195/55 R16 Tyres Explained

195/55 R16 is a very common tyre size for many compact family cars. Cars which require a good blend of comfort, and grip. The numbers tell us the the tyre's different dimensions. 195 is the tyre width in millimetres. 55 is the aspect ratio, so the sidewall height is 55% of 195mm (about 107mm). And R16 means the tyre fits a 16 inch wheel. This size is used on a wide range of everyday cars that do town and motorway and driving. You'll find premium options from brands such as Continental, Pirelli and Goodyear. As well as mid range choices from the likes of Kumho, Toyo and Yokohama. Finally value brands include Tomket and Mazzini. Popular models that come in this tyre size include Michelin CrossClimate 2 and the popular Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance 2. To confirm this is the right size for your car, check the tyre sidewall, the driver's door sticker or your vehicle handbook. Or enter your registration on Blackcircles for exact matches.

The tyre size that you find on the sidewall of a tyre will tell you important information such as the width, profile and diameter of your tyre. In this case, for the tyre size 195/55 R16, this means the following: 195 - the width of the tyre in millimetres. I.e. 195mm wide. 55 - the height of the sidewall as a percentage of the width. In this case 55% R16 - the diameter of the tyre's inner rim in inches. Basically what size of wheel this is designed to fit onto. In this instance it is a 16 inch wheel.

If you are looking for the recommended tyre pressure for 195/55 R16 tyres, you will find that this will depend on the manufacturer and model. Each vehicle manufacturer has their own tyre pressure recommendation for their model, that will deliver an optimal performance for your vehicle. Check the following if you are unsure what the correct tyre pressure is for your 195/55 R16 tyres Tyre label - this is often the best place to find your tyre pressure information. It is located on the door jamb on the driver’s side of the vehicle. It is a small rectangular label that provides the driver with the recommended tyre pressure and tyre sizes. Vehicle handbook - Quite often the vehicle handbook with contain a section that relates to the technical details for the tyre. This should include the required tyre size, load rating, speed rating and recommended tyre pressure.

The sidewall height of a 195/55 R16 tyre is calculated by using the profile information of the tyre size. In this instance 55. This tells us that it is 55% of the tyre's cross-section width. When looking at a tyre, the sidewall height is the distance between the tread line of the tyre and the rim line. Given that this tyre size has a cross-section width which equals 195mm, we can work out that the sidewall height is 55% of 195 – this comes to 107.25mm.