tires you choose. If you find the best tires for your car but neglect checking their air pressure, the result may be lost. Therefore, if you notice one tire is losing air more than the others, keep in mind it will impact your fuel consumption.

Keep Tire Age in Mind

One of the most important parts of the tire code is its age. It’s the number of years that have passed since the tire manufacture. You can see the information within the DOT code of the tire. The last four digits are the week and the year of manufacture.

Tires last for 6-10 years, depending on their type, the maintenance you provide them, and your vehicle. Make sure you don’t buy “new” tires that are already 5+ years old. Rubber has deteriorated rapidly at that stage, even if the tires weren’t mounted before. You can also learn more on tire date codes here.

Do Your Research

Do some research on the potential best tires for your car. The best way to do so is to read reviews by people who have already used them. Then you will see how the tires behave on different vehicles, in different climates, with different maintenance, etc. Thus, you may already predict whether these particular tires will be good for your vehicle.

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Understanding Truck Tires: Load Ratings and Sizes

Your truck’s tire specs give you more information than you realize in the alpha-numeric code on the side. Learn to read and understand what these letters and numbers mean for your tires’ truck load index, speed rating and size. Understanding these values will make you a better consumer when choosing tires for your truck.

For help selecting which truck body is right for your needs, click here to see all of Reading’s truck bodies.

How to Read Tire Specs

If you take a close look at a tire, you will find a large amount of information. Everything from the manufacturer’s name to the tire size and load rating appears on the sidewall. Interpreting these numbers requires you to know what values to look for and their meanings.

On the sidewall, you will find the tire’s type, the width, aspect ratio, construction, wheel rating, load index and speed rating. You can identify the values based on their position relative to each other and how many numbers or letters they have. The Tire and Rim Association standardizes these values for all American tire manufacturers.

Some tires may also have Uniform Tire Quality Grading, UTQG, which refers to information for traction and temperature grades. AA traction grades perform best in wet conditions, and the classes go down in performance — AA, A, B and C. Temperature categories refer to how well the tires dissipate heat at various speeds. Those rated with A perform well at speeds over 115 mph. B-rated tires operate best between 100 mph and 115 mph, while C tires remove heat best at speeds between 85 mph and 100 mph.

The first part to look for is the string of letters and numbers that may start with P, LT or no letter. For example, P235/75R15 or LT215/65R15. Manufacturers put a lot of information into this alpha-numeric code — the tire type, width, aspect ratio, construction and tire diameter.

Next to this extended code, you will also see the load index and speed rating, both of which you must know to find the right tires for your loaded work truck.

To make the most of this information, you need to understand what the tire size information means as well as the load ratings and speed information.

Truck Tire Sizes Explained

The tire size typically starts with a letter indicating the type and ends with a two-digit number, giving the rim size. Between these parts, you will see additional information about the tire size and construction.

1. Tire Type

The first letter represents the type of vehicle you should install the tire on. P indicates a passenger vehicle or light-duty truck. Generally, these tires require lower pressures than other tires. LT designates a light-duty truck, but these often accompany larger 3/4 and one-ton pickups. If there is not a letter at the beginning, the tire is a Euro-Metric tire, usually used on passenger vehicles. In the example P235/75R15, the P means this tire fits onto a passenger vehicle.

2. Sidewall Width

Look at the three numbers after the letter or the first three numbers in front of a slash mark if your tire does not have a letter at the beginning. These numbers give the measurement of the tire’s width from sidewall to sidewall in millimeters. Most tire measurements come from the metric system, regardless of the company making the tires. The example of P235/75R15 has a width of 235 millimeters between sidewalls.

3. Aspect Ratio

After the slash mark, you will see a two-digit number. This value refers to the aspect ratio, which is the percentage of the sidewall’s height to its width. In the example tire, P235/75R15, the 75 is the aspect ratio. This tire’s sidewall height measures 75% of the width of the sidewall.

4. Tire Construction

Following the aspect ratio, you will see one of three letters — R, B or D. This letter tells you about the tire’s construction. An R designates radial tires, which have their internal cords laid at 90-degree angles to the tire’s centerline.

Bias-ply tires have a D in this position to indicate their diagonal design. On these types of tires, the cords cross each other at 30 to 45-degree angles. While once common early in the 20th century, bias-ply tires no longer dominate the market. They have been replaced by longer-lasting, more comfortable radial tires.

Belted tires have a B to designate their format. These tires mix the diagonal design of bias-ply with added belts inside the construction. While rare, these have applications on some off-road trucks, trailers and antique vehicles.

For the example used, P235/75R15, the R means its construction is radial.

5. Wheel Diameter

While the sidewall width uses millimeters, the wheel diameter, the last digits after the construction letter, comes in inches. The larger the number here, the larger the wheel size. If you replace your rims, you will also need to change the tires to fit. Be careful when changing wheel sizes because larger wheels affect the handling of the vehicle.

In the example tire, P235/75R15, the 15 at the end means you must install it on a 15-inch diameter wheel.

6. Load Index and Speed Rating

Following the size information, you will see two numbers and a letter. The numbers give the load rating for the tire, while the letter indicates the speed rating.

Using P215/65R15 85H as an example, the 85 gives the load index, also called the tire ply rating, and the H is for the speed rating, which tells you the maximum speed at which you should use the tires. This speed ranges from 3 mph to 186 mph.

What Is a Truck Tire Load Range, Ply Rating, Tire Load Index and Tire Speed Rating?

