Where to find 16" Tires?!

[thefaculty]

Where oh where can I find 16" rubber for my Fuchs? I really don't want to have to buy new rims, I love the Fuchs, nothing else ever seems quite right to me but I cannot find any rubber to fit these measurements:

Front 195 x 40 16
Rear 215 x 45 16

I feel certain that, as a newbie, I must be missing something because there are so many of you to there running 15's & 16's - where do you go? I have the wrong rubber installed by the PO and after a sweet suspension overhaul this is the last piece of the puzzle and we cannot find any new rubber to fit the existing wheels!

Any help GREATLY appreciated!!

...and before anyone castrates me for not searching the threads for this, I have and have found nothing so if there are threads her then annihilate me for my inability to use the search function of this forum, not for having not tried!

[sugarwood]

I see tires in both sizes on TireRack.
However, you might look at other sizes which are close.

TireRack also says this is the OEM for 1986 (same body, but 16" OEM)
F: 205/55-16
R: 225/50-16

Look for those sizes instead, tons of choices!
https://tinyurl.com/yazdweh3

[Flojo]

Originally Posted by thefaculty

Front 195 x 40 16
Rear 215 x 45 16

regular'd be

Front 205/50
Rear 225/50

either with 6&7 or 7&8

[thefaculty]

Thanks guys - perhaps my guy gave me the wrong measurements but yes - tire rack is where I am looking. I will checkout these measurements as well - thanks!!!!!

[Rtrorkt]

just tried to source Toyo T1R's, 225/50/16 and 245/45/16. Rears readily available, not so for the fronts. Tire Rack said they had them but when pressed said they would need to source them. After working the interweb, found two in Louisiana and two in Illinois. This may push me to 17's

[Cook&Dunning]

Also take a look at PMC tire in Quebec. I have always found them very competitive on price compared to paying duties / exchange from Tire Rack USA

[thefaculty]

Yes my mechanic is suggesting 17's. I honestly love the Fuchs and am struggling to fins a wheel I like at 17 (though I confess to not having looked with a lot of focus at this yet). The issue we have is that we have just overhauled teh suspension. The ride is amazing, it's a new car!!, but the rubber teh PO installed is wrong and fold over a lot when we push it through the corners, we are getting a lot of drift which is fun for him (he used to wrench for Porsche on the teams in Japan and Germany) but for me, I don't yet have the skills to pull that off so we really need to find a solid solution. I'm waiting to hear back on the new measurements given above to see if he gives the thumbs up on that and, if not, it's a new search for 17's.

If anyone has recos for 17's that would be great as it's looking likely. Before I get 100's of recon for the 52outlaws I will say I loved them momentarily. Seeing them in person they look a little plastic to me and I have heard they have had a few issues with cracks on track days. I do keep eyeballing the 003's

The Group 4 Campagnolos look great but are only available in 15's. The new Fuchs look great but a bit too slick/contemporary for a '79SC perhaps? Steelies only really work on an early 911. Oh man, now I am back on the 52outaw website - damn you Magnus!

[thefaculty]

Originally Posted by Cook&Dunning

Also take a look at PMC tire in Quebec. I have always found them very competitive on price compared to paying duties / exchange from Tire Rack USA

Thanks!!! Checking them out now!

[david.avrahami@]

You might want to search the 16" tires locally...you will save a bundle by avoiding shipping costs and duty from the US.
TRY www.quattrotires.com (FREE DELIVERY) or COSTCO (FULL SERVICE)

[thefaculty]

Originally Posted by david.avrahami@

You might want to search the 16" tires locally...you will save a bundle by avoiding shipping costs and duty from the US.
TRY www.quattrotires.com (FREE DELIVERY) or COSTCO (FULL SERVICE)

Brilliant!!! Thanks!!!!!

[mepstein]

amazon also carries a lot of tires with free shipping.

The 40 series tires would look like rubber bands on your wheels. Work for some cars but not a 30-40 year old porsche

[911pcars]

Maybe identifying the wheel size would help sourcing. The tire sizes you describe aren't typical for a 911. However, you may have your reasons.

Sherwood

[kyngfish]

F: 205/55-16
R: 225/50-16

I think those sizes are correct for the 6 and 7 fuchs and the 7 and 8 fuchs. I'm also shopping for tires, I live in florida, so I don't really need all seasons, so my summer tire options are:

Conti Extreme Contact Sport
Michelin A/S3 (all seasons, about to go on serious sale at Costco in October) - not getting them because I don't need all seasons, but I did price them out.
Firestone Firehawk Indy 500
BFG G Force Sport Comp 2
Bridgestone Potenza RE71R (a little more hardcore)
.......

There are a million others in between but those are the ones I see most recommended.

I'll probably end up with the Conti, which are all new compared to the old DW, and supposedly compare well with the Michelin Pilot Supersports which are supposed to be the very best all rounders. I don't track the car so... anyway. Those are the ones I see available in the 16 sizes...Hope that helps.

EDIT: Along with Tirerack.com check DiscountTireDirect - in my opinion, a very nice company.

[Arne2]

If you are planning to drive at low temperatures (less than 40°F/5°C), you may want to consider all-seasons. Summer tires can get a bit hard when cold. For all-season tires, the above-mentioned Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3+ are a great compromise.

[darrin]

Arne2 -agree, if your street car is dialed in to a point where the as3+ is the weak link, you have a WELL set up car -

[kyngfish]

Yeah. I should have looked where you were. If you drive in winter or even fall, the A/S 3 + are supposed to be IT.

Looks like you have Costco up there too. I think on Oct 12th or so they will be running a sale for 120 instant savings on a set of 4. They are usually priced at 130 or so each so that’s around 400 for a set of top notch tires. And if you want them installed there it’s cheap. Or get them installed elsewhere.

Just to add another option. The conti DWS is supposed to be good. Also the BF Goodrich Sport Comp 2 A/S thiougj I’ve done zero research on that tire.

[Flojo]

Originally Posted by Flojo

regular'd be

Front 205/50
Rear 225/50

either with 6&7 or 7&8

to complete that to avoid misunderstanding:

Front
6x16= 205/55
7x16= 205/55

Rear
7x16= 225/50
8x16= 225/50
9x16= 245/45 (!)

the 205/55 and 225/50 are widely spread common tires on many regular cars, like VW, Mercedes, etc.
Absolutely no stress finden these.

A full set of Conti Sport Contact M2 is less than EUR 500 incl. mounting

[DWeg1998]

My Porsche shop strongly recommended the Michelin Pilot Exalto PE2. I don’t know how they compare to the Conti BFG or other Summer performance tires.

[Flojo]

Michelin ist highest priced selling... your wallet.

[kyngfish]

I currently have the Exaltos, I'm not all that impressed. Plus the Press Release verbiage is hilarious.

"The Pilot Exalto PE2 is Michelin's Ultra High Performance Summer tire designed to raise both the status and performance of small sporty cars"

Because the most important thing to me, before performance is raising the status of my car.