Understanding Rims, Inner tubes and Valves

Identify the tyre diameter

To ensure that a rim is compatible with a tyre, the first thing to check is the diameter, which is measured in inches.
The diameter must be the same for your rim as for your tyre. It's a bit like shoe size: if you wear a size 42 shoe, you'll have a hard time fitting your foot into a size 38 shoe!

Check the width and profile of the rim

This is the value you get when you match the tyre diameter.
On all our tyre pages, there is a “Technical Specifications” section in which the “recommended rims” and “approved rims” for the requested size and corresponding diameter are indicated.

Example of technical specifications for the dimension 540/65 R30, MICHELIN AXIOBIB2 range.

The rim reference appears on the seat or on the disc of the rim

To find out more about rims

If for any reason you wish to fit a tube in your tyre, we indicate, if available, a reference for a compatible tube in our table (see our technical documentation or any product sheet). This reference appears in the "Tube (Code)" column.

Note that this reference may be preceded by the letter “M” (eg. “M754”). In our example of a 540/65 R30 tyre, the reference for an inner tube is 754.

As in our example you have identified that the tyre has a diameter of 30, you can go directly to the section of the table that corresponds to this diameter. Next, identify the inner tube reference.

The different types of valves

The following pages of our document also show the types of valves. You'll see the differences in terms of shape, length and diameter of the valve hole.