26R Tyres

[Galwaylotus]

My S3 came with 26R rear wings and 5.5-inch rear wheels (Plus2). The front has the standard 4.5-inch rims. I need to replace my tyres due to age (the tyres, not mine!! ). I am wondering about the mix. Does having larger tyres on the rear upset the handling balance? If I put the same size tyres on front and rear I think the rears will look lost in the wheel wells. I can't fit anything over 155 on the front. I'm considering Vredestein Sprints as they seem to be the only affordable H-rated tres available. Grip both wet and dry is my primary focus. The current tyres are Barum 155 R13 front and 175 R13 rear. All ideas welcome. Thanks, folks.

[twincamman]

mine came with 205 x 60 x 13 rears and 195x 13x 60 front good year blue streaks so I replaced them with Hankook 205 x 60 x 13 all around and will soon replace them with Sumotomos ---otherwise good luck finding something as 13 inch tire technology is in the toilet --ed

[elansprint71]

My S3 came with 26R rear wings and 5.5-inch rear wheels (Plus2). The front has the standard 4.5-inch rims. I need to replace my tyres due to age (the tyres, not mine!! ). I am wondering about the mix. Does having larger tyres on the rear upset the handling balance? If I put the same size tyres on front and rear I think the rears will look lost in the wheel wells. I can't fit anything over 155 on the front. I'm considering Vredestein Sprints as they seem to be the only affordable H-rated tres available. Grip both wet and dry is my primary focus. The current tyres are Barum 155 R13 front and 175 R13 rear. All ideas welcome. Thanks, folks.

Have you considered a Subaru drive-train?

[SADLOTUS]

...dont take any notice of Mr elanspit71...if it hasn't got tyres from 1968....

there's 155/80 13 and 175/70 13 in Falken here:

http://www.falkentyres-uk.com/tyre-selector.aspx

Paul

[Galwaylotus]

Thanks, Paul but what I really want to know is whether having different size front and rear tyres will have an adverse effect on the handling. Does anyone have experience with this? If I was to go to a wider cross section on the rear but with a lower aspect ratio would the stiffer sidewalls upset the balance? Inquiring minds want to know!!

[twincamman]

the chassis was built when rayon bias ply tires were the latest and best design then .Bulgarian ox cart tires would probably be an improvement now . Any steel belt I think depending on the rubber compound -different size tires work on mid engine race cars where the weight is differently distributed than a front engine cars .Two sizes are recommended on the europa but I use all the same size all around on it with no ill effects - remember steering is on the front and the contact patch is small enough =you are looking for balance here and more weight on the smaller tire in front and less on fat ones in the rear doesn't make sense to me and I have never had a handling problems
using the same tire size and aspect ratios on all 4 corners on a front engine car =you are concerned with turn in and tire deflection that relates to the winding angle of the belts -grip and longevity is related to the compound of the rubber . Low aspect tires will bend rims when used on potholed roads and curb contact and a hellishly harsh ride for every day driving -you are not racing every day and if you the car for daily transport you will be happy for 1/2 an hour on track and miserable and unhappy for the rest of the week --so buy 3 sets of wheels and put slicks on one -rains on the other and daily drivers on the third --ed

[elj221c]

Thanks, Paul but what I really want to know is whether having different size front and rear tyres will have an adverse effect on the handling. Does anyone have experience with this?

My S2 came with 6" front and 7" rears. I last used 185/60 and 205/60. The balance was fine although I never ran it on the track. Frankly it is overtyred for the road and consequently quite exciting in the wet! Controllable though. When I eventually get it back on the road it will probably only go out in the dry anyway. I won't bother to reduce the rim widths as the car would look rediculous on anything narrower with the arches I have. It was my daily driver in the '70s and early '80s and very reliable it was too!

Roy
'65 S2