Michelin TB 15 tires

myslateblue911 · 03-04-2018, 06:43 PM

Pelicanites,

I am running 15" fuchs (7's & 8's) on my 83' SC. There are some Michelin TB 15's available at Coker tire that I saw someone running on their RSR project who are also running 15" fuchs (their 15's however are 9's & 11's).

Any feedback or experience anyone can offer on the Michelin TB 15 and its possible application for my car would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

brujo65 · 03-04-2018, 07:31 PM

you can run

18/60 - 15 TB 15 215/55 R 15 79 V 612 6 to 7,5 inches ( front + Rear )
23/62 - 15 TB 15 270/45 R 15 86 V 625 8,5 to 10,5 inches ( Rear )

G50911 · 03-04-2018, 08:35 PM

anyone got pics of the 18/60 on a 15x7? or any of these sizes mounted?

dwelle · 03-04-2018, 09:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by G50911

anyone got pics of the 18/60 on a 15x7? or any of these sizes mounted?

that's a lot of tire for a 7" wheel.

i'm building a '73 rsr now and will run the 18/60 on the front on 9x15's. i'm sure it would work on an 8, not sure it will even fit on a 7"...

Bill Verburg · Bill Verburg's Garage

TB15
18/60 is ~24.1" tall, 8.8" section width on a 7 and wants a 6 to 7.5" wheel, no way it can be used on a 9

23/62 is ~24.6" tall, 11" section width on a 9 and wants an 8.5 to 10.5" wheel, best fit for an SC/Carrera flare is a 9ET15 or 9.5ET19

there is also a 265/40 x15 @23.2" tall, 10.6" s/w on a 9, and wants a 8.5 to 10.5" wheel

There are also
26/61(295/40) & 29/61(335/35) which are way too big for SC/Carrera

Bill Verburg · Bill Verburg's Garage

Just a FYI
18/60 is 225/50 x15
23/62 is 270/45 x15

If you are still trying to get a better ride and more ground clearance than you have w/ the 205/50 and 225/45's on 7 & 8 you have few options
opt1 205/55 & 225/50 which doesn't seem to be commonly available
opt2 195/65 & 215/60 P6000 & maybe some others, again hard to find these
opt 3 go back to 16s

the 2 things that provide comfort and ground clearance are
higher profile tire 60 instead of 50 on a narrower wheel ie 6 instead of 7
taller side wall which is the result of profile and width increases

panzerfaust · 03-05-2018, 06:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by myslateblue911

Pelicanites,

I am running 15" fuchs (7's & 8's) on my 83' SC. There are some Michelin TB 15's available at Coker tire that I saw someone running on their RSR project who are also running 15" fuchs (their 15's however are 9's & 11's).

Any feedback or experience anyone can offer on the Michelin TB 15 and its possible application for my car would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Quote:

Originally Posted by dwelle

that's a lot of tire for a 7" wheel.

i'm building a '73 rsr now and will run the 18/60 on the front on 9x15's. i'm sure it would work on an 8, not sure it will even fit on a 7"...

plenty of guys running 18/60 on 9's. i feel 8's are probably right size for them despite michelins recent recommendation for 7.5 max.

the factory group 4 stratos and 308 gtb rallye cars having a plethora of wheel sizes to from ranging from 4" to 12" x15, they chose to run 18/60 up front on 8" wide wheel. they have been using this shared coffin spoke wheel/tire combo size for 40 years annually with vintage rallying revivals without issues. most of us wouldnt probably never put our cars through the harsh condition of rallying

ive work with michelin directly and have designed tread patterns for them. the engineers says the reason they are conservative on max rim size now even though they are using the same molds of the tire oppose to the past is that with warranty claims they may be liable to pay for your wheel if its damaged. curbing sidewalks, car washes and potholes are protected better with a thinner rim. 8s are great imo and i havent heard of running issues with the 9's as of yet. paul u heard of any issues with the 9's?

G50911 · 03-05-2018, 06:30 AM

Quote:

Just a FYI
18/60 is 225/50 x15

i thought they were 215/55-15?

panzerfaust · 03-05-2018, 06:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by G50911

i thought they were 215/55-15?

i believe Michelin's translation from racing nomenclature 18/60 were 215/55.

the actual measurements of the TB is closer to 225/50 15. this is not uncommon for the manufactures to have measurements that differ from their listings.

dwelle · 03-05-2018, 08:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bill Verburg

TB15
18/60 is ~24.1" tall, 8.8" section width on a 7 and wants a 6 to 7.5" wheel, no way it can be used on a 9

23/62 is ~24.6" tall, 11" section width on a 9 and wants an 8.5 to 10.5" wheel, best fit for an SC/Carrera flare is a 9ET15 or 9.5ET19

there is also a 265/40 x15 @23.2" tall, 10.6" s/w on a 9, and wants a 8.5 to 10.5" wheel

There are also
26/61(295/40) & 29/61(335/35) which are way too big for SC/Carrera

i have seen a few RSR builds that run 9 & 11 x 15 that run TB15's in 18/60-15 and 26/61-15. am i mistaken there? fit looked good on these cars...

