I'm keeping my original 16 inch wheels on my 47 Plymouth, and replacing the old bias ply tires.? What modern size radial tires with fit the narrow wheels?? A local tire dealer says he can put on 215/70R16.? Would they be O.K.? They seem very wide.? Enough clearance for steering?
Any information on sizes and sources will be greatly appreciated.? ?Ed Parauka
Ed, The topic about tires sizes, radials vs bias ply, crops up on a regular basis on the majority of the old car forums.
The topic was discussed to great length in many postings that appear on page 3 of the general category. (Tires 3/25-3/20/08)
In a nut shell, forget about modern radial tires on your '47 wheels, find a set of 15" wheels from an early '50's Chrysler/Desoto. As a general rule, with few exceptions, the Chrysler/Desoto wheels will bolt right onto your car as will your original hub caps.
Why Chrysler/Desoto wheels? They are as a general rule wider than the Plym wheels, so the radial tires, which generally require wider wheels, will work better on them...Bill
Another point about tires is that the cross reference books tire dealers use to come up with a equivilent size doesn't give you the correct size, it gives you a size that has the same load carrying capacity. If you are trying to keep your gearing the same and are changine tire sizes always measure either the height or circumfernce for comparison, its the only way to keep your gearing and speedometer reading correctly.
Bob
Ed
you can fit 205r16 radials to you 47 rims , i'm fitting them to my 39 DeSoto which has the same width as your 47 Plymouth ., and a friend of mine has already fitted them to his 35 Oldsmobile and they are not to wide for the rims , i will say i am fitting tubes also.
Rex
why change to radials ?? you don't speed around corners, the front suspension was not designed for radials.? to me all they do is make the car harder to turn in parking situations.? my plymouth has regular polys and my ford has radials both cars are stock and mechanicaly sound yet the plymouth steers much easier with the poly tires in the parking lots , driveways etc. than the ford.
? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? joe
I use radials now, they are safer here. While riding on the rails of our street tramway system, at 30 mph diagonals let my car jump 12 inches to the left and right to the surprise and thrill of all!
Go
that is the reason my car is going on to radials ,my 54 is already on them and has been for the last 15 years, you dont even need tramlines to make the car jump sideways with diaganols,just an uneven road surface will do it . i dont mind putting the little xtra into steering it while parking if it makes it safer on the road, also you will get 2-3 times xtra milage from radials.
It just could be that the decision to switch a vehicles tires from old style bias ply to radial depends on how much you drive your car, and how fast you drive it. I learned a long time ago that your whole life, and the life of your passengers, is dependent upon the quality of the tires you are driving on, therefore, I always opt for the best tires I can get my hands on....Bill
I have tubeless 205/R75-16 radials on my '36 P2 touring sedan. Much safer, much better handling, better tire wear, better gas mileage. But the safety consideration (braking, more tread on the road, etc.) is no. 1.
Quote from: Fr Mike on May 24, 2008, 01:14:25 AM
I have tubeless 205/R75-16 radials on my '36 P2 touring sedan's original rims. Better handling, tire wear, gas mileage. But the safety consideration is no. 1.