In short. A tyre rubs because the space it sweeps, through the whole travel of the suspension and the steering, is larger than the space it has. Five things change that: width (a rim half an inch wider makes the fitted tyre about 5 mm wider, according to Continental), the tyre's outside diameter, the offset (which moves the whole wheel in or out), the suspension (ride height, springs, load) and the steering lock (the wheel swings inside its arch). The mark tells you where to look: the wing edge, the arch liner, the strut or the brake caliper. Three tests find it: full lock each way, suspension compressed, car loaded. In Great Britain a tyre fouling part of the car is a major MOT defect, but only if it is touching at the time of the test, and a car must have wings that catch what the wheels throw up, so far as practicable. This guide gives no offset and no size: Onyx Forged does not recommend either, and no text we read sets a minimum gap between a tyre and the wing.
First: what has changed?
Rubbing that appears on a car that did not rub before has a cause that changed. In the order that is quickest to check:
- Wheels or tyres changed: size, width, offset, or a spacer added.
- Load. Our reading: a heavy load compresses the springs and brings the tyres closer to the body, on any car.
- Suspension lowered, or aged: a sagging or broken spring, a leaking damper, a worn top mount.
- Play in a wheel bearing, a ball joint or a bush lets the wheel move in its arch. Our reading; a garage checks it by rocking the wheel.
- An impact with a kerb or a pothole can bend a wheel, a suspension arm or a track rod, or push the arch liner in. A rim scraped on a kerb is a different problem: see our guide to alloy wheel repair.
- The arch liner itself: a loose clip or a liner pushed out of place can be what the tyre touches, with nothing wrong in the wheel.
The five causes
Width
A tyre's width is measured on a reference rim, the measuring rim. Continental's Technical Databook gives its widths for that rim and states that each half inch of extra rim width makes the tyre about 5 mm wider. Our reading: about 2.5 mm on each side, on top of whatever a wider tyre adds. How to read a tyre size explains the markings.
Outside diameter
Our reading: a tyre with a larger outside diameter rises nearer the top of the arch, by half the increase at the same ride height, so a tyre 20 mm larger in diameter sits 10 mm closer to the top of the arch and its liner. The difference between two sizes can be worked out with our tyre size calculator; what size wheels fit my car explains how a car's listed sizes are found.
Offset
Offset (ET) is the distance between the wheel's mounting face and the centre line of its rim; our guide to wheel offset has the diagrams and the arithmetic. At the same width, the whole wheel follows it. This is our geometry, one change at a time:
| Change | Outer side, towards the wing | Inner side, towards the strut and caliper |
|---|---|---|
| Offset lower by x mm | the wheel moves out by x mm: x mm less room at the wing | the wheel moves away by x mm: x mm more room |
| Offset higher by x mm | the wheel moves in by x mm: x mm more room at the wing | the wheel moves closer by x mm: x mm less room |
| Rim half an inch (12.7 mm) wider, same offset | the rim flange moves out by 6.35 mm; the fitted tyre's sidewall by about 2.5 mm | the rim flange moves in by 6.35 mm; the tyre's sidewall by about 2.5 mm |
| Spacer of t mm | as an offset lower by t | as an offset lower by t |
So rubbing is not a sign that an offset is "too low" or "too high" in itself: it depends on where your car has the least room, at the wing or at the suspension. The wheel offset calculator shows where the edges of one wheel sit compared with another; it compares, it does not recommend. Spacers are covered in our guide to wheel spacers.
Suspension
Our reading: ride height, the state of the springs and dampers, the load and the compression of the suspension change where the wheel sits vertically in its arch. A lowered car, a tired spring or a heavy load bring the tyre closer to the top of the arch. Rubbing that only happens over speed bumps, in hard corners or fully loaded is therefore a suspension question before it is a wheel question. Rubbing on one side only points to something uneven: a broken spring, a failed damper, a bent part.
Steering lock
Our reading: when you steer, the wheel pivots, and one part of the tyre swings towards the front or back of the arch and the liner while another swings towards the strut, an arm or the caliper; each front wheel does it the other way round. At full lock the tyre is where it never is in a straight line. Rubbing that only happens at full lock is therefore about width, offset or the steering stops, and testing with the wheels straight will not show it. The MOT manual notes that some cars have lock stops made of rubbing pads on the body that the front tyres may touch at full lock, and accepts them if they are maintained so that they do not damage the tyres.
