I have a customer with a completely stock car but he wants to put some aftermarket radials is on so he can enjoy driving it. Not looking to start a tire debate or necessarily the widest best performing that could be fit but more a good looking performing tire that will work without any clearance issues. He wants to run them on 15 x 7 torque thrust
Thanks
So far I'm very happy with the BFG T/A (215/60-15) radials I use for casual driving on Shelby's. Low road noise, excellent handling (especially compared to the bias tires) and they don't cost an arm and a leg.
I would agree the BF Goodrich are a good choice and at the cost of a finger compared to an arm and a leg. The work well, again for the cost. I had a set of the repro Firestone Wide Oval tires on my 67 GT fastback and I loved them, they road great and the lettering was exact to vintage lettering, they were from Cooker Tire. I only wish that Lucas made a radial version to the Goodyear tire, in nice sizes! There is a boat being missed, lucky for BF Goodrich!
It all depends on how much driving he will do. Unless he is into brands and has to have the top tier, Hankook $70ish and Century $50ish are good tires.
If he is going to put 5-10K a year on the car and drive it year around then look at a tire that has a better all season performance. In reality, for an occasional pleasure driven car the expensive tires do nothing for you except dent your wallet.
I'm going to try the Cooper Cobra Radials next time. They have a higher speed rating than the BFGs, but not sure if any better or not.
I have run BFG T/A's for 25 plus years on my '60's cars and never had a problem rain or shine. I have to replace them due to age, not wear.
I am still amazed after all these years that there is not a comparable replacement for the BF Goodrich Comp T/A. That was the ideal tire. It came in 215, 225 and the best rear tire size 235. I have yet to find anything to fill that void. They are still on my 66 and am deftly afraid i'm going to have an issue soon. There needs to be a real good looking tire ( like the Avon ) in appearance and drivability that won't break the bank.
BFG's.
I found the Coker sidewalls cracked/checked within a year in the SoCal air. They were on my Model T board track car. I was told they were sourced from offshore. Now most of their tires are US made so that problem may be cured.
These
Quote from: 98SVT - was 06GT on January 28, 2021, 01:33:32 PM
I found the Coker sidewalls cracked/checked within a year in the SoCal air. They were on my Model T board track car. I was told they were sourced from offshore. Now most of their tires are US made so that problem may be cured.
...is that a tire joke??
I put a set of these on my 66. Radials with a old school look.
An alternative to the Avons would be the Vredestein Sprint Classic in 215/70x15. Old school look with wet or dry performance.
Never heard of that tire. Good specs though. Even have good sizes available.
Vredestein is a very good tire and highly rated on many classic cars on our side of the Atlantic.
Even better are the Avons - they are highly regarded by the racing fraternity too, especially in the rain.
Goodrich are not that good in any circumstances - helpless, when wet - it can be very wet over here... ;D ;D
Avon 225/60 on my car.
Quote from: Rbwiii on January 28, 2021, 06:33:09 PM
I put a set of these on my 66. Radials with a old school look.
I noticed that Kraus will hand cut the Avons for better wet action.
Fun Fact. Ohio based Cooper Tire owns Avon.
My thinking is that unless you plan to drive 10K miles per year and in all kinds of weather, the BFGs will do just fine. And having less $$$ invested in the tires, you won't feel so bad replacing them due to age rather than wear when the time comes. Diamond Back does a great job improving the looks. You can get blue line or red line sidewalls and they buff off the factory sidewall lettering.
If going the same size on all 4, those 225s look good, though you might get some scrub on the inside of the wheel well when cornering.
Maybe its a regional thing but out on the left coast BFG S are widely accepted because they were around for us back in the day, so there seems to be an allegiance to them as an acceptable upgrade. Anyone that runs COOPERS at car shows seems to get the smirk and finger pointing, like the guy that shows up with his AMC PACER. Nothing wrong with either car or tires just not accepted... Maybe different at other regions around the US ?
Tires are like camshafts. No one is going to agree.
The best story I can tell is that at one point I was looking for a nice winter tire for my Taurus SHO.
I read a review of a tire, which shall remain nameless but the review essentially was: "best ice and snow tire I ever had. I've got 200 miles on them and they are exceptional."
Fine you might say. What's wrong with that? OK, here's what. The guy who was reviewing the tires was in Miami FLORIDA. It was late July and the tires were two weeks old.
Is there a lot of ice and snow going to the beach then? Maybe the tires were on the Zamboni at the Miami Ice Rink?
