The Chevrolet Niva, which people affectionately shortened to “Shnivy,” has been produced from 2002 to the present. The presence of the famous American brand “Niva” in the name is due to the cooperation of GM and AvtoVAZ. True, in 2019, the Russian automaker bought a share in the joint venture from the Americans. Therefore, the Niva will soon be updated and will be produced as a LADA with a new factory index.
But let’s figure out what size wheels you have on your Chevrolet Niva and what options there are for replacement.
What kind of wheels does a Chevrolet Niva have from the factory?
Owners of Nivs received different wheels and tires in different configurations. So what kind of wheels does the Chevrolet Niva have from the factory?
Owners of fifteen-inch wheels received original tire sizes of 205/75 R15 and 205/70 R15. Owners of sixteen-inch wheels got size 215/65 R16.
Wheel bolt pattern Niva Chevrolet
The bolt pattern of Chevrolet Niva wheels is a parameter that is marked as PCD in the wheel markings. The bolt pattern of the Niva Chevrolet wheels is 5×139.7. These numbers marked PCD mean that the wheels on the Niva are mounted on 5 wheel bolts, and the distance between the centers of the holes for them is 139.7 mm. There is also information that in 2002, modifications of the Chevrolet Niva 1.7 and 1.8 i were fitted with wheels with a bolt pattern of 5×139 and an offset of ET 48. Please note that you cannot use wheels with a bolt pattern of 5/139 if you are prescribed to use 5 /139.7 !
Bolt pattern 5x139.7 on a cast wheel
Bolt pattern 5x139.7 on a stamped disc
The fact is that the difference in diameter of less than a millimeter is unnoticeable during installation - the disc will still sit on the hub studs. But when tightening the nuts, the wrong disc will not be properly secured. That is, the wheel can simply unscrew while driving! Therefore, carefully observe all parameters of the Niva Chevrolet wheel size.
Niva Chevrolet wheel size
What about other important disk parameters? If the diameter of the rims of your Niva Chevrolet wheel is 15 inches, then in addition to the PCD 5×139.7 bolt pattern, they have a width from 6J to 6.5J (in inches), an offset of 40 and a hub hole diameter of 98.5 mm. If you have 16-inch wheels, then they have a width from 6J to 7J, but other parameters are the same.
What is the original on the wheels of Niva owners? Judging by information from open sources, AvtoVAZ makes wheels independently. But the tires on the conveyor are most often supplied by the Altai Tire Plant. And in the tire rating they are not even in the top twenty...
Dimensions of standard wheels
A peculiarity of domestic car models, including the Chevrolet Niva, is the lack of individual wheels for a specific year of manufacture of the car.
Common wheel sizes for Niva Chevrolet:
Failure to comply with these parameters may result in:
Advice. Before purchasing a new wheel, it is better to consult an experienced specialist.
Another important parameter is the bolt pattern or drilling of the disk. It is designated by the Latin letters PCD. For Niva Chevrolet it is installed by the manufacturer with dimensions 5x139.7. The number 5 means that the disk is fixed to the hub with five bolts, which are located on a circle, and the distance between adjacent fastening bolts corresponds to 139.7 mm.
The center hole (DIA) of the rim is 98.5mm. Therefore, when choosing a wheel, you need to pay special attention to this parameter, since a discrepancy from the standard even by 1 mm will certainly affect the quality of the disk fastening to the hub. After some time, due to a loose fit, the hub will simply wear off.
And the last no less important parameter is the ET offset, which should not exceed a value of 40. Otherwise, this will lead to failure of the internal bearing. The most acceptable offset for the Niva Chevrolet is ET35.
Alternative wheels for Chevrolet Niva
Niva has always been popular among those car owners who love hunting, fishing and off-road driving. Often it is precisely these car enthusiasts who think about what wheels to put on a Chevrolet Niva in order to increase its capabilities, especially off-road. To do this, there are several methods that can be combined - install larger diameter wheels, install larger diameter tires, install tires with a more aggressive tread pattern.
