Subject: Re: [Spridgets] Tire Size

From: [email-masked]
Date: Sat, 31 Aug 2013 19:40:50 -0400 (EDT)

The last time I checked either a tyre manufacturer or a wheel manufacturer  
told me you can ran a 155 tyre on a 5 inch rim, in fact it was close to 
optimum  for a 5 inch rim.
 
I've never run 165 tyres on my Sprite because I could either never get them 
 in a 70 profile (only a 60 profile) or never get them with the speed 
rating I  was looking for in a 70 profile.
 
I have run 175/70 x 13 tyres on my Sprite for over a decade if not 2  
decades though the choice of tread in the speed rating I need is a lot more  
limited than it was a few years ago.
 
If you want to use a 60 or even a 50 profile tyre you do need to consider  
the effect on the gearing, especially if your car doesn't have a 5 speed 
gearbox  or overdrive gearbox or a 4.22 diff and very especially if you have 
both.
 
I'm not going to disagree about tyre wear and suggest that the tyres will  
need changed because they are too old to be safely used rather because the  
are worn out through high mileage.  Of course if you have a 50 series tyre  
it will wear out quicker than a 70 series for any given mileage simply 
because  it will have a smaller diameter.
 
Yep, get a well known brand (well, maybe not Firestone?) of tyre in a good  
tread pattern and consider the speed rating of the tyre and what your car 
is  realistically capable of.  Not that long ago a tyre fitter at a well 
known  UK tyre outlet told me they didn't have a H rating but I could 'upgrade 
to a T  rating.  After I told him the T was a lower rating and the replied it 
 wasn't (maybe once or twice) the manager appeared and the told the fitter 
I was  correct and the fitter made a sharp exit.  A T rated tyre is good for 
118  mph and does my Sprite go that quick?  Well earlier this year I'm 
confident  my Sprite did 116 mph and maybe quicker.  Given the weight of my 
Sprite  would it matter if I exceeded the speed rating of the tyre buy a couple 
of  mph?  I don't know but do guess the H rated tyre is plain and simple a  
better tyre and better suited to performance motoring. 
 
YMMV along with the tyres on your car.
 
Weslake-Monza 1330

In a message dated 31/08/2013 13:32:45 GMT Daylight Time, [email-masked]  
writes:

I think  you all missed the point.

The STD Midget wheel is a 4 wide wheel. He  has a 5 wide wheel. 155s will
not fit. Well you could mount them and they  will be wider at the wheel 
than on
the contact patch. This causes excessive  wear on the edges. And are not the
right size for the wheel. I would  recommend nothing less that a 165/70 for
that size wheel. A better bet  would be a 175/60 or /50 But I dont think 
you
can find them in less than a  race tire. On a 5 wheel I would go for a 
175/70
and consider rolling the  fender lips. I never did, and I never regretted 
it,
but I only had 4.5  wide wheels, I would have loved those 5 wide ones.

Oh and one more  NSHO. Forget that cheap as I can find tire. Every one gets 
all
so excited  about making sure the brakes work, and they are right, then put 
 the
cheapest POS rubber on the road. I dont care if your brakes will lock  up 
your
rotational parts in one millisecond or 10. If the rubber is cheap,  it will 
not
hold the road. You dont need the most expensive race tires,  you just need
good tires. Let the rusting buckets pay the a**holes that  sell the crap 
tires.
The tire is the last place between you and the road.  Is that where you 
really
want to save a couple of $$??

Larry, The  Tire Guy
------------------------

[email-masked]

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