Wheel sizing

The wheel size for a motor vehicle or similar wheel has a number of parameters.

Bolt pattern

The bolt pattern determines the number and position of the mounting holes to allow the wheel to be bolted to the hub. As the bolts are evenly spaced, the number of bolts determines the pattern. For example: smaller cars have three (Citroën 2CV, Renault 4, some Peugeot 106s and Citroën Saxos, and the Tata Nano). Compact cars may have four bolts. Most United States passenger cars have five bolts. Pickup trucks, large SUVs, and armored vehicles may have as many as six, eight, or ten. It is not unheard of to find vehicles with even more, such as enormous coal mining transporters that may have twelve.

Bolt circle

The bolt circle is the notional circle determined by the positions of the bolts. The center of every bolt lies on the circumference of the bolt circle. The important measurement is the bolt circle diameter (BCD), also called the pitch circle diameter (PCD).

Bolt pattern guide by manufacturer