Fuchs 16" vs. 15" Questions

[G50targa]

Hi all,
I have a question regarding 16" vs 15" fuchs for my 911.

I currently run a set of fuchs in 16x6's (fronts) and 16x7's (rear) with 205/55/16 and 225/50/16 tires, respectively. I have a set of 10mm spacers in the rear to fill out the wheel well. I believe that the ride height has been lowered to euro spec (or even lower?) by the previous owner.

Here are the pics of the car and the tires.







I recently picked up a set of mint 15" (7's & 8's) that I am thinking of mounting on my Carrera. I did a search on past posts and I understand that I will be faced with very limited pickin's for high performance 15" tires, but I really dig the width of the 7's and 8's (especially in the front) but don't want to spend the 1.5k+ for a set of 16x8's.

My question is as follows:

1) Does any one out there have pictures of their Porsche on 15x7x8? How do you like the 15" set up compared to the 16"s if you have tried both. If you could also indicate the tire size, it will be appreciated. The Used 911 book mentions that the 15x7x8 set up might be the best balanced (ompromise?) set up in terms of ride and handling.

2) If I do decide to go with the 15's, do you think I should get the standard 195/65/15 and 215/60/15 set up or should I go with 205/55/15 and 225/50/15?

3) Do you think that I will have to adjust the ride height and roll fenders to fit the 7's and 8's on the car? I am almost thiking that a set of 15" 205 and 225 will lower my car another inch (may be not a full inch but a little lower than the current set up) which might make it too low. The current set up does not rub fenders at all.

Any and all comments will be welcome on this matter. May be I should bite the bullet and spring for a pair of 16x8's....

Thanks in advance!

[Bill Verburg]

Originally Posted by G50targa

......
2) If I do decide to go with the 15's, do you think I should get the standard 195/65/15 and 215/60/15 set up or should I go with 205/55/15 and 225/50/15?

3) Do you think that I will have to adjust the ride height and roll fenders to fit the 7's and 8's on the car? I am almost thiking that a set of 15" 205 and 225 will lower my car another inch (may be not a full inch but a little lower than the current set up) which might make it too low. The current set up does not rub fenders at all.

Any and all comments will be welcome on this matter. May be I should bite the bullet and spring for a pair of 16x8's....

Thanks in advance!

2) for ride comfort go w/ 195/60 & 215/60, for performance go w/ 205/50 & 225/50
my '76 C3 came OE w/ 7 & 8 x15, 205/50 & 225/50. It was low, my size 12s wouldn't fit under the front lip spoiler. But the car handled great and there were almost no issues w/ driveway transitions like the later cars have.

the issue is, are the tires you want to use available in the sizes you want, if not you are much better off using your 16s. When I was in your shoes I bought 8x16s and later 9x16s for the back, but again at first only for the tires, then later for the brakes clearance.

3)no you don't need to adjust the rideheight unless you don't like what you see or feel, If you do adjust down be sure to use a bump steer kit.

[imcarthur]

Originally Posted by G50targa

1) Does any one out there have pictures of their Porsche on 15x7x8?

With 205/50-15 & 225/50-15. Pretty slammed in this picture from several years ago. I have raised the height a bit since then & it handles better. Toyo tires btw.



Ian

[ennisk1]

I prefer the 15x7 and 15 x 8 combo for a few reasons...

1) Less expensive tires. I use Toyo Proxies R888, not shaved. A great track tire that works for the street on a car that is not a daily driver and rarely sees rain.
2) I like the look. They look a bit more vintage in my eyes. I use a 205/50 in front and a 235/50 in rear.
3) I did not need spacers with this combo, have no rubbing issues (this car is low), and only rolled my fender lips.

I have a set of 15x9 Minilites for the rear on order that will work with the 235's and should fit without any mods as they are the correct offset.

[MOMO3.2]

Holy hell Keith!

Your car looks fantastic!

I have stated repeatedly that air cooled 911's look more correct, vintage, racey, mean, and unique with factory Fuchs. Wide 16" Fuchs look good, but damn, those 15's shout out RACE CAR to me. I freakin love them. The period correct diameter really distinguishes our cars from the current cartoony wagon wheel size rim trend we see today.

Great car.

Mike

[JeremyD]

15 x 7 and 15 x 8 when I first got the car



16 x 8 and 16 x 9 now...

[G50targa]

the issue is, are the tires you want to use available in the sizes you want, if not you are much better off using your 16s?

A quick search on a popular tire site, these are my only choices in terms of 15"

195/65; 215/65 = Pirelli P6000 only
205/55; 225/50 = BFGoodrich g-Force Sport

Between the two and the price related to the choices, I would be leaning towards the BFGoodrich.

[G50targa]

Originally Posted by imcarthur

With 205/50-15 & 225/50-15. Pretty slammed in this picture from several years ago. I have raised the height a bit since then & it handles better. Toyo tires btw.

