Wheels/Tyres: 164: tyre size

[woolfie1948]

Please can someone advise on correct tyre size for 1972/3 my 164?
The car has four recently fitted 165-15 S rated but the spare that really looks like (and previous owner claims) has never been on the car is 175-15 (pirelli cinturato)
The handbook says either 165 or 175 are used in different markets but most write-ups eg old road tests say 175 HR 15.
For both sizes when I look at tyre retailers on the net they also need to know the profile number (eg 175-65-15) but my tyres do not have one on the side. What would be appropriate?
Thanks
Jonathan

[Michael J]

I gather that no profile number means that it is an 80%, so 175R15 is the same as 175/80R15.

[john h]

Yes no profile number = 80 profile.

You won't get a modern tyre that size unless its a van tyre - avoid those they will ruin the ride and handling.

If you go modern, closest is probably a 185/70 15. That's the same rolling diameter as the 165/80 15.

I assume your rims are 5.5 inch. If so, I would personally not go wider than 185, although I know others do.

If you buy period tyres, I really recommend the Michelin XVS or XAS - really excellent, but not cheap.

http://www.longstonetyres.co.uk/

But they are not listing any 175x15, so it might be an impossible size to get now. Worth searching specialist suppliers elsewhere though

John

[Audrey Old]

By chance yesterday a friend mailed to say he has a 5.90x15 tyre as a spare in his 164E. That must be an old cross-ply....
He too wants replacement recommendations, but to confuse matters my 164E has run on 185SR15s since I got it. However they are due to be replaced soon: I have a couple of 175HR15s which will probably do one axle, but I haven't tried for new tyres that size.
Must do some research.....

Paul

[woolfie1948]

Thanks Michael J and John H
Now I understand why previous owner put these on as they are cheap readily available and I suppose will do the job without problems? As they are in very good condition maybe I wiill leave them on - for now anyway
I dont know at the moment what rims are on it but I think 51/2 was the standard so probably are.
Black circles have 185/80 r15 T car tyre at £65.04.
Surely this will have the same rolling size as 170/80 15 as its only the width that is different?
Jonathan

[Michael J]

No no, the profile height is given as a percentage of the width.

So 170/80 has a height of 136mm, double for top'n'bottom = 272mm, plus 15x25.4=381mm wheel, overall 653mm rolling diameter.

185/80 gives height 148mm, doubled is 296mm, plus 381mm wheel = 677mm overall, which is 3.7% larger.

According to a website I saw earlier, you should try to keep within +/- 2.5% of original spec else your speedo might end up well off, and you might run into some other mechanical problems with clearances for suspension travel, steering, etc. This obviously depends upon the car.

185/75 is a better close match, at 658.5mm overall, only 0.8% larger than 170/80 on 15" rim.


Hmm, ed: where did 170 come from? It was 175 at the start of the thread.

[classicswede]

On our 164's we have always run 205/60 15 tyres. Cornering is much better and the understeer is pretty much eliminated. I'd personaly not run a 164 with 165's as the handling is crap with them and understeer quite a bit.

If you want to keep is close to original then the 185's would be your best bet.

[guitarman]

Hi, you need either 165s or 175s and they need to be an 80% profile, i've looked in to this. If the profile is any lower you will loose a suprising amount of ride height and the car will not just look crap but the speedo will read wrong. Nexus still do a 165 r15 80. Jimmy

[woolfie1948]

Thanks to Michael J for that explanation - much appreciated.
Unfortunately both the two major sites I looked on do not have a single tyre to offer size 185/75-15 .

Thanks also to classicswede.
I am sure that 205/60 15 will handle better and I can see there is lots of choice readily available at reasonable prices. Do you put them on the original equipment rims like mine without problem or do you use uprated ones? If they fit ok it would be an easy answer for me but John h says he thinks these may be a bit too wide for standard rims. Do you know of any pitfalls?

Jonathan

[john h]

Originally Posted by woolfie1948

Thanks to Michael J for that explanation - much appreciated.
Unfortunately both the two major sites I looked on do not have a single tyre to offer size 185/75-15 .

Thanks also to classicswede.
I am sure that 205/60 15 will handle better and I can see there is lots of choice readily available at reasonable prices. Do you put them on the original equipment rims like mine without problem or do you use uprated ones? If they fit ok it would be an easy answer for me but John h says he thinks these may be a bit too wide for standard rims. Do you know of any pitfalls?

Jonathan

In my experience, a 205/60 gives poor steering response on a 5.5 inch rim. The rim is much narrower than the tyre, meaning the sidewalls are at the wrong angle and there is too much flex between the wheel and the tyre contact patch - the rim can't properly control what the tyre is doing. (Imagine wearing shoes several sizes too big for your feet!)

It's a matter of taste I suppose. Classicswede finds it fine, but for me it did not work at all. Grip was OK, but I really did not like the handling feel of my 164 on 5.5 inch rims and 205/60 tyres (Yokohamas). But when I swapped these same tyres onto 15x7 inch rims, the handling was transformed - miles better.

A 185/70 would be fine for you, because it's the same rolling diamater as one of the OE tyre choices for the 164, the 165/80x15.

John