Tire Concerns: how to tell how many plys a tires has

how can I tell how many plies a tire has.

Comment:

Today most tires don't really have plies the way they did when tires were first made, but the word is still used as a way of describing how "strong" the tires are.

The currently used, more precise term to use is ply-rating. This describes the degree of tire strength compared to the equivalent number of cords or plies which tires had when they were made using a layered system. Today even the most heavy-duty Light Truck Tires will not have any more than three plies and most of them only one or two. The plies used today use synthetic fibbers or even steel belts which are much stronger than several layers of cotton cord which used to be used.

What you need to pay attention to, if you are changing from one tire size or type to another is that the service description and load index of your new tire is at least as great as what you had before.

Tires today may be designated as Standard, Extra, or Light Load and could be stamped with the letters SL, XL or LL to indicate these levels of load carrying capacity. If there is nothing stamped, it is likely to be SL or Standard Load, especially for Passenger Tires.

If you are looking for the load stamp, you are most likely to see it at the end of the tire size series on the sidewall, for example as in : P285/35R-19 LL.

TG