Tyre sizes·265/40R21
265/40R21
Overall diameter 745.4 mm

265/40R21 — 745.4 mm tall, and what it swaps with

265/40R21 is 265 mm wide with a 40% sidewall on a 21-inch wheel. That sidewall is 106 mm, so the tyre stands 745.4 mm tall and turns 427 times per kilometre.

Section width
265 mm
Aspect ratio
40 %
Wheel size
21 in (533.4 mm)
Sidewall height
106 mm
Overall diameter
745.4 mm (29.35 in)
Circumference
2341.7 mm
Turns per km
427

Sizes you can swap to

Only sizes whose overall diameter stays within 3% are listed. A different diameter covers a different distance per turn, and that gap becomes speedometer error.

Same profile, different width

Other sizes for this wheel

How the code reads

The 205 is millimetres, the 55 is a percentage of that width, and only the 16 is inches. The R stands for radial construction.

How to read this

  • The first three digits are the width in mm, the middle two are the aspect ratio in percent, the last two the wheel in inches.
  • Sidewall height = width × aspect ÷ 100. For 205/55 that is 112.75 mm.
  • Overall diameter = wheel diameter + twice the sidewall. A 16-inch wheel is 406.4 mm.
  • Once the diameter shifts by more than 3%, the speedometer and odometer drift by the same amount.

Frequently asked questions

Q. What is the overall diameter of 265/40R21?

745.4 mm — the 533.4 mm wheel plus the 106 mm sidewall at top and bottom.

Q. How many turns per kilometre does 265/40R21 make?

Its circumference is 2341.7 mm, so 427 turns.

Q. What can I swap it for?

12 sizes stay within 3% of its diameter — the closest is 265/45R20 at 746.5 mm.

Q. Why is the sidewall 106 mm?

Because it is 40% of the 265 mm width. The aspect ratio is a proportion of the width, not a length.