radial tires for a '63

[Steven S.]

For service replacement tires for a '63 - what is everyone using? I would prefer to use proper brand, but am finding that 195R75-15's and 205R75-15's seem to be not available in Goodyear, BF Goodrich, Firestone etc. I have a set of 12 year old Goodyear 205R75-15's on it now, but after reading the other posting about aged tires, I need to replace these.

Steve

[James W.]

Re: radial tires for a '63

For service replacement tires for a '63 - what is everyone using? I would prefer to use proper brand, but am finding that 195R75-15's and 205R75-15's seem to be not available in Goodyear, BF Goodrich, Firestone etc. I have a set of 12 year old Goodyear 205R75-15's on it now, but after reading the other posting about aged tires, I need to replace these.

Steve

Steve,

Firestone does make a correct size 205/75-15 whitewall tire radial. They are advertised on the tires-easy.com website. It is the FR380 but I've heard that some do not like this tire. It is also only "S" speed rated to 112 mph. I put a set of 205/75-15 Michelin Harmony blackwall radials on my '64 in 2005 and they are an excellent tire, smooth ride and very quiet. If you are looking for a blackwall 205/75-15 radial they are now almost impossible to find. If you are okay with going to a 205/70-15 or a 215/70-15 tire size there are quite a few more choices.

Regards,

James West

[Steven S.]

Re: radial tires for a '63

Talked to Firestone. None around anylonger. They did suggest 205/70R-15 but they are 1/2 inch wider.

[James W.]

Re: radial tires for a '63

Talked to Firestone. None around anylonger. They did suggest 205/70R-15 but they are 1/2 inch wider.

Steve,

There are 40 of the Firestone 205/75-15 FR380 radial tires available at the website in my first reply. If you want the correct size, buy them from there and have the Firestone dealer or a shop you trust install them.

The 205's will also be shorter and throw off your speedo. The 215's will be closer to the correct height.

James West

[Richard S.]

Re: radial tires for a '63

Today I received four Firestone P205/75R 15's from Diamnondback. They were about $200 each but I can get the 2 & 1/2 inch whitewall I need for a 60'. I wanted a brand name radial that had a period correct whitewall for my vehicle.

[Steven S.]

Re: radial tires for a '63

What I am finding is that the originals have been discontinued for some time. All that are out there are 2 plus years old. Search continues. MY have to go with black walls. Could be repro's but the right ones are bias ply. Do not want to make long trips on then ( thou that is just what we did back in the day)

[Richard S.]

Re: radial tires for a '63

The ones I received today were manufactured the 38th week of 2010.

[Daniel N.]

Re: radial tires for a '63

For service replacement tires for a '63 - what is everyone using? I would prefer to use proper brand, but am finding that 195R75-15's and 205R75-15's seem to be not available in Goodyear, BF Goodrich, Firestone etc. I have a set of 12 year old Goodyear 205R75-15's on it now, but after reading the other posting about aged tires, I need to replace these.

I'm using Firestone FR380 whitewalls in the 205/75R15 size. (See pictures.) This is the size closest to the original bias ply tires, i.e. the size least likely to cause clearance or speedometer issues. They also look as "correct" as radials can. However, the white stripes are somewhat too narrow; you'd have to go to Diamond Back to get the correct width (at a huge additional cost). The tires are discontinued but still seem to be available from some Firestone stores. I got mine through Sears; you might want to check there as well.

I initially tried Tires Easy, and it was a horrible experience. The site is a front for a German company, which I didn't realize until American Express called and said that someone in Germany was trying to charge tires to my card. They managed to get two pairs of tires lost in different parts of the U.S., and then they tried to blame my shop for the mix-ups. Their "customer service" is run out of Germany and is unbelievably rude. I did finally get a full refund for the tires that I never received, but it was a struggle.