Proper tyre sizes on 7" & 8" x 15" Fuchs
 

Please can someone advise on tyre sizes for the 7" & 8" x 15" Fuchs on my Carrera 3.0.

My handbook and other sources quote 205 and 225 x 50 profile front and back respectively, but the PO has put 60 profile tyres on (215 rear) which ride OK, but look somewhat tall!

What is factory correct, what are the options, what are the pros and cons?

Many thanks.

If you look at the history of that body style you will see that in '73(first year) they specified 185/70 on 6or7x15 frt & 215/60 on 7or8x15 rear. This was before 50/45/40/35 series tires became widely available. Many owners updated on their own to 205/50 frt and 225/50 rear. Eventually 245/50 became available and some people used them. I have also seen 215/60 frt and 235/55 rear used. The best thing to do is look at the specs(Tire rack is great for one stop comparisons) of available tires.

There is a wide range of tires that can be used, all the way up to massive 245/40x17 and 275/40x17(even larger in 18)

Tire rack provides a table with dimensions of each tire they sell. So you can compare diameter, tread width and cross section of any tire and size you might consider. Different brands/models of tire do measure differently for a given stated dimension.

They also provide the acceptable range for rim width and the recommended rim width. Again, same size tires vary on rim size.

Both sets you mention were used, but the 185/70 & 215/60 sizes were used for a much longer period ... through late '87 or '88 on Carrera 3.2's. Some people don't like the 'look' of 50-series tires on 15" wheels. So, some have said that was why the factory went to 16" wheels.

The variety and availability of performance tire in 15" sizes is declining, but one of my my favorite combinations was the 215/60 & 235/60 CN-36's used on the RS 3.0 ... the 'look was perfect, and there never has been a better all-around performing tire since!

Proper tyre sizes on 7" & 8" x 15" Fuchs
 

Many thanks to all contributors. I will probably run the 60 profile tires over the summer and get the last 5mm out of them. This should give me a few months at summer PCGB shows to check out what people are using and to decide on the look I want.

Al G

Warren, any idea where you can still get the CN-36's? I've been on a quest for 185/70 in any brand and it seems I'll have to got to Europe and have a Yoko shipped in.