The legendary first all-wheel drive domestic SUV "Niva" won the hearts of fans of outdoor activities, and just car enthusiasts who often encounter problems on Russian roads, back in 1970. The monocoque body and comfortable interior, all-wheel drive, and independent suspension were a breakthrough not only in the domestic automobile industry. At that time, only the Jeep Wagoneer and Range Rover had such parameters - cars of a different class and for a completely different price. Subsequent modifications only increased the popularity of the model. Unpretentiousness in repair and operation distinguishes Niva favorably in the modern Russian car market, with an abundance of SUVs of other brands.
In the beginning, to reduce the cost of production, a prerequisite for putting a car on the assembly line was the use of units from VAZ passenger cars and, accordingly, VAZ wheels. With good cross-country ability on soggy loam and a relatively low price, this equipment has serious disadvantages:
- Poor handling on asphalt, even sideways drifts, which is inconvenient when operating in the city;
- Average cross-country ability for rough roads
Without any modifications, the Niva can be fitted with 27-28-inch tires with an offset of 35-48 mm. But even in this case, it is possible for the wheels to touch the fender liners up to the point of pinching the wheel in the arch in the following cases:
- Off-road driving with strong rolls;
- Overloading the car.
As a method of combating this phenomenon, VAZ offers special lifting kits that allow the wheel axle to be lowered to 40 mm. The kit includes:
- Reinforced longitudinal and transverse rods;
- Upgraded spring cups and spring spacers;
- Spacers for ball joint.
A radical method of significantly improving cross-country ability, saving fuel, and what to hide, raising the prestige of a car and specific “aggressive” tuning is the transition to 29-inch tires.
This method requires reworking the arches and, in some cases, lifting the suspension.
Let's take a closer look at the description of this process.
Lifting for Niva for 29 tires. Is it worth doing?
With the development of tuning, the opinion has become established that to install 29 tires on a Niva, it is enough to only trim the arches. The rationale for this decision is the fact that lifting has a negative impact on the main components of the car and reduces their service life, namely:
- Car drive – due to changes in the bend angle;
- Front suspension – due to the small stroke inherent in the design, the upper arm rests against the bump stop and limits the downward stroke of the suspension, which indirectly affects the camber of the wheels. A spacer for the upper ball joint further distorts the suspension geometry
- Rear suspension - due to the fact that spacers or larger springs change the position of the front axle.
Whether it is worth lifting, thereby reducing the life of the car, you have to decide for yourself. The reason for carrying out such an operation is the ground clearance, which is critical for operating conditions; lifting will give an additional 3 cm, for example, for the Niva Urban or Niva Chevrolet with a ground clearance of 190 and 205 mm, respectively.
In addition to mechanical changes, in order to achieve improved dynamics, especially during acceleration, it is advisable to raise the gear ratio from the standard 3.9 to 4.44. This is possible as a result of replacing gearboxes. The procedure is not mandatory, but desirable, as it will also reduce the load on the engine and clutch
Types of mud tires
Depending on the type of tread and purpose, SUV tires are divided into 3 classes:
- HT (short for Highway terrain or Half Terrain - tires for highways and poor quality asphalt roads. It can be used on dirt roads, but it will be difficult to overcome off-road on it. But such tires do not make noise and have a speed limit of 180 km/h. Therefore, these tires are bought by those who drive mainly on asphalt.
- AT (short for All Terrain) are tires designed for asphalt, dirt and light off-road use. Manufacturers recommend different mileage ratios on hard and unpaved surfaces: 60/40, 50/50, 40/60. This is a good tire for those who have to drive in rural areas. The AT tire tread provides average off-road capability.
- MT (short for Mud Terrain) is a tire with an aggressive profile that is designed exclusively for driving on dirt and off-road. Although you can find MT tires with a speed rating of R (160 km/h), their use on asphalt is not recommended. These tires are designed to take you off-road and reveal the potential of your car there.
Advantages and disadvantages of Niva as a result of installing 29 tires
Undoubtedly, the majority of car owners, in their desire to tune the Niva, want to achieve increased cross-country ability, because most often these are people who lead an active lifestyle, are fond of hunting or fishing, or simply live in a completely off-road situation, for example, farmers or rural residents.
