need quick tire size advice!

bigchillcar · bigchillcar's Garage

hey,
time to change my 'slicks'...would like some advice here.

i've got 185/70/15 yokohamas mounted all around, but wonder if i could put 205's on...if so, would i need 205/70/15? a tire guy says for the same height i have now, i would actually need 205/60/15.

anyway, i'm also going to look at some kumho tires...you gotta love the name...

certainly the 205's should improve handling to some degree, but i've often wondered, does a wider tire affect acceleration in any way?

thanks in advance for input. i'll check messages when i get to work in a little while...hopefully someone can help me decide some course of action for this afternoon.

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avendlerdp · avendlerdp's Garage

My 1970 t uses 205/60 15's. You will love them. Alex

cegerer · cegerer's Garage

I think the closest you can get to the original size is 195/65 15. These will be close to the original tire diameter of 25.8 inches. I'm running Pirelli P6000V's in this size on 6 inch wheels.

This is all assuming you don't want to buy vintage 185/70 15 Michelin XWX's for $250-$300 each! -- Curt

NYSCAR · 03-07-2002, 08:34 AM

I currently have 205/60-15's on my car right now. They fit just fine under the wheel wells, not sure how much of a handling advantage they provide though. There's more rubber, but I do notice the sidewalls 'bow' a little bit more on my stock rims, which could possibly have an adverse effect on handling.

Brad

Reg · 03-07-2002, 09:17 AM

205 60 15 on my AVS yoko's here, and no problems!

Curt do you like the p6000's?

pwd72s · 03-07-2002, 10:26 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by cegerer
I think the closest you can get to the original size is 195/65 15. These will be close to the original tire diameter of 25.8 inches. I'm running Pirelli P6000V's in this size on 6 inch wheels.

This is all assuming you don't want to buy vintage 185/70 15 Michelin XWX's for $250-$300 each! -- Curt

Just wanted to 2nd this post...195/65 as close as you'll get to original diameter..

Jack Olsen · 11:21 AM

Here's a good tire size calculator:

http://toy4two.home.mindspring.com/tire.html

You enter in the original tire size, then a target width and diameter for what you want. It then shows you the sizes, and percentage difference it will mean on your speedo. And if you click on a particular size, it will show what tires TireRack.com carries in that size.

In your case, it's these.

cegerer · cegerer's Garage

I don't know if I like the P6000 - it's the only tire I've had on the car so there's nothing to compare it to!! I can say they seem to wear good. -- Curt

bigchillcar · bigchillcar's Garage

gentlemen,
thank you for all your input...as it turned out, due to a dsl 'connection issue' i wasn't able to retrieve your comments until late tonight, forcing me to make my own call on this.

since i'm much more of a basic daily driver who simply enjoys twisties on the weekend or going home from work, i decided to buy a touring tire as close to my original profile height of 185/70/15. i bought a set of four kumho (pronounced like it looks i'm afraid) 732 touring plus, speed rated to 118 mph...i spend greater than 99% of my time below that...except for my time crossing the interstate 430 river bridge...

anyway, i had to decide between 215/60/15 and 205/60/15. since the 215 matched the 185's best in height and i thought i might enjoy the wider look and feel, i went with the 215's. granted i've got a '74 911 with 150 hp and not an 's' or a 'carerra', so i hope it isn't too much for it. the wheels are the 6" variety...these 215's are definitely as wide as i would want to go without going to 7" or 8" wheels...

the tires feel and look great...like wearing new shoes! the car seems to feel more stable on the road and are no problem to steer, even parallel parking. i do notice that the steering characteristics have changed at speed...i was tending to oversteer a bit initially...seems to require less steering inputs in corners now and sticks to the road better.

anyone else have experience with 215's all the way around? i had thought about putting 205's in front until i remembered that rotating wouldn't exactly be an option!

jack...thanks for the tire size calculator! i ran it and was delighted to find that the tires i bought actually turned out to be the best replacement, matching closest to my old ones in diameter, error, revolutions, etc...made me a bit more secure in my choice seeing that!

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