The load index of tires is a figure that represents the maximum weight that a properly inflated tire can support. The greater the load-carrying capacity of a tire, the higher its load index number. Choosing a tire with a lower load index than the original equipment specs indicates the tire will not be able to handle the original’s load capacity.
What is Tires Load Index? Definition
A speed rating is an alphabetic number from L to Z that indicates how quickly the tire is rated to go. The Load Index will be a numeric value ranging from 0 to 150. The load index is usually listed with the speed rating. The load index, which comes before the speed rating, will inform you how much weight the tires can carry. In the below image, W is the speed rating and before that, the number ’99’ is used to indicate the tire load index.
When buying new tires, the tire load index is quite significant. When it’s time to replace your tires, be sure you choose ones that can sustain your vehicle’s Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR). The owner’s manual will have this number. Use the tire load index table to check how many pounds each tire can support to see if a set of tires will fit your vehicle. Multiply that by four to get a total (since your vehicle will use four tires). Those tires should work as long as that figure is more than your vehicle’s GVWR.
What Does Tire Load Index Mean?
The tire load index indicates how much weight a tire can support, and overloading tires is never a smart idea! You can harm your tires and prematurely wear them down if you put too much weight on them. Worse yet, you run the chance of a tire blowout. Consider carrying a box full of cement blocks. When your tires are overburdened, just like your legs buckle under the weight, they can completely fail.
The load rating/load index of a tire is something that most people don’t think about when buying tires. Still, it’s one of the most crucial factors to consider, especially if you’re going off-road and towing a large trailer or caravan; guarantee driving safely and legally. Also Read: Types of Cars
Load Index Chart of Tires
The tire load index tells you how much weight a tire can bear. In other words, it’s the maximum weight that your tire can safely support. For example, let us consider a has a load index of 81 and it is designed to support 1019 pounds at full air pressure.
Now, how to find the maximum load-carrying capacity of a car? How to calculate it? It is very simple! If your car has 4 wheels, you need to multiply the loads by 4. Hence, it will become (4 x 1,019 = 4,076 pounds). Make a note that always a little higher load-carrying capacity shall be selected than the factory-installed tires load capacity. The tire load index chart is shown below & before using it should be well-verified with Tire manufacturers.
Table: Load – Carrying Capacity Index Ratings
| Value of Tire Load Index | Value of Load (in kg) | Value of Load (in lbs.) |
| 0 | 45.00 | 99.00 |
| 1 | 47.00 | 102.00 |
| 2 | 48.00 | 105.00 |
| 3 | 49.00 | 107.00 |
| 4 | 50.00 | 110.00 |
| 5 | 52.00 | 114.00 |
| 6 | 54.00 | 117.00 |
| 7 | 55.00 | 120.00 |
| 8 | 56.00 | 123.00 |
| 9 | 59.00 | 128.00 |
| 10 | 60.00 | 132.00 |
| 11 | 62.00 | 136.00 |
| 12 | 64.00 | 139.00 |
| 13 | 65.00 | 143.00 |
| 14 | 68.00 | 148.00 |
| 15 | 69.00 | 152.00 |
| 16 | 72.00 | 157.00 |
| 17 | 74.00 | 161.00 |
| 18 | 75.00 | 165.00 |
| 19 | 78.00 | 171.00 |
| 20 | 80.00 | 176.00 |