So what wheels can be installed on a Chevrolet Niva? And which of them will fit into the car without making changes to the design, and which ones will you have to lift your Niva using spacers and possibly cut the wheel arches?
Taking into account the correspondence between the bolt pattern parameters and the diameter of the hub hole, the Niva Chevrolet P15 wheels can be replaced with rims of 16 or even 17 diameter. Which wheels to choose - steel, cast or forged - you decide for yourself. There are no restrictions or recommendations here. The main thing is that they match the size.
As for tires, in the operating instructions for the Chevrolet Niva, without altering the design, most of the wheel sizes become as noted in the table.
| Wheel/Tire Diameter | Tire size |
| R17 | 205/60 R17 |
| R17 | 215/60 R17 |
| R16 | 225/75 R16 |
| R16 | 215/65 R16 |
| R15 | 215/75 R15 |
| R15 | 205/70 R15 |
| R15 | 205/75 R15 |
Without altering the design, Chevrolet Niva owners install tires on their cars: 205/70 R15, 205/75 R15, 215/65 R16 and 215/75 R15. But with other models there may be nuances - the wheels may catch on the fender liners or other body parts. This is evidenced by reviews from car owners. And, by the way, the manufacturer recommends using 215/75 R15 tires only if you constantly drive off-road and prohibits accelerating on them above 90 km/h.
The maximum speed of the car according to the passport is 140 km/h. This means that when choosing tires, you can focus on the speed indices N (140 km/h), P (150 km/h) and Q (160 km/h). It is pointless to install higher-speed tires, and it is unsafe to install lower-speed tires. Although in the operating manual the manufacturer recommends tires up to T (190 km/h) and H (210 km/h) indexes. Apparently, with a reserve.
As for the load index, choose for yourself based on the range of tires and the operating conditions of the vehicle. Standard options are indexes from 95 to 100, which corresponds to 690-800 kilograms of load per tire.
Maximum Niva Chevrolet wheels
What are the maximum Niva Chevrolet wheels that can be installed on this car? Judging by reviews on popular sites and forums, Niv owners manage to install wheels up to a diameter of 35 inches. True, for this you need to use spacers to increase ground clearance and raise the car. And also trim the fender liners and wheel arches.
Maximum and minimum possible parameters of non-standard disks
Some car owners strive to install beautiful wheels of a larger size on their car than those supplied by the manufacturer. The Nyva Chevrolet body allows this to be done thanks to the design of the car's wheel arches. Wheel sizes that do not require modifications to the body are considered 215/75 with a minimum offset of 35.
If the driver has installed a tire with a profile over 215mm, then the arches will have to be trimmed a little, and the ET offset should exceed 58mm. The most optimal reach size is 40-45. Therefore, when planning the installation of new wheels and tires, you need to carefully study this issue. To do this, special websites are offered to help the car enthusiast, where on videos and photos you can see in detail the entire procedure from choosing a wheel to replacing it.
Properly selected wheels and tires are the key to stable vehicle performance on the road.
Source
Winter tires for Chevrolet Niva
What winter wheels can be installed on a Chevrolet Niva? If we talk about wheels, it is a common practice to change tires to steel wheels in winter. They are the cheapest and it is not so bad to kill them in winter, when they are affected by aggressive road reagents.
