hacker-pschorr

Friend of mine needs tires for his 88 930.

Right now he has 205 up front and 245's out back on the original 16" wheels.

As you all know, the only tire in this combination is the Michelin from Coker.

However, doing some searching I came across this:
https://www.excellence-mag.com/resou...7#.VvKkYU32bIU

It states the correct size is 225/50 up front which fits the Toyo Proxes T1R and Potenza RE-11. Not sure on the RE-11 since the fronts will be V rated while the rears are W. I've never seen mixed up speed rating front to rear, I would feel better going with the Toyo in this case.

Is the 225 correct or should we stick with the Coker? How good are those compared to more modern rubber?

bv shady

I'm running 205/245 on 16x7,16x9 Bridgestone RE-11's awesome tire.

Amber Gramps

Who let Hacker in?

http://www.pelicanparts.com/techarti..._tire_calc.htm

Sorry, that link seems to be broken. Maybe this one will work:

https://rennlist.com/forums/911-foru...l#post10863280

hacker-pschorr

So...no feedback on the Coker's?

I like the RE-11 tire, the issue is different speed ratings front to rear. Yes I know in every day driving it wont matter, but the owner of this car is concerned about it.

That doesn't really help, we are not changing wheels, just tires. The size availability of tires currently on the market is the issue.

JCP911S

Ahhh... 205-16 front. 245-16 rear.

It's called Tire Rack.

Its on this thing called... wait for it... "The Internet"

irobertson

+1 for the RE-11s, have a set 205 on 7x16 front, 245 on 8x16 rear, love them.

hacker-pschorr

Gee, thanks....

Go to The Tire Rack (or call them like my friend did) and enter "1988 Porsche 911 Turbo Coupe"

It comes up with 205/55-16 & 245/45-16

The only tires listed as available are:

Pirelli P-Zero Trofeo R
Toyo Proxes R888

Both track tires, not exactly what my friend is looking for.

When my friend made a comment: "There must be something for a 911 Turbo" they did mention the RE-11's except they pointed out this was not ideal since the fronts will be V rated and the rears W.
The salesperson on the phone went as far to say they would not even sell him those tires with the knowledge they will be going on the same car. Nice huh?

This is when he called me, confused there isn't a tire on the market for a 1988 930. Doing some searching I found the listing in Excellence magazine (posted above) stating the proper front tires are 225's not 205 which opens up the option of Toyo Proxes T1R.

The only other option is the Coker reproduction Michelin tire which comes in 205/245 combination. I have zero experience with Coker tires so I hesitated to recommend that option and instead started this thread.

irobertson

That's kind of odd. There is only 20 MPH difference between V & W ratings, and Tire Rack sold me my set of RE-11s 205s and 245s.
I would try calling back to see if you get a less cranky sales guy.

bv shady

It's most likely due to liability issues for Tirerack. I have bought plenty of sets of RE-11's online without entering which model car they were going on. This omits any liability for the company as they had no knowledge of my intentions for those tires. The fact that it was stated the tires were intended for the 930, they are most likely going by company policy. It is not illegal to sell mismatched speed rated tires but generally not recommended by the auto/tire industry. Big lawsuits could arise if they (Tirerack) were held liable and they are just covering their brand. I would just order them online and opt out of putting in vehicle info....IMHO

hacker-pschorr

Buying them isn't really a huge issue, the owner of the car is now paranoid about running the mix-matched tires. I called Costco, gave the same make/model/year and they offered up the RE-11's. I asked about the speed rating and they didn't really care.... Problem would have been solved had my friend called them first.

So unless I can talk him into the RE-11's the only two option are the Coker tires in the stock size or Toyo's with 225's up front. Any comments on running the next size up on the front of an 88 930?

Adams

I've bought a bunch from Tire Rack, and always ask for 'Cy'. His last name is unpronouncable unless you're a native American Indian and maybe gnawing beef jerky. It is close to 'Chowakinettel'. He's a great guy, and knows tire applications.

At any rate, I bought for my M491 (Turbo body) 1985 coupe the exact tires (Potenza RE-11s) you're looking for, and have had a couple thousand miles of no issue.

Sizes were
245/45/16 rear
225/50/16 front

Tire height, wheel and fender fitment are right on. The V and W variance hasn't given me the slightest bid of odd steering feedback, braking, handling. I have actually driven in the rain (horrors!) and again haven't had the first issue nor cause for concern.

The last picture is there just because it was next to the ones of my tires.

Hope this helps.