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

345/45R13
tyre size, drawn to scale

The dimensions

Size elevation 345/45R13 · SCALE 1:3
OVERALL Ø 641 mm / 25.22″ RIM 13″ = 330.2 mm SECTION 345 MM / 13.58″ SIDEWALL 155 mm 45% OF 345 MM 345/45R13

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

641 mm A 345/45R13 stands 641 mm — 25.22″ — from the ground to the top of the tread, on a sidewall of 155.3 mm.

Every one of those figures comes out of the designation itself: 345 mm across, a sidewall 45% of that, beaded onto a 13-inch wheel. It turns 497 times per kilometre, which is the number your speedometer and ABS are really counting.

Overall diameter
641mm · 25.22″
Sidewall height
155.3mm
Section width
345mm · 13.58″
Revolutions / km
497· 800/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.

345
Section width, 345 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 13.58″.
45
Aspect ratio, 45%. The sidewall is 45% as tall as the tyre is wide, so 345 × 45 ÷ 100 = 155.3 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 diameter640.7 mm25.22″
Sidewall height155.3 mm6.11″
Section width345 mm13.58″
Rim diameter13″330.2 mm
Rolling circumference2013 mm2.013 m
Revolutions per kilometre496.8799.5 per mile
Ride height contribution320.4 mmhub centre to ground, unloaded

SOURCE·Metric size geometry + UN ECE R39 speedometer tolerance·computed from the 345/45R13 designation — no catalogue, no measurement, no vintage·REVIEWED ETRTO STANDARD

345/45R13 — the questions that follow

What is the overall diameter of a 345/45R13 tyre?

641 mm, or 25.22″. That is the 13-inch rim (330.2 mm) plus two sidewalls of 155.3 mm each — one above the wheel centre and one below.

How tall is the sidewall on a 345/45R13?

155.3 mm. The 45 in the size is a percentage, not a measurement: the sidewall is 45% of the 345 mm section width, so 345 × 45 ÷ 100 = 155.3 mm.

What can I fit instead of a 345/45R13?

This size sits at the edge of the conventional fitment envelope, so there are no close alternatives inside the ±3% band on this rim. Check your vehicle's tyre placard before considering anything wider or taller.

How many times does a 345/45R13 turn in a kilometre?

497 revolutions per kilometre, or 800 per mile. Its rolling circumference is 2.013 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.