The main parameters for assessing cross-country ability are:
- Clearance value;
- Overhang angles;
- Angles of roll and longitudinal passability;
- Angle of transverse static stability.
Installing 29-inch wheels will increase the ground clearance from the existing 228 mm to 232 mm, which is especially important for the Niva Urban with a low ground clearance of 190 mm. This is especially noticeable if you compare the location of the bumper
The difference in ground clearance is a result of switching to 29 tires.
The overhang angle is the maximum slope angle at which a car can move or drive on its own without the body touching. For Niva this is 32° on the way up and 37° on the way out. A larger wheel diameter improves the lift angle to 35, but due to a shift in the center of gravity, it reduces the departure angle to 33°. And the losses and achievements are not so significant as to seriously increase the level of cross-country ability.
The longitudinal flotation angle is the maximum possible angle that a car can overcome when moving from a slope to a horizontal surface. The roll angle reflects the opposite situation, leaving a horizontal plane with a downward slope. These figures are mainly affected by the wheelbase distance. But Niva drivers noted an improvement in driving down an inclined plane due to an increase in ground clearance as a result of replacing it with 29 tires.
The angle of lateral static stability determines the maximum trim of the vehicle from the central axis, which will be followed by a rollover on its side.
For Niva, this angle is 6.5°. The wheel diameter increased to 29 inches, on the one hand, should theoretically worsen stability indicators due to a shift in the center of gravity of the car; on the other hand, a larger wheel offset and wider tires compensate for this, especially on straight sections. In areas with a large curvature of the trajectory, the Niva loses its dynamics. Reduces the dynamics and deterioration of the parameters of the body's streamlining by wind flows when driving, by increasing the ground clearance.
The negative consequences of installing 29-gauge tires also include an increase in the load on the hub units due to spacers to increase the offset of the wheel rims. In order to slightly relieve the unit, double-row bearings are used in the steering knuckle. Such modernization increases the cost of the entire tuning.
The improved exterior of the body, increased cross-country ability with a general improvement in driving performance, exceeds the negative aspects of increasing the wheel diameter to 29 inches. Installing 31-inch wheels is undesirable, as it will require mandatory modifications to the suspension components.
Trimming the arches of a Chevrolet Niva has a similar algorithm.
What does the size of tires and wheels affect?
| 5J*** | 58*** | 0,21 (2,1) | 0,19 (1,9) |
| 5J*** | 58*** | 0,21 (2,1) | 0,19 (1,9) |
Increasing disc diameter
| Increasing rim width | Increasing tire width | ||
| Car style | will improve | will improve | will improve |
| Road holding | will improve | will improve | will improve |
| Steering precision | will improve | will improve | will improve |
| Tire grip | Will not change | Will not change | will improve, but only on dry roads |
| Resistance to hydroplaning | Will not change | Will not change | will get worse |
| Comfort on rough roads | will get worse | Will not change | will improve |
| Road noise | Will not change | Will not change | will intensify |
| Gasoline consumption | Will not change | will increase | will increase |
| Tire wear | Will not change | Will not change | will increase |
The smaller the unsprung masses
(this includes a lot of tires and wheels), the better the car will hold the road and accelerate faster. For example, if you put wheels on a car that are 2 kg lighter each, then acceleration to 100 km/h will be reduced by 0.2 seconds.
As a reminder, for safety and to increase tire life, you should maintain your tires at the recommended pressure. Other improvements to the Niva 4x4 can be found in the tuning category and by content.
Lada Niva (VAZ 2121) is a domestic SUV that can drive almost anywhere; these cars have been produced for more than 40 years, and it has almost no equal on off-road terrain. Especially if you choose the right wheels for the Niva. After all, the right tires for a Niva are already half the success of a car off-road.
Although they are outdated in appearance, they do their job perfectly. You won’t find a better car for hunting or fishing trips. Nivas are good because they are unpretentious and inexpensive to maintain. The price of the Niva is not particularly high, especially if we consider used cars; in general, you can buy a domestic SUV for little money. Today we will deal with such issues as the correct choice of tires for the Niva, what sizes should be, and so on.
