Originally Posted by jigray3

As I understand it, the term "speed rating" is a bit of a misnomer, and as a result is widely misunderstood. In a practical sense I'm told it equates to the stiffness and strength of the sidewalls to provide handling and responsiveness at higher speeds. For instance I don't think my D1 could go 130 MPH if it were thrown out of an airplane, yet that is what Land Rover specs for the vehicle. They do not spec truck tires. Even Defender 90's from that era were spec'ed with S-Rated passenger tires, and it's fair to say a Defender at 112 mph would be a handful.