Look. You want to pay for W rated tires fine? You can overdrive any tire under any conditions. If you want the fantacy of the tire sticking so well at 200mph upside down through the tunnel stick to video games. You simply do not belong out in the real world, or should I say reel world?
Those wheels on a 65 are really the wrong way to go to get good rubber sizes on that car. The offset is a 1/2" the wrong way and remember on the R models they needed to cut the lips off of the fenders for clearance on those skinny original blue streaks.
Me living in the past? Common? Panteras, Shelbys? Nah, not me. ::)
Tires, camshaft and EARL.....whats the best EARL for ma caa,don't get me started
Quote from: shelbydoug on January 29, 2021, 09:36:25 AM
Tires are like camshafts. No one is going to agree.
The best story I can tell is that at one point I was looking for a nice winter tire for my Taurus SHO.
I read a review of a tire, which shall remain nameless but the review essentially was: "best ice and snow tire I ever had. I've got 200 miles on them and they are exceptional."
Fine you might say. What's wrong with that? OK, here's what. The guy who was reviewing the tires was in Miami FLORIDA. It was late July and the tires were two weeks old.
Is there a lot of ice and snow going to the beach then? Maybe the tires were on the Zamboni at the Miami Ice Rink?
Look. You want to pay for W rated tires fine? You can overdrive any tire under any conditions. If you want the fantacy of the tire sticking so well at 200mph upside down through the tunnel stick to video games. You simply do not belong out in the real world, or should I say reel world?
Those wheels on a 65 are really the wrong way to go to get good rubber sizes on that car. The offset is a 1/2" the wrong way and remember on the R models they needed to cut the lips off of the fenders for clearance on those skinny original blue streaks.
Me living in the past? Common? Panteras, Shelbys? Nah, not me. ::)
BFG is owned by Michelin now. I use Cooper Cobras on street cars but my GT350 rolls on Goodyear drag tires. LOL
;D
;)
Speed Six I'd love to see a couple of images of your car from the back with the 225's. I've wanted to go with the Avons, but really wanted a 235 for the back. I'd love to see it fro the back. Are your fenders rolled in front?
I wanted the look and size of a Blue Dot in a radial. I'm running Mastercraft AS IV 215/75/15 radials on 15x7 Americans. They have a very plain sidewall on the black side and really fill up the wheel wells. They are not a performance tire so lapping Willow Springs on these things is not recommended but they look great.
Quote from: terlingua11 on January 29, 2021, 11:19:21 AM
Speed Six I'd love to see a couple of images of your car from the back with the 225's. I've wanted to go with the Avons, but really wanted a 235 for the back. I'd love to see it fro the back. Are your fenders rolled in front?
Fenders are rolled, yes, front and rear. It is a bit too low in the back for my taste, but will get new springs soon. It has been prepared by a former owner - there is a lot of room in the back - I will try 245/60 Avons, have a pair lying around... 8)
Only have a side rear view at the moment, sorry.
Found another one - still with bumper when fresh delivered. :)
There should be room for 245s, possibly on 8x15. We will see.
Quote from: Speed Six on January 29, 2021, 01:25:53 PM
Quote from: terlingua11 on January 29, 2021, 11:19:21 AM
Speed Six I'd love to see a couple of images of your car from the back with the 225's. I've wanted to go with the Avons, but really wanted a 235 for the back. I'd love to see it fro the back. Are your fenders rolled in front?
Fenders are rolled, yes, front and rear. It is a bit too low in the back for my taste, but will get new springs soon. It has been prepared by a former owner - there is a lot of room in the back - I will try 245/60 Avons, have a pair lying around... 8)
Only have a side rear view at the moment, sorry.
Fantastic. Please share a pic when you put the 245's on.
+1 on the 245's!
Thanks for the shots-
the 245 60 15 will fit but I would use the 7x15 torg because they have a 3.75 backspace. the 8x15 torq have a 4.5 backspace and will bring your tire too far in. the 245's are also and inch taller than the 225's so they will fill up that wheel well up pretty good.
Quote from: Speed Six on January 29, 2021, 01:25:18 AM
Avon 225/60 on my car.
I have TA radials on my other car and the ride is good. I wanted something to match the blue dots, but be drivable and sized the Avons to original. Very happy with the ride and look.
BFG T/A's for 25+ years.
Speed Six
If you're thinking about using 8x15 torqs's (because I'm thinking about it too) you can measure your car pretty easily.
