tire size question

[Enrique]

I'm deciding on what size tires to buy for my recently purchased Fuchs alloys. I plan on 195x60 or 195x50. What are the advantages/disadvantages? Will 50s affect my speedo readings? Eventually I plan to lower the car 1". Would the 60s rub if I do this?

[Dave at Pelican Parts]

I dunno, Brian... I kinda like the way it looks. Maybe a little too "black-rubber-band", but not too bad. And I really like the lower gearing and less sidewall deflection for autoXing.

But, to answer the original poster's question, the 195/50 WILL change the gearing and the speedometer (and odometer) readings. The speedometer will read higher than the speed you are actually going. You may also find yourself turning 3500-4000 RPMs to keep up with freeway traffic--which gets old after a short while. Neither the 50-series, the 60-series, nor the 65-series should rub the stock fenders on most cars. There are specific exceptions, but they are pretty rare. I am not counting tires that rub the inside of the front fenders behind the shock mounts when the steering wheel is turned full-lock; lots of 914s seem to do this with 195s of any kind.

The 195/65 in theory has almost exactly the same diameter as the stock tires (165/78). However, the selection of tires (at least those shown on http://www.tirerack.com ) is pretty limited in that size. The 195/60 is still pretty close to the stock diameter, and the selection is much better.

The 60-series are in theory just under 4% smaller than the stock tires, while the 65-series are in theory just under 1% smaller than the stock tires. By contrast the 50-series is about 10% smaller than stock. The diameter is what determines the gearing and speedometer/odometer error.

I say "in theory" because actual diameters vary from manufacturer to manufacturer and from tire model to tire model.

--DD

[This message has been edited by Dave_Darling (edited 04-26-99).]

[7391417]

I am currently running 205/60's on my almost stock 73 914 with the 2.0l fuchs and have no problems. I have read about and talked to people who say that they won't fit without rubbing, but guess what they do! On my car at least. I have several times taken the wheels off and inspected them and the wheel wells for any signs of rubbing but have not seen any. I personally would be unhappy if I had to have anything smaller than a 205. By the way my car also has 165 lbs. progressive springs in the rear and with these the car measures about an inch lower than stock with a 1/2 in. slope to the front wich gives proper weight distrubution for my car. The 205/60 gives a good size contact patch and good ride compliance. Michelin has come out with a new "Ultra High Performance" tire in the 205/60/15 size the SX-GT that I am planning to get, these should really increase the handling since right now I am running a set of YOKOHAMA touring tires and can go around a regular street corner easily @ over 30 MPH without the tires even chirping. As my friend best put it when I took him for a ride "Man you can go around corners at Un-Natural speeds, my 2002 would probably flip!" I would reccomend the new Michelins, but go to a store that can test fit them first to make sure they will fit as all 914's seem to be a little different. Sorry to ramble and hope this helps your decision.

205/60 will fit no problem on most 914's provided there hasnt been any bodywork. Mine had some body work on one side so the tires didn't fit on one side. (By the time I was finished it needed more bodywork anyways.)

Also consider that a 205/60 is a lttle bit pinched on a 5.5 rim, even a 195/60 for that matter. If you go for a Yokohama or BFG R1 that has good stiff sidewall it can actually do more harm than good with the tires "rolling" on the rim.

If you are intending to go autocrossing I suggest taking an old set of steel rims and having a set of 7 inch rims welded onto the old centers that way you can have any offset you want. This will allow yopu to go to the limit of tire size for the 914 at a 205/50 15 and keep the tire at its proper sidewall geometry. You will also not have to worry about your street tires wearing out or dammaging your alloys.

CWP VIR/PCA

[This message has been edited by Conrad W PEden (edited 04-28-99).]