Military & High-Speed MPT Tyres

MPT stands for Multi-Purpose Tyre. They often encorporate a more universal tread pattern to cater for both on and off-road applications. Off-road performance often requires a reasonable amount of traction to handle mud, snow and other loose ground, along with robustness to avoid damage from rocks and punctures from sharp objects. On-road an MPT tyre is often rated to travel at higher speeds, often above 50mph, and to be able to provide a level of road handling, heat dissapation, low vibration and low noise. These characteristics make MPT tyres suitable for a variety of applications in military, defence and in off road civil applications, such as on firetrucks and support vehicles.

A tyre's Speed Index is the maximum safe speed that the tyre is manufactured to travel at, and is represented by a letter from A to Z. The tyre's Load Index is the maximum weight that the tyre can safely support, and is a one or two digit number. The higher this number is the more weight the tyre can carry. It is imperative for the safety of the vehicle and its occupants that tyres with high enough Speed and Load Indexes are chosen. Check the Load and Speed ratings of your current tyres before ordering replacements. The table below show what each load and speed index number/letter relates to in KG and MPH.

A DOT code is a unique tyre code printed on the sidewall of a tyre. It is usually a series of 7 to 13 letters and numbers that follow the word DOT and which provide information on the tyre’s place of manufacture, as well as its type and age. The tyre age is contained in the four numbers at the end of the DOT code and is often encircled by a raised rubber oval. The first two numbers of the 4-digit DOT date code indicate the calendar week that the tyre was manufactured (weeks 1 to 52), whilst the last two numbers tell you the year of manufacture. For example the code 0923, which means that the tyre was made in the 9th week of 2023.

If the date code has only three digits, it means that your tyre was manufactured before the year 2000, when a different system was used. If you see the letters DOT, but they are not followed by any other letters or numbers, look on the other sidewall. Manufacturers are only required to stamp the complete tyre identification number on either the inside or outside sidewall, but not both.

Please note any tyre manufactured within the last 5 years is considered a new tyre by the European Tyre & Rim Technical Organisation (ETRTO). Some militaries cap their tyres useable age range at only 3 years, at which point they will be de-commissioned. It is common to see unused, or very partially used tyres enter the market place for resale at this point. Large savings can be made by general consumers who are happy to accept these tyres.