Tire sizing for staggered phone-dials

[Mex]

I bought a set of used phone dials (15x6 front, 15x7 rear) off ebay a few days ago with the intention of using them as snow tires on the 911. Everything I've read seems to say that 195/65 was the standard size tire for the 924S the wheels came off of, but I haven't found any info on my setup specifically. Has anybody done this before and know what size to use?

[msterling]

195/65-15 for the front sounds right. 215/60-15 for the back. Firestone and General make snows in those sizes. I didn't see any others on Tire Rack but there are probably other manufacturers that have those sizes. You could use 195/65-15 on all four with no problems but the handling might be a little better with the staggered setup.

[Mex]

Ok, 215/60 makes sense. I was planning on going with General Altimax Arctics, so that should work perfectly. Thanks

[Jay H]

My '84 was equipped with 15" phone dials as original equipment and were not replaced by the optional (at the time) Fuchs 16" rims. According to the tire placard on the rear/engine tin, the original sizes for 15's on a 3.2 Carrera were:

185/70 15 Front
215/60 15 Rear

The 185/70 15" size is very hard to source, so the much more common 195/65 size is used for a replacement. It's a bit shorter in overall diameter than the 185/70. I've been using a 195/65 on my fronts for years with no adverse affects.

This thread is about snow tires, but for others interested in 15" sizes, Pirelli is again making the performance summer P6000 in the 185/70 15 size (with a matching 215/60 for the rear) with a Porsche approved "N2" rating in case you wish to return to original factory 15" sizes.

The Tire Rack does not carry the 185/70 15 in this Pirelli, but local Pirelli dealers seem to be able to order them. A Google search brings up a bunch of hits for this new 185 width tire.

[Jay H]