Tires

Oct 14, 2003 23 Replies

I'm looking for new tires for the old 74 Super Beetle. I live in the Houston area so rain is a factor but not snow. I'd appreciate any high recommendations you might have. Price is of course a big consideration but if I just wanted the cheapest, I wouldn't be asking the experts here.



Thanks in advance, Chris D'Agnolo


I have the same car up here in Dallas are you looking for brand or size?

john

I'm also looking for tyres for my '73 super. Right now it has a bunch of odd number tyres. but maybe i'll stick to 195/55 R15 or 185/65 R15 Pirelli P6000. If you have any recomendations, please feel free to tell me. I'd like to have slightly bigger tyres in the back.

................I'm using Vredestein Quatracs on my '77, 185/65's on the front and 205/65's on the back with 5 1/2" wide wheels. They sit inside the fenders OK and the handling is great. Under hard braking, the front tires lock up a little sooner than with the same size front and back but eventually I'm going to fix that problem with discs on the front and type3 drums on the rear.

185/65 and 205/65???? isn't that a little too big?

On Wed, 15 Oct 2003 23:25:36 -0400, "Karls Vladimir Peña" ran around screaming and yelling:

185/65 is actually a tad smaller than stock...the 205's are a tad taller....not large differences at all....a closer to stock diameter is 195/65

...........The 205/65's are exactly the same diameter as the standard 165's. The 185/65's are slightly smaller, my speedometer reads 50 mph when I'm actually doing 48 mph.

I want to keep the same diameter (if possible), making the handling better and also if possible, reduce aquaplanning...what are your recomendations?

.............You can get the 195/65's that Joey recommended or look for the hard to find 185/70's.

......................This is the only source that I know of for 185/70-15 tires:

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So i was about right in my decision of sticking to the 195/65's. Sorry, but that address is useless to me, I'm not willing to ship tyres here (i'm overseas), so I'll go to the local pirelli showroom and get P6000's in

195/65 R15.

Would it be wise to get wider tyres? what about 6"?

recomendations?

........................For me, front tires on a bug that are too big doesn't look very good. Aesthetics aside, with almost 60% of the weight on the rear wheels there isn't much functionality in putting 195's on the front either. It's your car and your decision.

.............What country are you located in? That link was a supplier for North America but I'm sure that Vredestein tires (which are from The Netherlands) can be bought in any part of the world. Don't misunderstand me, Pirelli makes very good tires and what I'm questioning is what size tire would be best on the front of your bug.

Right now I have 195's on all four wheels. Steering is a little bit hard, adding to it that my steering wheel is a small one. What size would you recommend for my front tyres? I know it's my decision, but I don't want to spend 2500 bucks on tyres and then not like the handling or the response of my vehicle.

Right now I'm in the Dominican Republic. I have a Pirelli Showroom just

3 miles from my house. So that gives them an advantage.

..........................I wouldn't run 195's on the front and I'd get rid of the small steering wheel. As I said, I have 185's on the front and a regular sized steering wheel. The steering for me is just as easy as when I had 165's.

..............Did you mean to say $2500 on tires? That must be a typo or if not then maybe those Dominican dollars(?) are aren't worth more than 10 cents in American money.

On Thu, 16 Oct 2003 11:57:10 -0400, "Tim Rogers" ran around screaming and yelling:

hmm...i run 195/65/15 bridgestone potenza re910's on the front of my bug, on 6" aftermarket wheels, with a 13" steering wheel...i have no rubbing issues(the wheels are a bit "dished", and i also have diskbrakes) or excessive steering effort....i love em.... J

Thanks Tim, I'll change the small steering wheel. There are lots of nice SW's on the local Vintage VW shop. Then, I'll go get the new 195 rear and

185 front tires.

And yes, it was a typo... i meant 25,000 Dominican pesos (about 730 US dollars)

........................All this means is that you've got more muscles than just the ones between your ears.

LOL!

........................That's still an astonishing price for a set of tires!

Yes, Pirelli tires are really expensive here. There's just one place to get them here. and that makes them think they r the las coke on the desert. But the warranty is really good...Lifetime, for as long as the tires are not bald. So, if 3 years from now I have a blown tire, i just have to go there and for a minimum price i have new tires.

On Thu, 16 Oct 2003 15:13:48 -0400, "Tim Rogers" ran around screaming and yelling:

well Tim you have told me more than once that i lack anything between my ears... J

Pirelli tires are also expensive here in Uganda, they cost an average of 250,000 shillings each (approx USD$200) but considering the number of tires busting on our terrible roads everyday, Pirelli tyres really give you peace of mind.

Joseph

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