With rising fleet expectations regarding comfort levels and performance of vans, John Kendall finds out how tyre manufacturers are keeping pace.

For a few years, one of the UK’s best-selling cars has not been a car at all, but a van, the Ford Transit Custom. Vans may serve as work and family transport and we expect passenger car levels of comfort when we travel by van. There is no doubt that since I first started testing vans in 1990, the standards of refinement, performance, handling, roadholding, not to mention build quality, have improved considerably. The rise of sporty van models has also helped to raise expectations about performance and perhaps blurred the distinctions between cars and vans further in some peoples’ minds.

Obviously, vans are built to carry loads. Smaller vans, using many car components and carrying lighter weights, may perform just as well on car tyres. Larger models are longer, wider, taller and heavier than the average car and are designed to carry more weight and tow heavier trailers. At the same time, vans usually sit on the road using the same number of tyres as a car, although some heavier models may be equipped with twin rear wheels. Should we expect vehicles designed to do such different things to use the same tyres, just because many car and van tyres are of similar sizes?

Let’s think about what vans do during the working day…

They may cover long distances while carrying a load, they may travel onto building sites over surfaces away from smooth tarmac. They may be driven up kerbs or scuff the tyre sidewalls against kerbs.

Given the circumstances, it is not surprising that a number of tyre manufacturers offer a separate range of van tyres, designed to withstand the range of conditions that the tyre is likely to face. The first consideration for any tyre is safety and van tyres are constructed to different standards from car tyres, reflecting the likely operating conditions.

Different approval regulations apply to car and van tyres. While cars are covered by Regulation 30, van tyres are covered by Regulation 54. “This applies different durability requirements as part of the legal approval process, compared to car tyres,” says Steve Howat, general manager, technical services for Continental Tyres in the UK.

As with car tyres, van tyres carry a lot of information on the tyre sidewall. A van tyre will carry the suffix ‘C’ (for commercial vehicle tyre) after the size data. Taking a common van tyre size, 215/65R16C, this shows the width of the tread pattern (215mm) profile of the tyre in percentage terms (65), meaning the height of the sidewalls are 65% of the possible full size. R indicates that it’s a radial tyre, 16, the wheel rim diameter in inches and C to show that it’s a van tyre. An equivalent car tyre might be marked 215/65R16, without the C but usually carrying another letter after the numbers to indicate the tyre’s speed rating.

There will be more numbers following the ‘C’ to indicate the load rating of the tyre, i.e. 109/107. These are the load index ratings. The higher number relates to the load rating when the tyre is fitted to an axle with two tyres, i.e. single wheels each side, and the lower rating to when the tyre is fitted to axles with four tyres, i.e. two wheels each side. These numbers would be followed by another letter indicating the speed rating of the tyre, which will be lower than the speed rating for an equivalent car tyre.

“By being able to see the C mark within the tyre description, this will also tell the van fleet or fleet manager that the tyre is for commercial vehicle use, has been designed to carry that heavier load and also complies with European regulations for commercial vehicle use,” Joe Brammer, CES technical manager – car, 4×4 and van at Michelin Tyres UK told VFW.

“Fundamentally, van tyres have a higher load capacity range compared to car tyres,” says Steve Howat of Continental. “If we use, for example, a typical van tyre size of 235/65R16 C which may require a 118 or even a 121-load index, then there are limitations in terms of construction with a car tyre to reach a similar load capacity. It is also important to note that the current maximum car tyre pressure is 3.5 bar (51 pounds per square inch). For a typical three-tonne GVW van, pressures need to exceed this on the rear e.g. 4.5 bar (65PSI) to accommodate the load requirements.”

Clearly the tyre will have to be constructed to withstand the higher tyre pressure and load. “Van tyres will have a reinforced casing with stiffer sidewalls, so that in itself would be able to carry the load and ensure that any static or dynamic load is carried safely and for a longer period of time,” says Joe Brammer at Michelin.

“If you fit car tyres to a van, the sidewalls would probably be a lot more flexible, which could mean a lot more movement in the tyre, whereas the van tyres will have that reinforced sidewall structure, which will just ensure that vehicle stability is maintained and prevents any movement. With dynamic load, if the vehicle is quite high in weight and it’s quite close to its maximum gross vehicle weight, obviously that’s moving around inside, so having a van tyre would just allow that stiffness and that stability of the vehicle, which of course then ties into the safety performance of a tyre.”

Steve Howat at Continental raises another issue too. “If a van was converted from a dedicated van tyre to a supposed equivalent car tyre, then this could also have implications for insurance, as it could be perceived as a significant modification to the vehicle.”

The reinforced construction means that van tyres are equally suitable for vans regardless of how they are powered. Whether diesel-, petrol-, hybridor electrically-powered, van tyres will work just as well.

“I think the most important point is to follow the vehicle manufacturer’s recommendations in terms of size, load and speed rating,” says Joe Brammer at Michelin. “As long as the load rating of the tyre is sufficient to meet the vehicle’s maximum weight, then that is probably the most important thing to consider.”