How to Draw a Tire

Have you ever wanted to draw a car tire? I’m a person who’s not the best in drawing but still want to draw the things I’m passionate about. Cars are one of them, so I’ve learned how to draw different parts of a car - like a tire.

Are you on the same page with me, and now want to learn how to draw a tire? Well then, let me show you.

How to Draw a Tire?

You can draw a tire from 3 possible angles - front view, side view, and from an angle where you can see the rim too, along with the front design of the rubber.

Drawing from the front and side view is comparatively easier, so let's get started with them. After you've drawn those, it'll be easier for you to draw from the more difficult angle.

Drawing a Tire from the front

To draw the tire from the front view, the first step is to mark the width of the tire. For this, make two slightly arched lines (top & bottom) that face to one another- and the distance between them is supposed to portray the height of the tire.

The width and height of the tire should match one another. Don’t draw a tire that is so wide but so short, or so narrow but so tall - it’ll look unrealistic.

The next step is to draw the walls. For that, connect the two arches in a way so that one end of an arch connects with the same end of another arch. The walls are supposed to look like they’re parallel to each other.

It’s quite straightforward to understand that the wall lines are in no way supposed to intersect each other - so draw in that fashion.

After that, you need to draw the vertical lines. Draw 2 or 3 lines that look parallel to the walls. These lines represent the tread design of the tire.

Then you should draw the small horizontal lines connecting those vertical lines. These lines represent the other tread design of the tire. So you should draw them in a way that you want the tire to look like.

Drawing the Tire from Side View

Drawing the tire from the side view is also quite straightforward. To start with, you need to draw two circles.

One circle represents the circumference of the tire. After that, draw another circle within that circle, which represents the circumference of the rim. The distance between the represents the thickness of the tire, so draw accordingly.

After we’re done bordering the tire and the rim, now it’s time to draw the spokes of the rim to give it our desired look. But before that, draw another very small circle in the middle which represents the center of the tire where the axles are connected to it.

Surrounding that small circle, draw five even smaller circles with the same distance between all of them - these represent the bolts that keep the tires and the axle connected.

Alright, now to draw the spokes, connect the center circle with the rim circle with two close parallel lines. These two lines together are supposed to look like one spoke. Draw a few of these to represent the other spokes.

And the pattern to draw those is quite up to you. Give the rim your desired look. Do some tweaks here and there and give the design some realistic looks. Be detailed to make the design shine, and don’t forget to take care of all the mistakes.

The Side-ish Angle

This seemed to be the most difficult angle to me to draw the tire. However, it’s not really impossible, right? We’ll find out.

We'll have to start with drawing the sidewalls of the tire. For that, we need to draw two egg-like ellipse shapes, one within another. These two ellipse shapes represent the outer and inner sidewall of the tire. The distance between them represents the thickness of the rubber tire.

Then it’s kind of a cylinder from there. Echo the outer ellipse from a distance that’ll represent the width of the tire.

Reach to the bottom, and draw two parallel straight-ish lines on the top and bottom to connect with the outer ellipse with this new shape. There should be a slight curve on these straight-ish lines, at the two ends of it.

Now draw a half-ellipse on the right side of the pre-drawn inner ellipse that outlined the rim. This will show the depth of the rim.

Now draw a little ellipse shape in the middle but it should be slightly moved towards the right side. This is to show the center of the wheel that connects with the axle. You can put whatever logo on it.

Again, draw a few smaller circles around them to show the bolts.

Now, in between the spaces of the bolts, draw V-shapes that almost connects to the inner ellipse. 

The closed side of the V-shape should find themselves between the space created by two bolts, whereas the spreaded side of the V-shape will be connecting to the inner ellipse. This will create the spokes.

You may draw one parallel line to appropriate legs of the V-shape, and within the V-shape, to create the depth of the spokes.

Now it's time to create the tread design. Well, it's quite simple. Draw a line exactly between the outermost border and the outer ellipse that we drew at the very beginning. This represents the center horizontal line.

Draw a few vertical lines within those borders and that middle lines. Start at one border, and make your way to the middle. They should be in an inclined angle to the outer border.

Reverse the angle as you reach the middle and has to reach the other border. Draw these vertical lines from top to bottom to create the tread design.

To provide some finishing touch, take your darker pencil and redraw the borders. Then do a few sketching in the appropriate places to highlight the shadows, and you’re done.

Wrapping up - How to Draw a Tire!

Now you have to the know-how of how to draw a tire. Remember that drawing is a creative thing and there's always scope to insert your creativity, so don't be afraid to do that.