Often, you will see a number and letter following the tire size. This set of information denotes the tire load and speed rating. On some tires, you may see three letters instead of one. The first gives the speed rating while the next two indicate the load range.

1. Tire Load Range and Tire Ply Rating

The tire load range is also known as ply rating — a term that dates back to the days of bias-ply tires, which had different numbers of ply layers. More layers indicated a better and stronger tire. Today, ply rating still refers to the strength of the tire, but since fewer, stronger plies are used, the numbers have been replaced by load range letters.

The load ranges for passenger tires have a listing beneath the tire code with information about the maximum load range and tire pressures. The load range indicates the heaviest load the tire can handle in pounds. Maximum tire pressure indicates the highest you can inflate the tires, but do not fill your tires to this pressure. It reflects the highest pressure the tire can handle when carrying its maximum load. Use the pressure given in your vehicle’s owner’s manual for the ideal tire pressure that creates the most comfortable and safest ride.

Light truck load ranges have letters B, C, D, E and F, and they have increasing maximum pressures. The lowest pressure is for B tires with 35 psi, and C has a pressure of 50 psi. The pressures increase in increments of 15 from 65 psi, 80 psi and 95 psi for tires with load ranges of D, E and F. For work trucks, the most common load ranges are C, D and E. Commercial trucks, which have much higher carrying requirements, have load ranges from F through L.

In some cases, you may see a number after the load range number, for example, C1 or C2. They still have the same number of plies, but the numbers designate differing max pressures.

If you see a pair of load ratings, the tire manufacturer did not make a mistake. Instead, these LT tires have the load ratings for dual tires. The first number gives the load index for the tires when used on single axles. The second number is how much the tire can handle when used on a dual axle.

For instance, if you see a 104/101 for the load index, this means the tire has an index of 104 when used by itself but only 101 when installed on a dual-tire axle. The second number is usually lower because of unequal load sharing when the tires are paired together. However, when the tire is acting by itself, it can support a higher weight.

Tire Load Index

The load index on a tire gives a numerical value for the maximum weight the tire can handle when it is inflated to its recommended pressure. Higher numbers correlate to the tire’s ability to bear heavier loads. Indices start at 1, which can carry 102 pounds, and they go up to 150, which can hold up 7,385 pounds. In the example, P215/65R15 85H, the 85 load index means the tire can carry up to 1,135 pounds.

Like truck tire load ratings, the higher the load index, the more robust the tire is. Higher load indices correspond to tires used for hauling cargo or for installation on work trucks. No matter how strong the tire is, though, it’s important to remember to never carry weights that are heavier than your tires or vehicle’s suspension are rated for.

3. Tire Speed Rating

In addition to load ranges and indices, you also need to know about the speed ratings to keep your truck and cargo safe and to avoid damaging your tires. Just as tires have load indices to limit the amount they carry, they also have ratings for their maximum speeds. In the United States, most speed ratings on tires surpass the limits on highways. You should never exceed the posted speeds, regardless of the ability of your tires. Nor should you drive your truck faster than the tires’ speed ratings.

The speed rating has a designation after the load index number and before the load range letter if present. The lowest speed for tires is 75 mph for L rated tires. Only use these for off-road trucks that cannot reach high speeds due to the rough conditions. Keep in mind that speed ratings do not correlate alphabetically. See the speed ratings for various tires listed below and their standard vehicles:

L: Only apply these tires to off-road trucks that will not exceed 75 mph.
M: Use with temporary spare tires at no faster than 81 mph.
N: These tires have a maximum speed of 87 mph.
P: Tires with a P rating, cannot go faster than 93 mph.
Q: Q tires are usually winter studded or studless tires and should not exceed 99 mph.
R: For heavy-duty LT trucks, the rating may be R, which indicates a speed limit of 106 mph.
S: Family vans and sedans use the rating of S to indicate speed maximums of 112 mph.
T: Family sedans and vans may also use T-rated tires, which can drive up to 116 mph.
U: U tires can reach 124 mph.
H: Sports vehicles with H speed ratings can hit 130 mph.
V: Sports cars, sedans and coupes often use V-rated tires, which have speed ratings up to 149 mph.
W: Exotic sports cars use tires that can reach speeds up to 168 mph and have a W designation.
Y: The fastest speed rating — once Z which indicates faster than 149 mph — now is Y, which allows the tires to reach 186 mph.

Typically, for work trucks, speed is not the most critical factor, which explains why a speed rating of R for heavy-duty trucks has a limit of only 106 mph. Those who drive sports cars or race usually require specialty tires built for speed. If you need to haul cargo, look for the load index or range, which will help you to identify the best tires for your operation.

In the example tire, P215/65R15 85H, the H indicates the speed index of up to 130 mph.

Truck Use and Add-Ons

When you install tires onto your truck, choose tire sizes and load ratings recommended by the manufacturer. However, the size and strength of your tires you need for your vehicle will change if you customize it by adding on service bodies, platforms, tow hooks or other features. Ask us about the recommended chassis and tire loads needed for such additions to your truck. By pairing the right tires with your customized work truck, you will ensure peak productivity from the vehicle.

The tires you install on your truck are only one part of customizing your vehicle to your job. Service bodies and similar add-ons transform your purchased vehicle into a work machine. In fact, if you have a service body on your truck, you may need higher rated tires to hold up the extra weight you carry.

Find the service bodies and other ways to customize your truck to perform best at what you do by checking out our products at Reading Truck. If you have questions about the best options or want to create a customized work truck, contact us today.

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