Where it rubs, when, and what it usually means
Our reading, from the geometry of a wheel; no source we read publishes such a table.
| Where the mark is | When | What it usually means |
|---|---|---|
| Outer shoulder or sidewall against the wing edge | at full lock, or with the suspension compressed | wheel too far out for the arch: lower offset, wider rim or tyre, a spacer; or the car sits low |
| Inner sidewall against the strut, spring seat, an arm or the caliper | at full lock, or always | wheel too far in, or tyre too wide on the inner side: higher offset, width |
| Tread against the top of the liner or arch | over bumps, compressed | outside diameter too large, tired springs, a lowered or heavily loaded car |
| Rim spokes or inner barrel against the caliper | always, often with a scraping noise | inner contour of the wheel too close to the brake; balance weights too thick; see below |
| One side only | always on the same side | uneven suspension, a broken spring or failed damper, an impact |
| Only with snow chains or socks | when fitted | not enough clearance for the device: see our guide to snow chains and socks |
Find the contact point: three tests
- Full lock left, then right, car on level ground: look at where the tyre comes closest to the wing, the liner, the strut and the caliper. With the car raised, turn the wheel by hand and look for marks (with the car resting on axle stands, never on the jack alone): shiny or scuffed sidewall, rubbed paint, a polished patch on the liner.
- Suspension compressed: press down on the wing, or load the car as you use it; our reading: load reduces the clearance.
- Measure the gap at the tightest point. A snow chain maker describes two gaps to measure: between the tread and the nearest obstruction, and between the inner sidewall and the nearest obstruction. Add a third, between the outer sidewall and the edge of the wing. Our guide to snow chains explains the measurement.
The wheel against the brakes and suspension
A wheel can also touch on its inner side, through its spokes or its barrel, and that is a design question as much as a fitting one. UN Regulation No. 124, which sets the requirements for approving replacement wheels, asks that the inner contour of a wheel leave enough room for the brake, suspension and steering parts. When a replacement wheel's inner contour comes inside that of the car maker's wheel, a check is made with these clearances as a rule: 3 mm to brake parts (in the worst case, with new pads), 4 mm to suspension parts such as the arms, 4 mm to steering parts such as the track rod, and 2 mm between balance weights and the car (Annex 10, § 2.1). The regulation adds that smaller clearances already found on the car maker's own wheel can be accepted. These are criteria for approving a wheel, not limits a tester measures in service, and they say nothing about the gap between the tyre and the wing.
The same regulation asks that wheel fixings do not foul other components, such as the brakes (Annex 10, § 2.3). Our reading: if the scrape started after new brakes, new wheel bolts or new balance weights were fitted, look there first.
What to do
- Look at the tyre before driving far. If the contact has cut the sidewall, exposed the cords or raised a bulge, the tyre needs a professional's look before the car goes anywhere; our guide to slow punctures explains when a tyre can be repaired and when it cannot.
- Go back to the sizes the car maker lists, if the rubbing started after new wheels or tyres. Our reading: it is the route that raises the fewest questions at the MOT and with your insurer, who should be told about any modification.
- Have the suspension checked: springs, dampers, top mounts, bushes, and the play in the bearings and joints.
- Reduce or spread the load, if the contact only happens fully loaded.
- Put the arch liner back, if a clip has come loose or the liner has been pushed in, and check it is not damaged.
- Give the tyre its room back, one change at a time: a narrower tyre on the same rim (within the rim widths the tyre allows), or a different wheel. Each combination is a question of dimensions, to be settled with your car's measurements; Onyx Forged does not recommend sizes or offsets.
- Body changes (rolling or cutting the arches, limiting the steering lock): we found no text that governs them in Great Britain, and we do not set them out. What counts is the result: the wings must still do their job, and nothing may foul.
