Looking For A 15" Modern Radial Tire

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philipswanson

Well-known member
I got a set of 15" 65 Ford F100 wheels for my 40 station wagon. They are powder coated and ready to run. I am looking for a set of 15" radial tires at Discount and other outlets that will not look out of place on an otherwise stock 40 Ford wagon. What 15" are you running on your stock car? I want to avoid Diamondback and Coker and get modern black walls.
 
Philip, I know you said you don't want the size, but I will offer this.

The thing about the original tires is the aspect ratio. The aspect ratio for a bias ply is (I believe) 100%. I'm talking about the height of the sidewall.

a 195/70 R 15 has an aspect ratio of 70%.
a 195/60 R 15 has a 60% aspect ratio.

There are some radial tires available that do not quote an aspect ratio. These have an 82% aspect ratio. This is the tallest you can get in a radial (except for some off road 16 inchers that can be 85%)

I'd be looking for one of these where the aspect ratio is not quoted.

Try an online search for a tire supplier that can supply a 195 R15. or a 185 R15. If you can see any available, then look to see if there is one that looks ok.

My opinion is that some modern tires have awfully cluttered designs on the sidewall. You want to pick one with the least cluttered sidewall design that has a decent looking tread pattern.

Now, these tyres in the 195 and 185 sizes are all van tyres. no passenger car has them as standard, but your 40 being a wagon would probably be quite suited.

Disclaimer. I found these sizes available here in the UK from a Germany based company. They might not be available in the USA.

Here is what would be available to me here in the UK

185 R15:
https://www.mytyres.co.uk/cgi-bin/r...er_preis_von=&filter_preis_bis=&homologation=

195 R 15:
https://www.mytyres.co.uk/cgi-bin/r...rd&rsmFahrzeugart=ALL&suchen=Search+for+tyres

The links might not work as they may be location dependent.

Bottom line: Pick the size you want (tallest sidewall being most important in my opinion) then look to see what you can get.

Mart.
 
Really confused now! Every website I have looked at has an aspect ratio. What ratio do we want? Using the chart, it looks like the 205/75/15 is closest to the old 600/16. Is that right? Also you are right, I want the black wall outside to be fairly smooth without a bunch of gobbledy gook.
 
75 is likely pretty close to the old 16 for diameter & circumpherence. The 75s were mostly on pickups back in the day but there were some cars that had them after the G78 era. The 15-inchers are getting harder to find for cars these days. There are a lot for pickups & SUVs but they are patterned for more off road use than a car tire. My old family type cars that still have 15s are getting harder to source a decent tire for. A lot of the brand names suggest Asian origins with very few from old brand names. It won't be long before some of the "antique" tire suppliers will be the only place to find them too. My folks went from the "Non-Skid" era to the metric era so I guess I shouldn't be surprised if the same thing happens in my life time.
 
After looking at the Discount Tire site, I notice that any radial larger then the 205/75/15 size needs a rim at least 5.5 inches. My pickup rims are 5.0 wide which is ok for the 205s but not the 215s or 225s. They both require 5.5 rim width. Do you think the 1/2" narrower wheel would matter that much?
 
The taller the aspect ratio, the less critical the rim width. So a 1/2" shortfall is not a biggie.

Mart.
 
I don't know how close to original mine look but I like the P235-70R15 Cooper Discoverers I have on my 52 Merc on stock wheels. I know they are fatter than original but its the look I want for the car. From the side I don't think it is much different from the 7.10x15s bias plies my dad used to run on it in the 1960s.
 

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philipswanson said:
It's a Goodyear Wrangler HT LT215/75/R15.

What do you think? .
Click to expand...

The LT designation is for "light truck". Maybe just fine for your wagon, but is probably a little stiffer than a passenger tire.

I wouldn't hesitate to run a 215 tire on a 5" rim.
 
Thanks everybody for allot of great information. Also the HAMB has a thread on grinding off lettering, etc. to make any tire smooth on the sidewalls.
 
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