| 21 | 83.00 | 182.00 |
| 22 | 85.00 | 187.00 |
| 23 | 88.00 | 193.00 |
| 24 | 90.00 | 198.00 |
| 25 | 93.00 | 204.00 |
| 26 | 95.00 | 209.00 |
| 27 | 98.00 | 215.00 |
| 28 | 100.00 | 220.00 |
| 29 | 103.00 | 227.00 |
| 30 | 107.00 | 234.00 |
| 31 | 109.00 | 240.00 |
| 32 | 113.00 | 247.00 |
| 33 | 116.00 | 254.00 |
| 34 | 118.00 | 260.00 |
| 35 | 122.00 | 267.00 |
| 36 | 126.00 | 276.00 |
| 37 | 128.00 | 282.00 |
| 38 | 132.00 | 291.00 |
| 39 | 137.00 | 300.00 |
| 40 | 141.00 | 309.00 |
| 41 | 146.00 | 320.00 |
| 42 | 151.00 | 331.00 |
| 43 | 156.00 | 342.00 |
| 44 | 161.00 | 353.00 |
| 45 | 166.00 | 364.00 |
| 46 | 171.00 | 375.00 |
| 47 | 176.00 | 386.00 |
| 48 | 181.00 | 397.00 |
| 49 | 186.00 | 408.00 |
| 50 | 191.00 | 419.00 |
| 51 | 196.00 | 430.00 |
| 52 | 201.00 | 441.00 |
| 53 | 206.00 | 454.00 |
| 54 | 212.00 | 467.00 |
| 55 | 219.00 | 481.00 |
| 56 | 225.00 | 494.00 |
| 57 | 230.00 | 507.00 |
| 58 | 236.00 | 520.00 |
| 59 | 244.00 | 536.00 |
| 60 | 250.00 | 551.00 |
| 61 | 258.00 | 567.00 |
| 62 | 265.00 | 584.00 |
| 63 | 273.00 | 600.00 |
| 64 | 280.00 | 617.00 |
| 65 | 290.00 | 639.00 |
| 66 | 290.00 | 639.00 |
| 67 | 308.00 | 677.00 |
| 68 | 315.00 | 694.00 |
| 69 | 325.00 | 716.00 |
| 70 | 336.00 | 739.00 |
| 71 | 346.00 | 761.00 |
| 72 | 356.00 | 783.00 |
| 73 | 366.00 | 805.00 |
| 74 | 376.00 | 827.00 |
| 75 | 387.00 | 852.00 |
| 76 | 401.00 | 882.00 |
| 77 | 412.00 | 908.00 |
| 78 | 426.00 | 937.00 |
| 79 | 437.00 | 963.00 |
| 80 | 450.00 | 992.00 |
| 81 | 463.00 | 1019.00 |
| 82 | 475.00 | 1047.00 |
| 83 | 488.00 | 1074.00 |
| 84 | 500.00 | 1102.00 |
| 85 | 515.00 | 1135.00 |
| 86 | 530.00 | 1168.00 |
| 87 | 545.00 | 1201.00 |
| 88 | 561.00 | 1235.00 |
| 89 | 581.00 | 1279.00 |
| 90 | 601.00 | 1323.00 |
| 91 | 616.00 | 1356.00 |
| 92 | 631.00 | 1389.00 |
| 93 | 650.00 | 1433.00 |
| 94 | 670.00 | 1477.00 |
| 95 | 690.00 | 1521.00 |
| 96 | 710.00 | 1565.00 |
| 97 | 730.00 | 1609.00 |
| 98 | 750.00 | 1653.00 |
| 99 | 776.00 | 1709.00 |
| 100 | 801.00 | 1764.00 |
| 101 | 826.00 | 1819.00 |
| 102 | 851.00 | 1874.00 |
| 103 | 875.00 | 1929.00 |
| 104 | 900.00 | 1984.00 |
| 105 | 925.00 | 2039.00 |
| 106 | 950.00 | 2094.00 |
| 107 | 975.00 | 2149.00 |
| 108 | 1001.00 | 2205.00 |
| 109 | 1031.00 | 2271.00 |
| 110 | 1061.00 | 2337.00 |
| 111 | 1090.00 | 2403.00 |
| 112 | 1120.00 | 2469.00 |
| 113 | 1150.00 | 2535.00 |
| 114 | 1180.00 | 2601.00 |
| 115 | 1216.00 | 2679.00 |
| 116 | 1251.00 | 2756.00 |
| 117 | 1286.00 | 2833.00 |
| 118 | 1320.00 | 2910.00 |
| 119 | 1360.00 | 2998.00 |
| 120 | 1400.00 | 3086.00 |
| 121 | 1451.00 | 3197.00 |
| 122 | 1501.00 | 3307.00 |
| 123 | 1550.00 | 3417.00 |
| 124 | 1600.00 | 3527.00 |
| 125 | 1651.00 | 3638.00 |
| 126 | 1701.00 | 3748.00 |
| 127 | 1750.00 | 3858.00 |
| 128 | 1800.00 | 3968.00 |
| 129 | 1851.00 | 4079.00 |
| 130 | 1901.00 | 4189.00 |
| 131 | 1946.00 | 4289.00 |
| 132 | 2000.00 | 4409.00 |
| 133 | 2060.00 | 4541.00 |
| 134 | 2121.00 | 4674.00 |
| 135 | 2180.00 | 4806.00 |
| 136 | 2240.00 | 4938.00 |
| 137 | 2301.00 | 5071.00 |
| 138 | 2361.00 | 5203.00 |
| 139 | 2430.00 | 5357.00 |
| 140 | 2501.00 | 5512.00 |
| 141 | 2576.00 | 5677.00 |
| 142 | 2650.00 | 5842.00 |
| 143 | 2726.00 | 6008.00 |
| 144 | 2801.00 | 6173.00 |
| 145 | 2900.00 | 6393.00 |
| 146 | 3001.00 | 6614.00 |
| 147 | 3075.00 | 6779.00 |
| 148 | 3105.00 | 6844.00 |
| 149 | 3250.00 | 7165.00 |
| 150 | 3350.00 | 7385.00 |
How Can I Determine the Load Index Capacity of a Tire?
