When buying a tire (winter, all-season, etc.), you may have noticed that it features a series of letters, numbers and symbols on its sidewall. But apart from the series indicating the type of tire and its size—for example P235/50R18—its maximum pressure and its load index, there are other numbers on the tire: the DOT code. What does DOT mean? Blackcircles Canada tells you more about it.
The DOT (for Department of Transportation) allows you to find out a lot about your tire, from where it was produced to when it was created. It also shows that the tire meets all safety standards set by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
How do I read a tire’s DOT? Nothing could be easier… as long as you know what the numbers and letters are for! Let’s take the following code as an example:
DOT B94W HWNX 2617
The first 2 characters following the DOT (B9) indicate the factory code where the tire was manufactured, while the next 2 characters (4W) represent a size code specific to the tire manufacturer. The next series of characters (HWNX) is an internal manufacturer’s code, while the last series of 4 digits (2617) is the most important for consumers.
Why are these last characters important?
The last 4 digits provide you with valuable information about the age of the tire, so that you can see at a glance if a tire has exceeded its service life—which is often the case after 6 years—because you know when it was manufactured! Indeed, the first two digits indicate the week in which the tire was made—in this case the 26th week of the year, which starts on 21-28 June—and the last two digits indicate the year in which the tire was manufactured, in this case 2017.
Knowing this information will tell you more about your tires… and their lifespan! And if you’re having trouble finding the DOT code on your tires or reading it, the specialists at blackcircles can help you decipher it!
