How To Select The Right Tire Type For Your Car Build

Tips and Tricks For Picking The Best Tires For Cars

Selecting the right tires can be daunting, because let's be real here - tires aren't cheap. You're spending hard earned money on an investment that quite literally helps you keep moving forward safely, so the cash you put towards your tires shouldn't be spent unwisely.

Today, we want to help you out so you know exactly what kind of tires you should be looking for. We'll be taking you through the factors to consider when buying tires, as well as what you should get for your car's intended use. With this in mind, you'll be much more likely to wind up with a set of tires that can help you keep going much further in the long run - let's jump right in and see what we can find!

Table Of Contents

-What Do The Numbers On Tire Size Charts Mean?

-Everything You Need To Know About Tire Treadwear Numbers

-What Do Tire Season Ratings Mean?

-What Kind Of Tire Warranty Should You Look For?

-Best Tires For Different Vehicle Applications

What Do The Numbers On Tire Size Charts Mean?

We'll start with the basics - one of the questions we get asked somewhat frequently has to do with tire sizing, and that makes sense, because to the untrained eye the numbers can be rather confusing to say the least. So what do those numbers even mean?

EXAMPLE - 225/45R17 TIRE

Let's use a common tire size like 225/45R17 as an example. "225" would be the tire's width - this is measured in millimeters from sidewall to sidewall, so a tire with 225 leading the size number would be 225 millimeters wide.

"45" is the aspect ratio - this tells you how thick the tire's sidewall is. Instead of an actual measurement, "45" represents a ratio of height from the sidewall to the width of the tire, meaning that the sidewall height is equal to 45% of the width of the tire.

R means "Radial Construction." You'll find this number on pretty much any tire, unless you're trying to find some old school reproduction tires for an old school hot rod or muscle car.

The last number, "17," refers to the wheel size in diameter, so this tire will fit on a 17-inch tall wheel. There are some other numbers that can pop up relating to speed rating or temperature rating, but for the most part, getting the basics down here is what's truly important when you're trying to find the right tire to fit.

Everything You Need To Know About Tire Treadwear Numbers

The next thing we'll knock out as far as basics go is the treadwear. Treadwear is a number that's gonna tell you how soft or grippy (the technical terms) a tire is, or how hard and slippery that same tire would be. You'll usually see a three-digit number with "TWW" after it when you're looking at tires, which stands for "Treadwear."

The lower a treadwear number is, the grippier a tire is going to be. Those grippier tires will also wear down faster, since the compound you use in the tires is softer. The higher the treadwear number, the less grip the tire will have, and the harder the compound will be. Higher treadwear ratings mean the tires will last longer, but you'll slip around a little bit when pushing these tires to their limits.

There's no real magic number for which treadwear rating you should go with - it depends on that you plan on doing with your car. But a rule of thumb we've found helpful is that any tire with a treadwear under 300 is best suited for track usage.

What Do Tire Season Ratings Mean?

Next on the basics list are the seasons your tires are rated for. These ratings are usually called out by the manufacturer pretty well, and on our website we list tire types when you're shopping.

The majority of people buying tires are gonna be getting all-season tires. Those tires work pretty well in all seasons, all year round and in all types of weather conditions, though it is a game of compromises - the better they work in snow, the worse they'll work in the heat.

If you want true performance in the summer, you'll want something that's called Ultra High Performance (UHP), and for the colder months you'll want a dedicated set of winter tires.

What Kind Of Tire Warranty Should You Look For?

The last thing we want to cover in the basics is the different kinds of tire warranties you can get. This may sound boring, unless you've ever had a flat tire and wish you could've gotten a free replacement, or at least help towards that.

We'd recommend studying the warranty coverages of the tire manufacturers you're looking to go with - Continental, for example, has some super impressive warranties with roadside assistance programs you can take advantage of. So yeah, tire warranties may not be the most exciting things in the world, but it's always better to have something and not need it than vice versa.

Best Tires For Different Vehicle Applications

Finally, as you're searching for tires you should always be asking yourself what you're even planning on using your car for. If you're planning on using your vehicle as a daily driver, you'll probably want a very different set of tires than if you're a hardcore track star who wants to dominate.

If you're using your car as a track vehicle you'll likely want a dedicated set of tires unto themselves, but if you're mixing show and daily use, you can get away with using the same set to accomplish both things. The only thing we'd say is that you're gonna be chewing through a lot of tire if you have any amount of negative camber on your build. So, all told, make sure your tires are in alignment and that they do the things you need them to do, and you're good.

Shop All Aftermarket Car Tires Online At Fitment Industries

We invite you to take a look at our tire store today and find the tires that are best suited for your car. Of course, if you need help we're always here to lend a hand, and we've even put a list of our favorite tires of 2024 that we've linked below to help you in your search. Check them out, and don't forget that we offer financing, free shipping and quick delivery on all new tires in stock!