The MOT and UK law
| Text | What it says | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| MOT manual, 5.2.3 (f) | a tyre fouling a part of the vehicle: major | the item that fails a rubbing tyre |
| MOT manual, 5.2.3 guidance | contact due to tyre flexing or suspension movement is not a defect; reject only if the tyre is fouling at the time of the test | rubbing over bumps may pass the test and still damage the tyre |
| MOT manual, 5.2.3 guidance | lock stops made of rubbing pads on the body are acceptable if maintained so that they do not damage the tyres | some contact at full lock is by design |
| MOT manual, 5.3.3 (c)(ii) | a suspension component modified so that the suspension is inoperative or likely to foul other components: dangerous | lowering that makes parts touch |
| MOT manual, 5.3.1 and 5.3.3 | a missing bump stop rubber is not a reason for rejection | the test does not look for the cause |
| Construction and Use Regulations, regulation 63(2) | a car must have wings or similar fittings to catch, so far as practicable, mud or water thrown up by the rotation of its wheels | a wheel moved out can leave the arch behind |
| Construction and Use Regulations, regulation 100(1) | a vehicle and all its parts must at all times be in such condition that no danger is caused or is likely to be caused | a tyre being cut by the body is a danger |
The MOT items quote the MOT inspection manual, section 5; the last two rows quote regulation 63 and regulation 100 of the 1986 Regulations, which apply in England, Wales and Scotland. Our article on new forged wheels and the MOT sets out what else is checked. Outside Great Britain the rules differ, and we have not set them out here.
Common mistakes
| Mistake | Why it costs |
|---|---|
| Testing with the wheels straight | rubbing at full lock does not show |
| Blaming the offset without looking at the suspension | contact over bumps, or on one side only, usually starts with the suspension |
| Changing two things at once (wheel and tyre) | you no longer know which one gave the room back |
| Trusting an "ideal offset" table | the room depends on your car, at the wing and at the strut |
| Driving on without looking at the tyre | a cut sidewall cannot be seen from the driver's seat |
| Taking "it passed the MOT" as proof | the tester only fails a tyre that is touching at the time of the test |
Frequently asked questions
Why do my tyres rub only on full lock?
Because the wheel pivots: part of the tyre swings towards the arch and the liner, another towards the strut or the caliper, and at full lock it is where it never is in a straight line. Width, offset and the steering stops are the usual causes. Some cars have rubbing pads that the tyres are meant to touch at full lock.
Why do my tyres rub over bumps?
Because the suspension compresses and the tyre rises towards the top of the arch. Tired springs, a lowered or heavily loaded car, or a tyre with a larger outside diameter are the first things to check.
Can a wider wheel make my tyres rub?
Yes. At the same offset, a rim half an inch wider moves its flanges 6.35 mm out on each side, and the tyre grows about 5 mm in width according to Continental.
Does a lower offset make tyres rub?
It moves the wheel out towards the wing and can make it rub there; a higher offset moves it in, towards the strut and the caliper. In both cases what matters is the room on your car.
Will rubbing tyres fail the MOT?
A tyre fouling part of the vehicle is a major defect, but only if it is touching at the time of the test; contact caused by suspension movement or tyre flex is not a defect.
Is it safe to drive with tyres rubbing?
No text we read gives a tolerable gap. A tyre that is being cut by the body can fail; have it looked at before driving fast or far.
What is the minimum clearance between a tyre and the wing?
No text we read sets one. UN Regulation No. 124 gives clearances for approving a wheel against the brakes (3 mm), suspension (4 mm) and steering (4 mm), not for the tyre at the wing.
My wheel rubs on the brake caliper: what now?
Our reading: check that the wheel is the right one for the car, that nothing was changed in the brakes, and that no balance weight stands proud of the inner barrel. Stop driving the car until it is resolved: a scrape against the brakes is not something to live with.
Should I roll my arches?
We found no text that governs it, and we do not set it out. The wings must still do their job, and nothing may foul.
Made to measure: room under the arch decided before the wheel exists
When you order Onyx Forged wheels, you are not left to pick the offset, the width or the PCD on your own. Onyx Forged does not recommend sizes or offsets: the Onyx Forged design office compares the wheel's profile with the dimensions the car maker publishes for your car, taking into account how it sits and what brakes it has, and sets the comparison out to you in writing before anything goes into production, so the question of room under the arch is looked at before the wheel is made, not after. For the trade-off between a wide wheel, a low offset and clearance, read deep dish and concave wheels; for centring, hub-centric rings and centre bore. Onyx Forged is a French brand of made-to-order forged wheels, designed to JWL/VIA standards: see Onyx Forged and the catalogue.
Sources
- GOV.UK, MOT inspection manual, section 5: 5.2.3, 5.3.1 and 5.3.3.
- The Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986, regulation 63 and regulation 100.
- UN Regulation No. 124, replacement wheels: Annex 10, §§ 2.1 and 2.3.
- Continental, Technical Databook 2015-2016.
- Peerless, Limited clearance issues.
All pages were read on 15 October 2026.
The Onyx Forged design office.