How much does a Tire Weigh

If you want to know how much does a tire weigh, one place to start is Amazon. The e-commerce giant has listings of thousands of tires along with the weight and dimensions of each model. But there’s a very valid reason why you may not want to go there: time.

Going through Amazon’s tire listings is a laborious process. There are hundreds of them for almost every vehicle on the road. You’ll have to jump from one browser tab to another to compare the weights of different tires. Getting a clear picture would still be next to impossible. Here’s why.

Tires vary in type, size and other parameters. Such variables include the tire’s tread compound, its inner belt, the vehicle it was made for, and more. That’s why two tires from the same manufacturer, which were made for the same vehicle, regularly weigh differently.

How much do tires weigh?

Read on to find out:

Passenger car tires

Common sense tells us that there’s no one-size-fits-all category when it comes to passenger tires. The market is incredibly diverse and the number of vehicles on the road is huge. Small city cars use 13-inch tires whereas SUVs and sports car count on bigger 20-inch models.

That is to say that one cannot categorize the weight of a passenger car tire based on the vehicle it was made for. Multiplicity of options make it impossible. A much better way to categorize tires’ weights is to use the numbers marked on the tire’s sidewall.

Unknown to the majority of vehicle owners, these numbers aren’t merely for showoff. Tire sidewall markings, as they are called in technical jargon, convey information about the brand, size, and model of your tire. They also tell us about the weight of the individual tire.

Here are different sidewall markings along with the weight of the tire:

• 155/70 R13: Tire normally weighs 6.5kg
• 185/70 R13: Tire weighs more than 7kg
• 175/65 R14: Tire weighs b/w 6.5kg and 7.2kg
• 195/65 R15: Tire weighs between 8.2 and 9kg

Truck tires

It goes without saying that truck tires weigh heavier than passenger car tires. These models cannot afford to be lightweight as they have to carry more load, need to withstand more abuse and must have the ability to roll on more challenging terrains than their peers used underneath passenger cars.

Hence the reason why an average passenger car tire weighs less than an average truck tire. While the former typically a reading of between 20 and 22 pounds on the weight scale, most truck tires weigh north of 30 kg. Some of them weigh as much as 80kg.

This diversity in weights is mainly due to different sizes of truck tires. Those with 24-inch wheels are usually the heaviest and weigh close to 80kgs. Medium size truck tires, i.e., those with a 22.5-inch size, generally weigh 60kg. Small truck tires, like those used underneath pickups, weigh approximately 35kg.

To summarize what we have just said:

• 17-inch truck tires: Weigh close to 35 kg
• 5-inch truck tires: Weigh approximately 60 kg
• 24-inch truck tires: Weigh close to 80 kg

Miscellaneous tires

The majority of tires that roll off from the factory floor are meant to be driven on the road. Apart from passenger vehicle and truck tires, such models include motorcycle tires, farm and tractor tires, RV/motorhome tires, ATV tires, trailer tires and commercial van tires.

A tiny minority of tire manufacturers come up with models that aren’t made for the asphalt. Such tires do their best in household and in-house applications. Examples include lawn mower tires, pulley tires and those used underneath a golf cart.

Walmart tells us that both these types of tires – the ones that are designed to be driven on the road and others which aren’t – weigh differently. Usually those tires that have road applications weigh more than their at-home counterparts.

Here are both types of tires alongside their average weights:

• Lawn Mower Tires: 2.5 kg
• Golf Cart Tires: 4.5 kg
• Trailer Tires: Between 90 and 115 kg
• ATV Tires: Between 16 and 32 kg
• Motorcycle Tires: 14 kg
• Tractor and Farm Tires: Between 90 and 181 kg

FAQs and Answers

Q: Why do tires weigh so much?

A: Multiple components that combine to form a tire also have an impressionable impact on its weight. All these parts come together to improve the tire’s handling, traction, and wear. They also help the tire achieve cornering and traction capabilities.

These components include:

• Tire Casing: Also known as the body of the tire, the tire casing includes multiple components including sidewall (that gives the tire weather resistance), bead (which secure the tire to the wheel), body ply (that enhances the strength of the tire rubber) and the inner liner (that acts as an air seal inside the tire’s tube).
• Belt System: Located on top of the tire casing, the belt system imparts stability to the tread area of the tire. It also contributes to the tire’s traction, handling and wear. Most manufacturers use steel to create the belt system, as steel enhances the strength of the tread area without imparting it a lot of weight.
• The Tread: It is the uppermost slab of the tire and contains two compounds. One of them is the tread base whereas the other is the tread cap. The tread base is responsible for imparting durability to the tire’s plies. Tread cap, meanwhile, is an abrasion-resistant compound that is partially responsible for providing mileage and traction.

Q: How much do monster truck tires weigh?

A: Such tires are the heaviest of the lot and typically weigh between 362 and 408kgs. Their heavy weight is mainly due to the sheer size of these tires. As most of them are 66 inches high and 43 inches wide. That means a tire that measures 6’ tall and 4’ wide.

Conclusion

Depending on their size, the vehicle they were made for and their inner components, different tires weigh differently. Passenger tires are the lightest of the lot and usually don’t exceed the 10kg range. Monster truck tires lie on the other extreme as they weigh as much as above 400kgs.

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source https://www.smartmotorist.com/how-much-does-a-tire-weigh