Time for new tires........sizes?

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old Nov 19, 2020 | 04:57 AM
  #1  
Minnesotajeff's Avatar
Thread Starter
Registered User
 
Joined: Jan 2018
Posts: 100
From: 56425
Time for new tires........sizes?

Time for new tires on my 72. I’ve spent 2 weeks reading and looking at photos. Pretty sure I’ve settled on:

235/60 15. Fronts

255/60 15 Rears


just looking for some confirmation on those sizes. I want a little meatier look in the rear and a proportionally correct look in the front. I have a Hotchkis front bar and have read that 245/60s will rub on that bar at full lock, so figured I’d go 235s.

planning 15x7 front wheels and 15x8 rears

anyone see any problems or regrets in my future?
Old Nov 19, 2020 | 06:57 AM
  #2  
matt69olds's Avatar
Registered User
 
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 6,101
From: central Indiana
I like the old school big-n-little muscle car look. You can fit 275/60 on a 8 inch rim. According to the fire size comparison app on my phone, the 275/60 will be about an inch wider, and a little cover 3/4 inch taller.

It also calculates that (assuming your existing speedo is accurate) at 60 mph with the née tires, your actually going 62.


I have run 255/60, 275/60, and 325/60 on my 69. The 325 took a little wheel house surgery to fit. The other tires fit with zero issues. I’m pretty sure the wheel houses on the 70-72 have a little more room.

Old Nov 19, 2020 | 08:00 AM
  #3  
RetroRanger's Avatar
72 Olds CS
 
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 6,657
I run 255-60-15s on 15-7s all the way around on my 72. I have a 1.25” fr sway bar no issues there occasionally i will geta very minor rub onthe fr tires to wheel well like when backing out of an incline driveway.
Old Nov 19, 2020 | 10:29 AM
  #4  
Fun71's Avatar
Registered User
 
Joined: Feb 2013
Posts: 15,407
From: Phoenix, AZ
I have done the 235-60 front / 255-60 rear before and I thought it looked and performed very well. I had 15x7 wheels all around, so the 8" rears are not mandatory, but would probably look better than the 7" wheels. The only drawback is the inability to rotate the tires, but that was never really an issue for me.
Old Nov 19, 2020 | 11:33 AM
  #5  
Minnesotajeff's Avatar
Thread Starter
Registered User
 
Joined: Jan 2018
Posts: 100
From: 56425
any chance you have a picture of how those 255s fit on the 7 inch rim? I was thinking that an 8 inch rim was cutting it close for that tire
Old Nov 19, 2020 | 11:35 AM
  #6  
Minnesotajeff's Avatar
Thread Starter
Registered User
 
Joined: Jan 2018
Posts: 100
From: 56425
Yep, I've never rotated the tires on my classics - I don't put enough miles on them to warrant it and usually end up changing wheels or tires for fun anyway
Old Nov 19, 2020 | 01:09 PM
  #7  
Fun71's Avatar
Registered User
 
Joined: Feb 2013
Posts: 15,407
From: Phoenix, AZ
Originally Posted by Minnesotajeff
any chance you have a picture of how those 255s fit on the 7 inch rim? I was thinking that an 8 inch rim was cutting it close for that tire
Unfortunately, no pictures. That setup was in the 80s before digital cameras and film / picture developing wasn't free.

An 8" wide wheel is way plenty for a 255-60 tire. Most tire manufacturers specify a 7" to 9" wide wheel, so 8" is right in the center of that range.
http://www.etmags.com/pdf_download_d...chart_2010.pdf

Last edited by Fun71; Nov 19, 2020 at 01:11 PM.
Old Nov 19, 2020 | 04:01 PM
  #8  
70sgeek's Avatar
'72 Cutlass ragtop
 
Joined: Jun 2016
Posts: 1,315
From: Tampa, FL
Might want to consider 245-60-R15 all the way around - they'll fit without clearance issues, look beefy and can be rotated all around as needed.

I run 15x8 torq thrusts all around (4.5" backspace) on my '72 Cutlass ragtop and 1" spacers on the rear drums to give the rear a staggered look - And that's with a 1-5/16" front sway bar / 1" rear bar combo

best of all worlds for my semi daily driving interests

somewhere in a prior post there's a side-profile photo from the rear to show how it looks

Last edited by 70sgeek; Nov 19, 2020 at 04:08 PM.
Old Nov 19, 2020 | 04:26 PM
  #9  
RetroRanger's Avatar
72 Olds CS
 
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 6,657
https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...better-138783/

hers a couple pics of 255-60-15 on a 15-7 sorry i dont think i have a front or back pic

plus theres still time to vote yes for the redline (i havent taken them off yet LOL)
Related Topics
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
adrianirish
Wheels and Tires
2
Sep 28, 2019 06:23 AM
boese1978
Suspension & Handling
7
Apr 5, 2018 05:27 PM
anthonyP
Wheels and Tires
3
Oct 20, 2014 09:11 PM
MudEye
General Discussion
65
Aug 17, 2014 01:20 PM
tclaemont
Cutlass
11
Aug 5, 2008 02:35 PM




All times are GMT -7. The time now is 01:55 PM.