Skinnies question.

[Dbeck002]

I've been searching this topic for the past half hour and cannot get a definitive answer.

I just bought some 15X4 draglites for the front. I do not want to mount 165s on them because i drive this car on the highway daily and i would really like the safety factor of a fatter tire. Can I mount a fatter tire than a 165 on the 4" rim?

Does anyone have pictures? Thanks.

 

[PoopDawg]

You could put on some 195-65-15s... but they'd be real short. Yes, they will be big on the wheel, but not horribly bad.

 

[Dbeck002]

You could put on some 195-65-15s... but they'd be real short. Yes, they will be big on the wheel, but not horribly bad.

What do you mean real short?

Is there such thing as a 185 tire?

 

[90mustangGT]

Some cars have smaller than that all the way around, 155r12 (Metro) and the Fiesta and a few others such as the aspire ran 175/70R13's. Don't stuff a wheel with a tire, that's worse than running a small tire on a big wheel.

 

[GREYFOX4INCH]

by short i believe he means profile.

someone correct me if im wrong but the way i understand it is: the profile is the percentage of the width
so 195/65 is 65% of 195
if it is say, 8" wide= 65% of 8" for the height
i may be wrong thats just what i was told a while back.
whatever the case i know that a 195/65 and a 165/65 are not the same height, its realitive to the width.
i know, its not much help to you .

 

[big_tiger15]

They make a 185 tire. OMG please dont buy a normal set of tires. Make sure you get a set of tires with the correct load rating. I have some 165s on mine and at 35psi they look like there low as hell.

 

[Dbeck002]

Well if everyone runs a 165 tire on a 3.5" rim i dont see anything out of proportion with a 195 tire on a 4" rim. I just want a little more rubber on the road, thats all.

 

[Sicarius428]

Too big and the tire will fold too... you wanna stay within 2 inches max(wider) of the rim width.
Kevin

 

[Dbeck002]

I see, i wonder what a 185 tire would look like. Kind of like a compromise between width and fitment.

Has anyone used a 185 tire on 4"? If so what company and height?

Thanks.

 

[TheUser]

195/25.4(25.4mm in an inch)=7.68 inches; you probably don't want to mount a 7.68" tire on a 4" wheel. If you want wider tires, get wider wheels. I have 195's on the front of my LX and they're mounted on 6 1/2" draglites.

Just because people do things doesn't mean that it's safe or smart; some people mount 275's on 8" wheels...that doesn't make it a good idea, although it's more in proportion than putting 195's on a 4" wheel.

You could prob. find a pair of used 6.5-7" draglites for $100 or less if you check ebay and the corral classifieds

Good Luck

 

[Dbeck002]

I just got a set of 4" skinnies for 200 on ebay.

im stuck with those i guess, i think a 165 tire will be ok, im not a crazy driver.


By the way, i know many many people that have 275s on an 8" welds and they never complain. I was just about to order 8", should i go 8.5" ?

 

[TheUser]

I just got a set of 4" skinnies for 200 on ebay.

im stuck with those i guess, i think a 165 tire will be ok, im not a crazy driver.


By the way, i know many many people that have 275s on an 8" welds and they never complain. I was just about to order 8", should i go 8.5" ?

Well...if you get 275/60's they MAY be ok on 8" because the 60's are taller and give more flex (lets the tread contact the ground more), but if you were to put 275/50's on 8", you'd most likely have some pull on the outer edges of the tire where the edges pull up because the sidewalls aren't tall enough. I have 275's on what I thought I was buying was 15x10's, but I think they're 15x9's after the fact.

275=11 inches of tire roughly and you generally want no more than 2 inches of "extra" tire relative to wheel, so 9" is about the minimum I'd say for a 275...especially a 275/50. BTW, 275/60's look goofy if you ask me...I have pics if you want to see them. When I got my rear wheels, they came w/ 275/60's and I ran them for a little bit before buying 275/50's. Looks much better now

 

[Michael Yount]

The problem is the wheel width dbeck -- the 4" wide wheel is FAR too narrow for safe use on the street. 165/185/195 -- all too little tire to stop or turn the car quickly in an emergency procedure. And the previous poster is right -- you don't want to be more than about 2" wider in tire section width than wheel width. The 195 series tire has a section width of 195mm mounted on the proper width wheel. That's about 7.7" -- subtract 2" -- means you need at least a 5.5" wide wheel to properly support the 195 section tire. Do the math -- even the 165 section tire would be better on a 4.5" wheel.

Skinnies should only be used when the car is at the strip. Bolt a decent set of tires on the front for street use. For the rest of our sake. We'd like you to be able to stop the car....remember - the brakes don't stop the car; the TIRES do. And for a fox body, the front tires have to do about 80% of the stopping. Running that small a tire on the front on the street is an accident waiting to happen.

Remember, it's not whether YOU'RE a crazy driver or not. It's what the OTHER crazy driver does that you don't expect. That's why they call them accidents.

 

[Sicarius428]

Very true, and we all know how well these cars break to begin with...
Kevin

 

[onefstsnake]

Run the stock wheels/tires on the street then switch at the track.

atleast for the fronts

 

[Michael Yount]

Sicarius - some break, some don't; but none of the BRAKE very well stock...let alone with skinnies on the front.

 

[90NotchBack]

I'm running 15x4 with 195/60 up front. I might try the 195/65 nexts time because they are a little taller. But I like these tires I've been running them for 7 years now. Not the same tire but the same size.

I'm also running 275/50 on 15x8 rim

 

[Sicarius428]

Lol Michael. Long Monday for me. The spelling actually crossed my mind afterwards but was too lazy/busy.
Kevin

 

[Nopantz]

I dont mean to jack this thread but since were on the topic of skinnies....i plan on running 15x8 with 28x11.5 out back and 26x7.5 on a 15x3.5 rim up front. Is this okay or should i step up to a 28x7.5 tire for the 15x3.5 rims?

 

[Dbeck002]

90Notchback thanks for the input. Your car is Badass.

The front tires do not look out of place at all, i think i will go that route.


BTW are you in florida? I go to moroso every now and then.