Load rating chart — index to kilograms
Every load index from 62 to 129 converted to kilograms per tyre, what New Zealand vehicles typically need, and how to read a dual index. For what the number means and how to match it, see the full load rating guide.
Find the number just before the speed letter on your sidewall — the 91 in 205/55R16 91H — and look it up below. That is the weight one tyre carries at its rated pressure. Multiply by four and compare with the GVM on your compliance plate, leaving 10–15% of headroom.
On this page
Where to find your load index
It is the number — or pair of numbers — immediately before the speed rating letter.
615 kg per tyre.
Single 1,120 kg · dual 1,060 kg.
Tyres rated for heavier loads often carry a dual index. The first is the capacity with one tyre per side, which is most vehicles. The second applies when two are fitted per side on a rear axle — lower, because paired tyres run hotter with less air moving between them. One number means single fitment only.
Load index to kilograms
Every index from 62 to 129, with the bar drawn to scale against the heaviest. Capacity is per tyre, at the tyre's rated pressure — run it softer and you get less, by this much.
ISO/ETRTO standard values. The steps are deliberately uneven — each index is roughly 3% above the one below it, so the gaps widen as you climb. Bars are scaled against 1,850 kg, the top of this range.
What NZ vehicles typically need
| Vehicle type | Load index | Per tyre | NZ examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small hatchbacks | 75–85 | 387–515 kg | Yaris, Swift, Jazz, Demio |
| Medium sedans & wagons | 87–91 | 545–615 kg | Corolla, Civic, Mazda3, Impreza |
| Family SUVs & crossovers | 91–99 | 615–775 kg | RAV4, CX-5, Outlander, X-Trail |
| Large SUVs & 4WDs | 104–112 | 900–1,120 kg | Prado, Patrol, Pajero Sport, Fortuner |
| Utes on LT tyres | 116–121 | 1,250–1,450 kg | Hilux, Ranger, Navara, BT-50, Triton |
| Vans & heavy commercial | 121–129 | 1,450–1,850 kg | Hiace, Sprinter, NV350 |
These are typical ranges, not your vehicle. The minimum load index for yours is on the tyre placard inside the driver's door jamb, alongside the recommended pressures.
XL and LT — what they do and do not mean
XL (Extra Load) or RF (Reinforced) marks a passenger-construction tyre with a reinforced casing, rated higher than the standard-load version of the same size — but only at a higher pressure. Inflate an XL tyre to standard pressure and it carries no more than a standard one.
Across 1,545 tyres in our own workshop records, XL-marked tyres carry 710 kg at the median against 690 kg for standard load — one index point — while sitting on rims two sizes larger. The marking has gone from 10% of tyres before 2012 to 48% of those made in 2024 or later, with median capacity flat throughout. It compensates for short, wide, low-profile sidewalls rather than adding capacity for you. The full finding.
LT is a different thing. Light-truck tyres are purpose-built for sustained load — heavier casing, much higher pressures, firmer ride. If you genuinely need capacity, that is the direction, not the XL version of the same index.
The rules that matter
Load index × 4 tyres = total tyre capacity. Index 95 → 690 × 4 = 2,760 kg. That has to exceed the GVM on your compliance plate, with 10–15% to spare. The vehicle load calculator does it per axle, which is the stricter and more useful test.
NZTA rejects an axle where the tyres do not meet at least one of: the ply ratings are the same, or the load indices differ by no more than 2. So 95 and 97 is fine; 91 and 99 is not. Both tyres must also still be adequate for the loads the vehicle is rated for.
Every figure on this page is the capacity at the tyre's rated pressure. At 32 PSI a standard-load tyre delivers about 87% of it; at 26 PSI, 71%. Set your pressures before you load up, not after. Pressure guide.
This is the quick chart. Need the reasoning?
For XL versus LT, ply ratings, towing, upgrades and what our own 1,540 tyres show about all of it — the full guide walks through it.
(07) 573 9090 · Te Puke, Bay of Plenty · Free North Island delivery
Related charts & tools
Taylor Houghton
Manager, Tyre Dispatch · Warehouse Manager, Traction Tyres
Taylor Houghton has spent his working life in the tyre trade, beginning in his father's tyre business at the age of five and handling import containers through his school years. He developed Tyre Dispatch, the retail arm of Traction Tyres, and now manages it alongside the Traction Tyres warehouse in Te Puke, with responsibility for buying and brand selection. He holds no ownership interest in either business.
Both brands the company distributes exclusively in New Zealand, Anchee and Predator, were his selections, each assessed on factory accreditation, compound composition and independent test data rather than name recognition. More than 100,000 Anchee tyres have since been sold here, and both brands hold five star review averages.
The guides, calculators and tools on this site are his own work, as is the workshop dataset behind them, which covers 1,700+ documented tyre inspections and 45,000+ photographs and represents more than a thousand hours, the majority outside business hours. He is the petitioner to Parliament for mandatory tyre performance labelling and minimum wet-grip standards in New Zealand, and appeared in the launch video for Tyrewise, the national tyre stewardship scheme.
Photography, measurements and advice on this site are first-hand; where a figure comes from elsewhere, it is attributed.
Looking for tyre training data? The imagery and structured inspection dataset are available to licence. Contact email@tyredispatch.co.nz.
General guidance based on published standards and our own workshop data — reliable but hand-compiled and not guaranteed error-free. Spot something wrong? Email email@tyredispatch.co.nz and we'll fix it.