It is how you may determine the load index capacity of a tire. The load rating of a tire indicates how much weight it can support. The weight carrying capacity of all the tires is determined by multiplying the load capacity of each tire by the number of tires.
Load Index Capacity of a Tire Example# 1
It has a load capacity of 6,614 LBS, in accordance with the 146 ratings. To find your vehicle’s maximum load-carrying capacity, multiply that by four tires (4 x 6,614 = 26,456 pounds).
Load Index Capacity of a Tire Example# 2
It has a load capacity of 3,250 kg, in accordance with the 149 ratings. To find your vehicle’s maximum load-carrying capacity, multiply that by four tires (4 x 3,250 = 13,000 kg).
Remember to replace your original factory-installed tires with a load index equal to or greater than your new tires. Also Read: What is Governer
Tire Load Range vs Tire Load Index
“Load range” refers to an older measurement standard known as “PLY Rating.” It refers to the tire’s construction, consisting of rubber and string layers known as “plies.” Manufacturers used to count a tire’s plies and use that number to denote carrying capacity because more plies meant a tire could carry more weight. On the other hand, modern tire construction employs fewer piles while maintaining the same carrying capacity. As a result, the load range indicates how robust the tire is and the maximum PSI it can handle. A tire with an “E” load range, for instance, is equivalent to a 10-ply construction tire. This tire comprises one or two plies of equivalent strength rather than ten.
On the other hand, the load index is a more exact way of measuring than load range, primarily concerned with structure. When a tire is filled to maximum load-bearing pressure, the load index number indicates how much weight it can carry. It explains the tire load range measurement in greater detail by including more specifics in the rating. The load index should not be confused with the load range, likewise displayed on the sidewall as a letter value. The load index indicates how durable a tire is and how well it can sustain increased air pressures.
Things to Think about while Shopping for New Tires
A greater load rating translates to a stronger tire, which will run cooler under load while being more puncture resistant and achieving higher mileage under typical operating conditions.
When you’re in the market for new tires, keep these things in mind:
- The minimum tire load rating requirements for your vehicle
- The driving you expect to conduct, particularly any long-distance trips.
- Whether or not you’ll be towing or transporting any hefty loads.
Tire’s Load Index: FAQs
Is it possible to have tires with various load indexes?
Suppose the load index and speed symbols are higher than the minimal level suggested by the vehicle manufacturer. It may also be permissible to mix tires with various load indices and speed ratings (extra load vs. standard load). Fit the higher-rated tires to the rear axle in these cases.
Is it possible to replace the original tire with one that has a higher tire load index?
It’s fine to choose a tire with a higher load rating than the originals; however, avoid tires with a lower load rating than the vehicle’s specifications, even if they’re less expensive.
What does the 120-load index on tires mean?
A light truck tire with a load index of 120/116, for example, has a single tire load capacity of 3,086 pounds and a two-tire load capability of 2,756 pounds. The capacity of two tires is lower than that of a single tire to ensure that the vehicle can bear the load even if one tire fails.
How significant is a tire’s load index?
The tire load index indicates how much weight a tire can support, and overloading tires is never a smart idea! You can harm your tires and prematurely wear them down if you put too much weight on them.
