Part of the data ring
TireFit
Size sheet · one designationOutside the usual envelope

295/70R13
tyre size, drawn to scale

The dimensions

Size elevation 295/70R13 · SCALE 1:3
OVERALL Ø 743 mm / 29.26″ RIM 13″ = 330.2 mm SECTION 295 MM / 11.61″ SIDEWALL 207 mm 70% OF 295 MM 295/70R13

SOURCE·Metric size geometry + UN ECE R39 speedometer tolerance·drawn to scale from the size designation — 1 px = 2.87 mm·REVIEWED ETRTO STANDARD

743 mm A 295/70R13 stands 743 mm — 29.26″ — from the ground to the top of the tread, on a sidewall of 206.5 mm.

Every one of those figures comes out of the designation itself: 295 mm across, a sidewall 70% of that, beaded onto a 13-inch wheel. It turns 428 times per kilometre, which is the number your speedometer and ABS are really counting.

Overall diameter
743mm · 29.26″
Sidewall height
206.5mm
Section width
295mm · 11.61″
Revolutions / km
428· 689/mi

How the figures are derived

  1. Read the size as the specification it is: section width in millimetres, aspect ratio as a percentage of that width, rim diameter in inches.
  2. Sidewall height = width × aspect ÷ 100. This is the number the size string is really about, and it is the one nobody quotes.
  3. Overall diameter = rim × 25.4 + two sidewalls — one at the top of the wheel and one at the bottom.
  4. Circumference = π × overall diameter, which gives revolutions per kilometre and per mile directly.
  5. Nothing above is measured, estimated, averaged or dated. It is the definition of the designation, so it does not go stale and it has no source to cite beyond the standard itself.
sidewall (mm) = width × aspect ÷ 100
overall diameter (mm) = rim × 25.4 + 2 × sidewall
speedo true speed = indicated × (new diameter ÷ old diameter)

The full method, the ±3% rule, and what geometry cannot tell you →

What the three numbers actually say

The size on your sidewall is a specification, and each field of it means one thing.

295
Section width, 295 millimetres. The tyre's width at its widest point when it is mounted and inflated — sidewall bulge included, not the tread. In inches that is 11.61″.
70
Aspect ratio, 70%. The sidewall is 70% as tall as the tyre is wide, so 295 × 70 ÷ 100 = 206.5 mm. A lower number is a shorter sidewall and a stiffer ride.
R13
Radial construction, 13-inch rim. The R is the carcass type, not a size. The 13 is the wheel diameter the tyre beads onto — 330.2 mm — and it is the one dimension of the three that is still in inches.

The load index and speed symbol that follow the size — the 91V part — are a separate code. Read the rest of the sidewall →

Full dimensions

Overall diameter743.2 mm29.26″
Sidewall height206.5 mm8.13″
Section width295 mm11.61″
Rim diameter13″330.2 mm
Rolling circumference2335 mm2.335 m
Revolutions per kilometre428.3689.3 per mile
Ride height contribution371.6 mmhub centre to ground, unloaded

SOURCE·Metric size geometry + UN ECE R39 speedometer tolerance·computed from the 295/70R13 designation — no catalogue, no measurement, no vintage·REVIEWED ETRTO STANDARD

What else fits where a 295/70R13 does

Every size within reach of 743 mm, closest first, judged against the ±3% convention.

AlternativeDiameter ChangeVerdictSpeedo at 100
265/80R13 754 mm +1.48% Within tolerance 101.5 km/h true
265/75R13 728 mm −2.09% Within tolerance 97.9 km/h true
265/75R14 753 mm +1.33% Within tolerance 101.3 km/h true
265/70R14 727 mm −2.23% Within tolerance 97.8 km/h true
265/70R13 701 mm −5.65% Outside tolerance 94.3 km/h true

Ranked by how close each one holds the original rolling diameter — which is the only thing this table can rank on. Whether any of them clears your arches, suits your rim width or carries your car's load is decided by the placard on your door pillar, not by this list.

What each one does to the speedometer

Assuming the car was calibrated for 295/70R13 and you fit the alternative instead. Indicated 100 km/h in every row.

Fitted insteadDiameter changeSpeedo shows 100True speedReads
265/80R13 +1.48%100 km/h101.5 km/h low — you are faster than shown
265/75R13 −2.09%100 km/h97.9 km/h high — you are slower than shown
265/75R14 +1.33%100 km/h101.3 km/h low — you are faster than shown

Reading low is the direction with no legal tolerance in it. Why that is, and what the rule says where you live →

295/70R13 — the questions that follow

What is the overall diameter of a 295/70R13 tyre?

743 mm, or 29.26″. That is the 13-inch rim (330.2 mm) plus two sidewalls of 206.5 mm each — one above the wheel centre and one below.

How tall is the sidewall on a 295/70R13?

206.5 mm. The 70 in the size is a percentage, not a measurement: the sidewall is 70% of the 295 mm section width, so 295 × 70 ÷ 100 = 206.5 mm.

What can I fit instead of a 295/70R13?

The closest alternatives on rolling diameter are 265/80R13 (+1.48%), 265/75R13 (−2.09%), 265/75R14 (+1.33%). Anything within ±3% of 743 mm keeps the speedometer and stability systems inside the band they were calibrated for — but arch clearance, rim width and load rating are separate questions that a size string cannot answer.

How many times does a 295/70R13 turn in a kilometre?

428 revolutions per kilometre, or 689 per mile. Its rolling circumference is 2.335 m, which is what the speedometer and the ABS both count against.

The geometry here is exact; whether a tyre fits YOUR car is not something geometry can answer. Arch clearance, suspension travel, offset, load rating and your vehicle's own placard all decide that, and none of them are in a size string. The ±3% rule quoted throughout is an industry convention, not a law. Confirm any change against the tyre placard on your door pillar and with a tyre fitter before you buy.

See all 10 sites in this family, with what each one answers

Published by

Amit Sharma

Auckland real-estate agent and marketer. Builds free, sourced data tools.