At 08:49 PM 6/13/05 -0700, Simon Matthews wrote:
>My MGA is running on 185/70-15s (on 48-spoke wires), and I was planning on
>getting some new tyres of the same size to replace the worn ones.
>
>Anyone care to comment on the relative merits of 165/80 vs. 185/70s on MGAs?
165 is the widest tire recommended for the standard 45" wide wheels. 185
tires want 5" wide rims.
Running wide tires on narrow wheels causes the tire to roll onto the
outside shoulder in a turn while picking up the inside shoulder. This
leaves a contact patch about the same width as the wheel, and grip similar
to the narrower tire. It also causes excess wear on the outside shoulder,
so the larger tires do not necessarily last any longer. Wider tires are
nice if you also use wider wheels, but not much advantage on the narrow rims.
Barney Gaylord
1958 MGA with an attitude
http://MGAguru.com
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