Thanks for the photo. I am afraid that my car will also have a slammed look after 15" 205/225 set up just like yours. Will most likely have to raise the car a bit after this set if used, I think.

[G50targa]

Wow Keith,
I agree with MOMO, your car looks increadible with that set up. I love the look of the 7" in the front.

[G50targa]

Originally Posted by JeremyD

15 x 7 and 15 x 8 when I first got the car



16 x 8 and 16 x 9 now...

JeremyD,
Thanks for your photos. That is exactly what I was looking for. I am having a hard time envisioning how the 15" will look on my car.
Thanks!

[svb]

I pondered the same setups for my narrow body 85 Carrera and ended up with brand new 16x9's with 245 tire with the standard non-rolled rear fender on a lowered car and there is still plenty of room.

PS....not only were 16x9's easier to find (I wanted brand new Fuchs), I also found they were actually cheaper than the 16x8's.....not sure why...maybe more 9's are out there for the turbos and widebody cars.

Good Luck!

[imcarthur]

Originally Posted by G50targa

A quick search on a popular tire site, these are my only choices in terms of 15"

195/65; 215/65 = Pirelli P6000 only
205/55; 225/50 = BFGoodrich g-Force Sport

Between the two and the price related to the choices, I would be leaning towards the BFGoodrich.

There is life beyond 'that' tire site.

This is a CDN site that gives you a few more options. I'm not suggesting you buy from them, but they do list tires that Tire Rack do not carry. Tire Rack are just a dealer & don't carry all brands.



I use the T1-R very happily. Toyo also have an R1R - halfway between a track & a street tire - that is trickling out in various sizes & they claim they will have them in 205 & 225 50 series soon.

Ian

[arerrac]

15 x 7 - 8 on my daily driver. Lowered below euro. Toyo Proxis 4 All Season Ultra High Performance 205 50 15 & 225 50 15.

Great at the Autocross!

-W

[911st]

Just my opinion but 205/50/15's are just to small and do not look right. For a race car, maybe.

A 205/55 is ok but a 205/50 is small.

For reference your 16's are about 25", 225/50/15's and 205/55/15's are at 24" and 205/50/15's are at 23". That is a significant difference from what you are running and what was stock diameter for that year.

There are very few makers of the 205/55 and a matching 225/50. Federal Tire dose as dose BFGoodrich g-Force Sport but that is almost it.

I ran all 225/50's on my 72S and the fender to tire clearance looked fine but still had to get the height right and there was not much ground clearance under it. One could not go over a parking lot speed bump with out rubbing the bottom and fearing of getting stuck.

Me, I would run all 225's on the 7&8's with the spacers in the back. Yes, there are those that insist you need a stagger. You are already running 225's on your 7's and you with the new set up you are going to go with one on your 8" anyway.

Actually, if I was going to run 15's I would run the Toyo R888's 235/225's but that is more of a track tire.

There are those that feel strongly toward a 225/205 but I have seen enough people running all 225's on 7&8's to support that is works well on the street and the track.

Basically, the 6/7/16's are better street rims and 7/8/15's better race rims.

Good luck.

[AVIMAX]

Here's a few more photos for your reference. 15" x 7" and 15" x 8" I think. I know they are 15s, just not 100% sure if they are 7" and 8". They are original from 1986. Tires are 195-65-15 and 205-60-15. I agree with 911st that a 205-50 is not the right look for the front. Tire diameter is too small and does not fill the wheel well. The stock tire sizes result in 24.99" diameter in the front and 25.16" in the rear.

At first when I got the car, I didn't like the 15s and was planning to go to 16s, but now after the summer, the 15s have grown on me and seem to look right with the larger sidewall tires, more period correct, matching the car. But that's just my opinion.

[AVIMAX]

Oh, forgot to mention in my post, car is obviously lowered, about 3/4" below euro height. No rubbing issues, no spacers.

[Oregon Cab]

[QUOTE=G50targa;4269614]"Hi all,
I have a question regarding 16" vs 15" fuchs for my 911.

I currently run a set of fuchs in 16x6's (fronts) and 16x7's (rear) with 205/55/16 and 225/50/16 tires, respectively. I have a set of 10mm spacers in the rear to fill out the wheel well. I believe that the ride height has been lowered to euro spec (or even lower?) by the previous owner. but I really dig the width of the 7's and 8's (especially in the front) but don't want to spend the 1.5k+ for a set of 16x8's. "
---------------

Here is my Batmobile with 7x16s Front AND Rear running 205-55 and 225-50 no spacers. If you space the rears and run 7s up front you can save the thousands for the 8s and tires. No small deal in my book. And the car still drives like a bat out of hell.

q: at what spacer width can I 'comfortably' avoid new studs without going to adapters on my rear 7s. Worthwhile?