Legal consequences of changing wheels or what the traffic police think
Driving a car with large wheels can be divided into two situations:
- Traffic on the highway . Rules of traffic regulations in the “Basic provisions for the approval of vehicles for operation” Section 5 “Wheels and tires” clause 5.4. The admission of vehicles with tires that do not match the vehicle model in size or permissible load is limited. As a result, the car owner may receive a warning or a fine of 500 rubles in accordance with Article 12.5 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, Part 1. Also, enlarging the wheels will lead to distortion of the speedometer, since the tachometer is structurally designed for a different diameter. This can lead to unknowing speeding and a fine of 500 to 2,500 rubles;
- Passing maintenance. A twofold situation is possible, but numerous Niva owners, when replacing the wheel diameter from standard to 29, usually do not experience difficulties during passage, with rare exceptions, which can be circumvented by returning standard tires for the duration of the passage.
As the diameter of the wheels increases, the dynamic characteristics of the vehicle, the load on the suspension and beams will also change. The nature and length of the braking distance has changed. All this together, in a critical situation, can lead to loss of insurance as a result of an accident or traffic accident. If, during the investigation of an accident, it is established that it was the change of tires that prevented the driver from preventing the accident, the fact that non-standard wheels were installed will be considered an aggravating circumstance.
The tire size for Niva, Niva Chevrolet, Niva Urban, Niva Fora is always a compromise between the on-road and off-road capabilities of the car. Therefore, the final choice is always up to the owner.
Wheels for Niva - from small to large
Absolutely every driver has at least once had the thought that it’s time to get bigger wheels. Because the stock Nyvka is, of course, good, but as they say - more wheels - more possibilities. Therefore, let’s figure out what a driver will have to face in order to install tires of a larger diameter and, in general, whether it’s worth doing. Here we will try to present everything as simply and clearly as possible, because looking for answers on forums is long and painful for many)) Because many people are absolutely not happy with driving the Vli-5))
Basically, here we will collect all your questions and answers to them.
Is it worth switching to 15-inch wheels?
I think you know that most tire drivers are switching from standard 16″ wheels to 15″ ones. For what? The answer is prosaic - the choice of tires with a 15″ fit is many times greater than for 16. That’s why they switch, because they want to install a meaner rubber, but with 16″ options the cat cried. No, of course, if you drive a Kama Flame, then leave the standard wheels. But I think you will soon feel that you should at least install Cordiant.
In general, then I’ll write a separate article about normal 16″ tires for the Niva. In the meantime, I recommend these cool “slippers” K-139 - they will fit on the Niva without modifications, they row perfectly and you don’t need to think about buying 15 discs. Although the choice of 15 tires is simply gorgeous, here you will also find Goodrich, Mudrichi, Hankuki and other well-known mud tires.
What is the maximum tire size for a Niva without modifications (lift, cutting arches)?
If the car is new, then few people will want to cut the arches - this is a fact. So the answer is this: the maximum you can set is 215-75-R15. I have this one on my Shevik, which is stock, by the way. However, there’s an immediate counter-question here: what kind of wheels to take for these tires, because everything is right next to each other, and if you get smart about the takeoff, the tires will rub against the wheel arch liners. The answer is that you need to take wheels with an offset of 40, or at least 35.
So if you are looking towards 235 tires, then get ready to prepare the car, cut arches, lift, change the main pairs, etc. Do you need it? An increase of 1.5 cm in ground clearance, and work per million. It makes sense to use 235 tires only when you are planning to seriously offroad. And if you simply want to put the biggest wheels possible on your Nivko without any modifications, then your choice is 215-75-R15.
What disc offset will be optimal for Niva chassis parts?
The basic rule is “wider and larger wheels - less offset”, but within reasonable limits. Because many people like to set the offset to zero and the car will be very unstable on sharp turns and big tires. Maintain balance))
Everything will depend on the size of the wheels. As you know, the factory recommendation is offset 58. Therefore, the closer the offset of your disk is to this indicator, the better. ET 58 is recommended because the wheels from the factory are very small; K-156 tires seem to be 185-75-16 in size. For such small wheels the reach is appropriate, maybe more.