NickP · 03-05-2018, 09:02 AM

on my ST build I'm running the TB 15's and they are fantastic. Soft compound so 1) they won't last long and 2) they throw a lot of rocks up.

15 X 8 Fuchs up front 18/60-15 tires
15 X 9 Fuchs in back 23/62-15 tires

Fitment is great, the stance and look all work:

Bill Verburg · Bill Verburg's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by dwelle

i have seen a few RSR builds that run 9 & 11 x 15 that run TB15's in 18/60-15 and 26/61-15. am i mistaken there? fit looked good on these cars...

Michelin specs 18/60 for a 6.0" - 7.5" wheel I've used wheels up you .5" wider than spec and been ok w/ it but 1.5" is way too much.

when mounted on a 7 they measure 224mm(8.8") in section width. The actual installed spec on a 7 is 224/46 x15

26/61 is a good match for 18/60 in height and fits well on an 11. It is spec'd for 10" - 11.5" wheel and measures 10"(288mm) when mounted on a 10. Installed spec on an 11 is 288/36 x15

the combination of 224/46 & 288/36 has a pretty wide rear biased spread and is appropriate for a very strong motor, not so much for the typical 2.7 - 3.2 where a spread of 20 to 30 is more usual. The extra rear spread induces understeer, which would need to be dialed back w/ T-bars and S-bars

G50911 · 03-05-2018, 10:06 AM

looks great nickp! any chance we can see a close up of the fronts? side, profile and 3/4 shot?

NickP · 03-05-2018, 10:23 AM

here are a few, I dont have exactly what you asked for:

G50911 · 03-05-2018, 10:29 AM

these work! thanks and she's a beauty

NickP · 03-05-2018, 10:38 AM

Thanks. They were a tight squeeze in the rear and I don't have the ride height too low but that's mostly to keep me from scraping on steep driveways etc. So far I have put 5200 miles on them with two upcoming track days ahead (Streets of Willows and Thermal). I'll bet the rears are toast by 8,000 miles. Just checked Longstone for pricing and $2200 to San Diego (they ship for free) was the number. Not cheap, but they are worth it to me, plus there aren't too many 15" choices in this kind of tire available.

panzerfaust · 07:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NickP

here are a few, I dont have exactly what you asked for:

if those are 8's in front looks like one can go 8.5 or even to 9 too me... rim flange still very much inboard of the tire section

your car looks fantastic on TB's btw

dwelle · 03-05-2018, 12:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bill Verburg

TB15
18/60 is ~24.1" tall, 8.8" section width on a 7 and wants a 6 to 7.5" wheel, no way it can be used on a 9

23/62 is ~24.6" tall, 11" section width on a 9 and wants an 8.5 to 10.5" wheel, best fit for an SC/Carrera flare is a 9ET15 or 9.5ET19

there is also a 265/40 x15 @23.2" tall, 10.6" s/w on a 9, and wants a 8.5 to 10.5" wheel

There are also
26/61(295/40) & 29/61(335/35) which are way too big for SC/Carrera

ok, this is interesting.

both of these cars are running 9 & 11 x 15's with 18/60 front and 26/61 rear. the first is the most recent car dave kealoha built.

in your opinion, are these not appropriate?...

myslateblue911 · 03-05-2018, 05:43 PM

Mr Verburg,

So I gather your options # 1 & 2 are not covered by the Michelin TB 15 available at Coker tire?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bill Verburg

Just a FYI
18/60 is 225/50 x15
23/62 is 270/45 x15

If you are still trying to get a better ride and more ground clearance than you have w/ the 205/50 and 225/45's on 7 & 8 you have few options
opt1 205/55 & 225/50 which doesn't seem to be commonly available
opt2 195/65 & 215/60 P6000 & maybe some others, again hard to find these
opt 3 go back to 16s

the 2 things that provide comfort and ground clearance are
higher profile tire 60 instead of 50 on a narrower wheel ie 6 instead of 7
taller side wall which is the result of profile and width increases

Bill Verburg · Bill Verburg's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by dwelle

ok, this is interesting.

both of these cars are running 9 & 11 x 15's with 18/60 front and 26/61 rear. the first is the most recent car dave kealoha built.

in your opinion, are these not appropriate?...

I have no opinion

The Michelin tire engineers do, the spec TB15 18/60 for a 6.5" to 7.0" wheel

Others may have different opinions