The best wheels for the Chevrolet Niva for the winter are presented in the table. Please note that the price of wheels for a Chevrolet Niva may vary depending on the season. Prices also differ for different standard sizes - we have listed only a few of them.
| Model | Standard size | Cost, rub |
| Dunlop Grandtrek Ice02 | 215/65 R16 | 4555 |
| Hankook Tire i*pike RW11 | 205/75 R15 | 4890 |
| GOODYEAR Ultra Grip Ice Arctic SUV | 205/70 R15 | 6160 |
| Nokian Tires Nordman 7 SUV | 205/70 R15 | 4070 |
| Amtel NordMaster ST-310 | 205/70/15 | 3180 |
| Viatti Bosco Nordico V-523 | 215/65 R16 | 3000 |
| Kama Euro 131 | 205/70 R15 | 3965 |
Dunlop Grandtrek Ice02
Nokian Tires Nordman 7 SUV
Parameters of standard nuts
A special feature of wheel nuts is their special thread, which differs from standard ones. For Niva Chevrolet, M12x1.25mm nuts are provided. Due to the slight discrepancy with the standard pitch (1.75), a self-tightening effect appears when the wheel rotates.
Therefore, a larger thread pitch will not work. Factory original nuts are made using a special technique. When screwed onto the studs, they come out on the other side, and the internal cavity has the shape of a cone. It was the use of cone nuts that made it possible to achieve a certain result:
Nuts on a Niva car are:
For Niva Chevrolet, closed type fasteners are used. They are tightened with a regular 19 mm wheel wrench. Standard products are chrome plated and made of steel with carbon components.
All-season tires for Chevrolet Niva
When can you install all-season tires on your car? In two cases. First, your region should have mild winters without much rainfall. Secondly, if you do not have the opportunity to buy separately winter and summer tires.
Sometimes “mud” tires for Chevrolet Niva are also classified as all-season tires. But this is not entirely correct. Yes, such tires are adapted for all-season use, but they are primarily designed for harsh off-road conditions and will not be as effective on asphalt. The selection of such tires is a very individual matter, and they are most often produced by manufacturers specializing in such tires.
See the table for several popular all-season tires.
| Model | Standard size | Cost, rub |
| Maxxis AT-771 | 205/70 R15 | 3920 |
| Goodyear Wrangler HP | 215/65 R16 | 4980 |
| Kama 232 | 205/70 R15 | 3200 |
Maxxis AT-771
Goodyear Wrangler HP
Profile height
The height of the rubber profile affects the comfort, rigidity, reliability of the car and the load.
Increasing the height makes the car more comfortable and softer, and increases the landing position. But when the permissible height is exceeded, controllability deteriorates, braking distance increases, fuel consumption increases, and additional load appears on the vehicle’s chassis.
Reducing the profile height improves the car's handling, but the car becomes stiffer and the ride less comfortable. In addition, the risk of puncture increases.
Summer tires for Chevrolet Niva
Which summer wheels on Chevrolet Niva do car owners choose? We have shown several options in the table below. But the range is very wide and everyone chooses according to their taste and budget. We also remind you that in summer it is important to monitor the level of tire pressure, which can change depending on the temperature. Excessive or insufficient pressure leads to accelerated tire wear. The choice of the desired pressure level is also influenced by the vehicle load. Don't forget to take this into account and keep an eye on your tire pressure to ensure your tires last longer.
| Model | Standard size | Cost, rub |
| Continental CrossContact ATR | 205/70 R15 | 5870 |
| Nokian Tires Nordman SX2 | 205/70 R15 | 4740 |
| MICHELIN Latitude Cross | 215/65 R16 | 6760 |
| Viatti Bosco A/T V-237 | 205/75 R15 | 3570 |
| KAMA EURO-214 | 215/65 R16 | 3680 |
MICHELIN Latitude Cross
Nokian Tires Nordman SX2
Profile width
Parameters such as controllability and safety depend on the width of the profile.
Increasing the profile width improves vehicle handling, especially at high speed, reduces braking distance, and enhances directional stability. At the same time, high-profile tires are more expensive and increase the risk of aquaplaning and fuel consumption.
Reducing the profile width improves traction on snowy roads or in ruts and reduces fuel consumption. The disadvantages of a narrow tire include worse handling, decreased stability, and increased braking distance. It is highly not recommended to install tires already recommended by the manufacturer.
