StoogeMoe

I have a set of 7 x 16 fuchs that are being refinished and need to get some tires for them. The question is, should I remain symmetrical and go with 225/50R16 all around, or should I go with a staggered setup with 205/55R16 up front and 225/50R16 in the rear? Having them the same all around has some advantages as to tire rotation and wear.

The type of tire to get is probably another discussion, but I was thinking of Bridgestone S-03's. Do these really wear out after 30k miles?
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1986 944 NA - Guards Red - 78k miles
1984 911 Carrera Coupe - Guards Red (gone, but not forgotten)
"If you're not living on the edge, you're not living"

tifosiman

I know others will disagree with me, but I think a 225 should only be on an 8" wide wheel, it's too much buldge on a 7" wide wheel. I would do 205's if it were me.

Also, if you have 7's on the front and 8's on the back, with the same sized 225 tires, would you really rotate the wheels so that the 8's are on the front and 7's on the rear? Or are they all 7's all around?

StoogeMoe

Yes, they are 7's all the way around.

Too much bulge? Really? The stock size is 215 on 7 x 15's. That's only 10mm wider. I wouldn't think an extra 10mm would make that much difference.

If I remember correctly, my '84 911 had 225/50R16 on 7 inch width rims in the rear. It looked ok to me.
____________________________________
1986 944 NA - Guards Red - 78k miles
1984 911 Carrera Coupe - Guards Red (gone, but not forgotten)
"If you're not living on the edge, you're not living"

Mike1982

I run 225/50/16 on my fuchs 7". It is hard to say about ride difference because I switched from a all-season tire to high performance. I plan to go out now since I have more then 500 miles on the tires and see how well she holds up in the turns. I also went to 245/45/16 on my 8" rears and have noticed it takes a lot more to get them spin. My car normally doesn't spin in straight line but in the turns it takes a LOT of power to get them to.

ErichCS

Tifo - I would agree with you on this one. 225's on anything smaller than an 8'' wide wheel do look a little bloated IMHO (too much McDonald's). For a 7'' wheel the factory turbo's came with the 205's and i think that looks good. A 215 as you mentioned may look just fine, i don't believe i've seen that before on a 7'' wheel.

I also do agree with Tifo about rotating the tires. If you keep them all the same size it won't be an issue at all.

Good Luck,
Erich

Danno

"I know others will disagree with me, but I think a 225 should only be on an 8" wide wheel, it's too much buldge on a 7" wide wheel. I would do 205's if it were me."

I agree too...

"Too much bulge? Really? The stock size is 215 on 7 x 15's. That's only 10mm wider. I wouldn't think an extra 10mm would make that much difference."

well, the shorter sidewalls of the 16" tyres would cause more pinching. While it's not as optimal as using an 8" rim, you can put the 225/50-16 on a 7" rim and it'll work OK. That size tyre would work best on a 9" rim as there will be miminal sidewall flop on the turn-in; you'll get immediate response. Maximum cornering-grip will also be better as there will be minimal contact-patch bunching and squirming... Take a look at all the stock-based race-cars, ALMS, IMSA-GTU/GTO, etc. You'll see that they run the maximum rim-width for any given tyre size... Paul Newman's 280ZX-Turbo had some insane wheels, something like 12" and 14" wide rims with slicks so stretched out on them, the sidewalls looked like a pyramid...