8x15 are a 9 inches total width, 4.5 inches bs, 4.5 inches to front rim edge. ( 0 offset) Just measure from rear brake hub 4.5 inches and use a straight edge to see where the rim would stick out. Then do the same for the Back space towards the springs. I used a tire size of 255 60 15 because its almost exactly 27" tall, and 10" wide. A 245 60 15 is 26.5 tall and just under 10" wide. This goes for either Avons or BFG tires. Hope this might help, my car has a slight rear fender flare and would clear the springs but just barely.
Love the direction this thread has taken.
Quote from: dangcarnut on January 29, 2021, 11:49:59 PM
Speed Six
If you're thinking about using 8x15 torqs's (because I'm thinking about it too) you can measure your car pretty easily.
8x15 are a 9 inches total width, 4.5 inches bs, 4.5 inches to front rim edge. ( 0 offset) Just measure from rear brake hub 4.5 inches and use a straight edge to see where the rim would stick out. Then do the same for the Back space towards the springs. I used a tire size of 255 60 15 because its almost exactly 27" tall, and 10" wide. A 245 60 15 is 26.5 tall and just under 10" wide. This goes for either Avons or BFG tires. Hope this might help, my car has a slight rear fender flare and would clear the springs but just barely.
Thank you for this - will go measuring - when it gets a bit warmer (freezing and snow outside, garage without heater...). Also have to drive the car to a friend to get it up in the air to change the springs. But currently salt on the roads.
But might be able (if Corona lockdown allows) to have the two 245s mounted on my spare 7" wheels soon.
Quote from: Rbwiii on January 29, 2021, 07:47:30 PM
Quote from: Speed Six on January 29, 2021, 01:25:18 AM
Avon 225/60 on my car.
I have TA radials on my other car and the ride is good. I wanted something to match the blue dots, but be drivable and sized the Avons to original. Very happy with the ride and look.
Does look great - and period correct (as it´s called nowadays).
Quote from: 2112 on January 29, 2021, 11:52:26 PM
Love the direction this thread has taken.
Yup just ask a tire choice question that's that's what you'll get LOL
Hope your guy can make a qualified choice after this discussion!... ;)
Quote from: Speed Six on January 30, 2021, 03:18:06 AM
Quote from: dangcarnut on January 29, 2021, 11:49:59 PM
Speed Six
If you're thinking about using 8x15 torqs's (because I'm thinking about it too) you can measure your car pretty easily.
8x15 are a 9 inches total width, 4.5 inches bs, 4.5 inches to front rim edge. ( 0 offset) Just measure from rear brake hub 4.5 inches and use a straight edge to see where the rim would stick out. Then do the same for the Back space towards the springs. I used a tire size of 255 60 15 because its almost exactly 27" tall, and 10" wide. A 245 60 15 is 26.5 tall and just under 10" wide. This goes for either Avons or BFG tires. Hope this might help, my car has a slight rear fender flare and would clear the springs but just barely.
Thank you for this - will go measuring - when it gets a bit warmer (freezing and snow outside, garage without heater...). Also have to drive the car to a friend to get it up in the air to change the springs. But currently salt on the roads.
But might be able (if Corona lockdown allows) to have the two 245s mounted on my spare 7" wheels soon.
Wish I could remember which member posted this picture.
Quote from: TLea on January 30, 2021, 04:59:52 PM
Quote from: 2112 on January 29, 2021, 11:52:26 PM
Love the direction this thread has taken.
Yup just ask a tire choice question that's that's what you'll get LOL
Hopefully what you were looking for is on page one. 8)
Quote from: 2112 on January 30, 2021, 07:12:13 PM
Wish I could remember which member posted this picture.
Great stance, thought it looked familiar, reply #83...
https://www.saacforum.com/index.php?topic=111.75 (https://www.saacforum.com/index.php?topic=111.75)
Thanks!
Love that car. 😍
Looks really nice !
I did try the spare that came with a Goodyear mounted. The suspension is not fully down after jacking.
It´s a 6.00x15 on 7x15 rims.
Quote from: 427heaven on January 30, 2021, 07:03:05 PM
Hope your guy can make a qualified choice after this discussion!... ;)
Easy. Pick Dolly. Look how those BFG's are bustin' out on that blue '66? Totally appropriate.
I still think those will rub on the lips like crazy but you could always jack it up for clearance.
The substance of the question was answered long ago in this thread.
Use a Nootropic Supplement.