What wheels work best on a 77 911 (non flared fenders)

[blau911]

Hoping to find out more info about wheel and tire sizes on the mid year cars.
For example, was the standard set-up Fuchs 6 x 15's all around or 6 x 15's in front and 7 x 15's in back? Do 7 x 15's fit in back w/out any flares? If so, which tire sizes? Also, wondering if going with a set of 6x16 front and 7x16's in back would be better? I have an extra set of those.
Any thoughts from the guys with mid-ies greatly appreciated.

[OSC911]

Hi
I have 1976 narrow body with 15 x 7 Fuchs. Looks great although I really would like the 15 x6 to achieve the period look. I can post some photos tomorrow if you like.

[blau911]

Yes, please do. Thanks

Originally Posted by OSC911

Hi
I have 1976 narrow body with 15 x 7 Fuchs. Looks great although I really would like the 15 x6 to achieve the period look. I can post some photos tomorrow if you like.

[Coloradocurt]

Just a thought, but you might want to factor in the availability of good-handling tires. I believe there's a much greater selection in 16" diameter than the 15's.

[Knockdown]

There are lots of variables to consider, ride height, suspension, camber, actual tire profile, wheel offset. I believe 6x15 all around was standard. I have 195-65r15 front and 215-60r15 on my 6” Fuchs for street driving. For autocross, I have 205-50r15 on 6” front and 7” rear cookies. My car is lowered, 21/28 torsion bars, 1.5 deg camber front, 2.2deg camber rear. 7” wheels with the 7R offset have been mentioned to work in the rear without a lot of camber, but you may need spacers to clear the spring plate. Options for 16” wheels seem to be declining. I’m just up the road from you!

[IROC]

Originally Posted by Coloradocurt

Just a thought, but you might want to factor in the availability of good-handling tires. I believe there's a much greater selection in 16" diameter than the 15's.

This is an excellent point. At this point in time, there are quite a few good 225/45-15 tires out there which IMHO would be a great combo to run on a non-flared '77 with 7x15s all around. We run 225/45-15s on our race car and keep an eye on selection and availability, but there are still some very good tires out there in that size.

Huge caveat, though - once one deviates from the tried and true fitments (a 195 or 205 on a 6" wheel) it is hard to definitively say what fits and what doesn't.

[Bill Verburg]

Originally Posted by blau911

Hoping to find out more info about wheel and tire sizes on the mid year cars.
For example, was the standard set-up Fuchs 6 x 15's all around or 6 x 15's in front and 7 x 15's in back? Do 7 x 15's fit in back w/out any flares? If so, which tire sizes? Also, wondering if going with a set of 6x16 front and 7x16's in back would be better? I have an extra set of those.
Any thoughts from the guys with mid-ies greatly appreciated.

std depended in the market and model
5.5 x15, or 6 x15 would have been std except on the Carrera versions, most non Carrera models would have had 6 x15 ET36.

Here's a look at several possible options

[nathanbs]

Originally Posted by Bill Verburg

std depended in the market and model
5.5 x15, or 6 x15 would have been std except on the Carrera versions, most non Carrera models would have had 6 x15 ET36.

Here's a look at several possible options

At what point were 16”s standard? I know they started to appear in ‘77 right?

[Bill Verburg]

Originally Posted by nathanbs

At what point were 16”s standard? I know they started to appear in ‘77 right?

None of the '70s n/b cars came w/ 16 only the '77 Carrera had them as an option

By '78 all 911 were SC(there were no n/b cars), these had 6 ET36 & 7ET23.3 x16 as optional tires, 6ET36 & 7ET23.3 x15 were std

[ADDvanced]

I went with 17X7 Euromeisters. Cheap, and then I could get some nice tires. Car looks great. My car is a 77:

[nathanbs]

Originally Posted by Bill Verburg

None of the '70s n/b cars came w/ 16 only the '77 Carrera had them as an option

By '78 all 911 were SC(there were no n/b cars), these had 6 ET36 & 7ET23.3 x16 as optional tires, 6ET36 & 7ET23.3 x15 were std

Oh I didn’t know that. Thank you

[dwelle]

i run 6 & 7 x 15 fuchs on my '76 with 205/55-15 all around. yokohama s-drives. when i finished the car i initially put RE71's on in 205/50-15. while they were nice and sticky, ultimately they were too short for highway gearing and i had to lower the car too far for what is a daily driver for me. car is set up with 21/28 TB's, big sways, and a good corner balance. i flog it regularly in the hills and it rips with this set up. my 914-6 has RE-11's on it, and i can say the yokohama's give me plenty of traction for spirited runs...

[75 911s]

911R setup

[eastbay]

7x15 Fuchs all around is a great look, I used 195/60 Potenzas.

Currently running 7x15 Cookies with the same size tires.

[manbridge 74]

15s are better gearing wise and there are plenty of decent tires for 6 and 7 inch rims. Thank you Spec Miata!

[Inkblot]

I'm running 6 and 7x15s, 205/60 fr and 215/60 rear on my '75. Just got the new shoes on yesterday, and so far so good... I was initially worried about the 215s rubbing in the rear (previous owner had 7x16 225s, which rubbed like crazy), but no issues on my first shakedown run.

I had a hard time finding a matched set of tires in those sizes. Most of the online sources make it a real PITA to find a staggered set, so I'd find some 215s I'd like, but then have to search again to find that I couldn't get matching 205s (and vice versa). I finally landed on Falken Ziex ZE950s; not exactly track-day tires, but hopefully a decent (and certainly affordable) all-season option.

Regarding sources, I was really disappointed with TireRack's options- I thought they were the go-to place. You can order direct (or through a local distributor) for a lot of the specialty tires (Michelin Tb's, etc.). There's also quite a bit available, including some discontinued sized tires (what I presume to be NOS) on Amazon- just search by tire size and see what comes up. I didn't want to spend $300 per tire before having a better idea of what would fit, and I ended up finding a good deal at my local Wheel Works store on the Falkens.

I was originally hoping to copy Duane's approach with 7r replicas, spacers and 225s (which looks absolutely awesome!), but I've got some hard oil lines which would interfere- I'm only just clearing with the stock offset. Duane's whole project thread is amazing, and pretty much a must-read for any middie owner looking to modify their ride. Check out page 12 for how he begins to fit those 225s:

Born in '75. Me and my 'new' 911s.

As others have mentioned, your options for tires increase significantly with larger diameter rims. For me, I really wanted to maintain that classic, stock look of the 15s with meaty sidewalls.

Good luck!

Jake