195-65s on 15x7 Fuchs?

[teenchy]

I think I've probably hinted at this in other threads, but I'm looking for validation. I bought a set of 15x7s earlier this year, but they need refinishing. Eyeballing them this afternoon, they looked a bit wide to this untrained eye for the 195/65-15 RE960AS I have mounted on the 15x5.5 steelies. Can anyone confirm whether this combo will work?



I'm just starting to get cold feet on getting them refinished if they're not going to work. I don't want to go with flat 6s or deep 6s; though the latter would be correct for the car I don't want to be concerned about the possible issues running tubeless tires. If I could find chrome 15x6 steelies, I might consider them. NLA has them listed in chrome for 356Cs and I have to wonder if they'll work on early 911s.

Sheepishly,
Ed

[boba]

For 7's you could go to 205/60 or 205/55.

The 195/65 would fit, so if that is the aspect ratio you want it will work.

[joegt3cup]

If you decide to go with deep sixes I have a set for sale. Couple these with a set of period Pirelli CN36's that use tubes from Lucas Tire and you will be all set.

[lilacrs]

The 356C wheels from NLA will fit the 911 just fine.

If you had a set of old core steel wheels, you could just send them down to Bolton's Classic Wheels in Gardena, CA and they will rechrome them for not much money. Bolton charged me $95 a wheel to triple plate and weld new rims to my spec (I changed the backspacing a little) but this was 12 years ago. They will even weld a new wider rim if you like as well.

While the steelies look cool, the downside is weight, those wheels are heavier than boat anchors!

[BOYER73S]

205/60/15 on RS 7" rims are perfect

[bill romero]

195/65s will fit just fine. You wont have any issues.

[teenchy]

Thanks everyone. In the spirit of Raymond Loewy's credo "weight is the enemy," I'll get those Fuchs refinished and use them. I'm not going to turn my car into a lightweight hot rod, but still reducing weight wherever I can (including myself!) is useful.

Ed

[teenchy]

A little over 11 months since my last post, I've now had the 7s refinished by Harvey Weidman and mounted on the car. The 195/65 RE960AS only have ~3,000 miles on them so I didn't want them to go to waste.

Several caveats are in order:

1) I obviously need to paint the hubs. Apparently the PO gave the original steelies a rattlecan silver paint job while still on the car.

2) There's a good chance I'll need to roll the rear fenders. I didn't notice any rubbing on the ~25 mile drive home from the tire shop, but the car saw fairly smooth pavement most of the way.

3) The profile looks a little balloony, almost too much wheel for the car. I have to bear in mind that 185/70 was the correct profile back in the day. Maybe I should give these tires a thrashing and find an excuse to go to 205/60s.

4) Center caps aren't on the car. The wheels are newer than the car and have the caps with two holes in them. Harvey made a gallant effort to fill the holes so that the caps look period correct, but to no avail. He told me to keep an eye out for 1974-81 style caps and until I find a set, I'll probably run capless.

5) Apologies for mediocre photo quality and the overall appearance of the car. I snapped the pics quickly after getting home and washing the wheels and tires, but not the whole car. They were taken only a couple hours ago and so the lighting was not optimal.

Anyway, enough chatter. Here are some pics.













and a before and after for contrast:





My public thanks to Harvey for a fantastic job on the wheels, and to Bob Tilton for the idea to put a black oxide finish on the lug nuts, which I described in this thread: http://www.early911sregistry.org/for...ad.php?t=35622.

Ed

[raspy2point2]

What is this issue with tubes in Fuchs? I have tubless Bridgstones on my deep 6's for the last ten years without any "issues". Regards Chris Early S Reg.#205

[teenchy]

What is this issue with tubes in Fuchs? I have tubless Bridgstones on my deep 6's for the last ten years without any "issues". Regards Chris Early S Reg.#205

As you and many others can testify, there may not be any problems with running tubeless tires on deep 6s. On the other hand there have been concerns raised about deep 6s' lack of a safety bead and the difficulty in getting valve stems to seat (though I understand TR415 stems work).

Long story short it may have just been a way for me to rationalize not forking out the cash for a set of deep 6s, as I was able to buy these 7s and have them refinished for less than the cost of a set of deep 6s that would still need refinishing. Besides, the look of the 7s is starting to grow on me.