Therefore, if you decide to change the stock wheels (and this is what 99 percent of drivers decide to do after their first rides), then you will have to take different wheels, with a smaller offset. Larger tire diameter means shorter disc offset. But you need to maintain a balance, strive to be closer to ET58. Why is this necessary? The answer is the closer the offset is to ideal, the better for your suspension and bearings.
And therefore, on wheels 205/70/R15 (most often nivovods install Cordiant Off Road in this size and do it right) you need wheels with an offset of 48. You can put thirty-fifths, but these will be better. The car will be intact.
Well, if you decide to set the maximum without modifications to 215/75/R15, then reduce the ET to 35 and it will be normal. If you put it on wheels with forty-eighth, there is a possibility of wiping.
I want to install 215/65/R16 tires - what wheels are suitable?
“Sneakers” of this size are considered almost ideal for a stock Niva - there is no need to take separate wheels, the dynamics are normal, the size is slightly larger than the standard one, there is no need to cut/lift anything. If you are not going to do much “bezdorov”, but purely for mushrooms, berries, fishing, hunting, and not particularly drilling, then the choice can be considered ideal.
As for the wheels, the answer is 40-45 offset, forty-five is better, of course. Closer to the recommended one is better for the machine. Put more and it will wipe with the steering wheel turned out.
Which tires to choose for Niva
When choosing wheels, they take into account not only how cheap they are, but also their compliance with operating conditions and climate. For example, low profile wide AT wheels are good for all types of surfaces, while narrow ones are good for hard surfaces. For off-road driving in standard climate conditions, Pirelli Scorpio tires are well suited, but in colder climates, Radials are better.
In areas with a lot of dirt, a standard tractor Christmas tree, which has long been installed on Gazelle, is suitable. True, these are not wheels for a low “collective farmer” - it will have to be modified. To do this, you can trim the arches.
Well, the most durable tires are required for cars operated in the Far North.
Tires for Niva by manufacturer
The Niva owner can choose from a fairly extensive list of the best tires of different types and price categories. These are domestic wheels produced by Nizhnekamsk, Kirov, Barnaul, Altai, Volzhsky (Volturi) factories. As well as foreign ones, including Chinese Stalkers. Much depends on the modification on which they plan to install wheels - 3D, Bronto, Urban or some other.
| Name | Type |
| Voltyre VLI-5 | All season |
| Voltyre VLI-10 | All season |
| Altairos | Vszn |
| Altaishina VLI-5 | Vszn |
| Bontyre Stalker All Terrain | Summer |
| BF Goodrich MT | Summer |
| Yokohama Geolandar A/TS G012 | Summer |
| Continental Conti 4x4 Contact | Vszn |
| Cordiant Off Road | All season |
| Kumho Road Venture MT | Summer |
| Cooper Discoverer M+S Sport | Summer |
| Lassa OK-144 | Vszn |
| Maxis AT-771 | Summer |
| Matador MP-50 Sibir ICE | Winter |
| Northec MT-540 | All season |
| Northex MT | Vszn |
| Pirelli Formula Ice | Winter |
| Barguzin K-175 | Summer |
| Silverstone MT-117 Extreme | Winter |
| Simex Extreme | Vszn |
| Kama I-511 | Winter |
| Forward Safari 540 | Summer |
| Hankuk Dynapro | All season |
| Amtel Seven Hills | Winter |
| YaShZ Ya-192 | Summer |
| YaShZ Ya-569 “Bear” | Summer |
| KShZ K-139 | Summer |
| KShZ K-151 | Summer |
| KShZ K-156 1 | All season |
| KShZ K-182 | Winter |
| Belshina BEL 166 | Vszn |
| Belshina Fbel 253M | Vszn |
Tires produced by Belshina were originally intended for agricultural machinery, so they are installed only on lifted vehicles. They also install “extreme” category tires with a size of 30 inches or more, as well as those intended for UAZ. Wheels for UAZ are produced by Russian factories.
