Question about tire sizes
 

Hi Guys,

Been a silent searcher on the forum for years now, finally happy to say I am a new 911 owner!

I am looking at replacing the tires on my 1979 911SC. Wheel are 16x6 and 16x7 Fuchs currently with 205/55 and 225/50 Bridgestone RE71s all around.

I was looking into the Michelin Pilot Sport All Season A/S 3+

My question is regarding the sizes. I was thinking of doing a 215 square set up, does anyone have experience with this arrangement?

I'm looking for spirited driving on back roads and would love to explore the dynamics of the vehicle without being overwhelmed with high levels of grip. Hence the reason to stray away from the high performance summer tires.

Basically I want to have fun at slower speeds, which is why I am thinking a 215 section in the rear might be fun.

I'd love to hear anyones input on tire size along with any recommendations for which brand and model to go with!

I recommend stick with the factory correct setup you already have. It works very well for the car you have.

I ran the A/S 3 on my '84 Carrera in the factory staggered sizes. I'd recommend that setup highly. To say nothing about the fact that a 215 width on the front 6" wheels is not optimal at all.

I just put Pilot sport AS on my 88 911 and love them.

I have 7 & 8s and went with factory spec sizes.

AS are super quite and quite sticky.

Thanks for the initial replies guys!

Options are somewhat limited though, so I think I am going to go with the factory dimensions on the Pilot sport All seasons.

The tires that came with the car are "tired" to put it nicely, but I did enjoy feeling the car slide around and rotate. This is what is causing me to shy away from a high grip set up.

@Arne, what is less than optimal for the 215 on the 6" rim up front?

6" wheel is on the narrow side for a tire that wide. Will pinch it in and make it roll more, as if it had a softer sidewall.

he actually needs to provide more info about which specific 215 tire
215/55 x16 Like a Direzza DZ102 fits on a 6 to 7.5" wheel and as Arnie says will tend to be softer and squishier on a 6 than on a 7, it's also a bit tall at ~25.3". Both cause a performance loss compared to a 205/55 or 225/50 on 6 & 7
215/45 like a Falken RT615+ needs at least a 7 but would otherwise give better performance at either end
215/35 x16 like a Yokohama S.Drive also needs at least a 7 but gives even better performance

JMO but I'd stay w/ 205/55 or 205/50 front and 225/50 on 7 in back unless changing the wheels too.

@Bill, I was looking at the Michelin Pilot sport A/S3+.

It sounds like the factory set up is the way to go.

Any insight on these tires? I am not looking for maximum grip, looking for most fun.

If you need or want an A/S tire they seem to be well thought of.

I'd get 205/55 & 225/50 for you wheels

Elaborating on Bill's point -- A/S tires provide good traction at a greater temperature range than summer tires. If you plan to drive your 911 in temps below 40 degrees, A/S tires will provide significantly better traction than summer tires, which generally get quite hard at low temps.

Before I tried the michelin A/S 3+ tires, I found my previous all season tires (Pirelli p7000 all seasons, I believe) to be a poor choice for both spirited summer driving and any winter conditions and ran dedicated summer and winter tires for years. While the A/S 3+ are not good snow tires, I find them to be a better match than my prior Continental DW summer tires for spirited warm weather driving, great in cold conditions (wet and dry) and barely passable in snow/ice.

I

I won't be driving the car in the snow ever (just can't bring my self to expose the car to our heavily salted NJ roads).

My reasoning for leaving towards all seasons is that they might provide less grip and therefore allow for some more fun at lower speeds.

Would anyone have suggestions for summer tires that fit my need of maximum fun over maximum grip?