[T3] Tired Searching for Tires

[Bobsnotch at aol.com]

In a message dated 2/4/2012 5:42:46 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,  
j_jonik at yahoo.com writes:

Has this  topic been addressed here before?  Can that be re-posted if  
possible?

I haven't tried to buy tires for my T III for  ages.    They are all 165 R 
15.  When I found one bad  tire, and having used up the good ones from parts 
cars,  I went to local  used tire shops for a replacement or two.    The 
guys there  didn't even recognize my measurement numbers.   They all said 
there  MUST be a middle number...something about sidewalls.

Long story  short...even the VW dealer couldn't help.  They couldn't even 
advise  another size tire that would work...i.e. Narrow enough to not rip 
itself up on  front wheel well when turning.   (VW dealers can't do older VW 
keys  either.)

So, finally, a Firestone dealer (two of my tires were  Firestone) said he 
could order tires with numbers  165 80 R -  15.     $68 plus $18 balancing 
and mounting.    Almost $90 for ONE TIRE !  Quite a leap from my usual $20 or 
so for good  used ones, for decades.   Don't know what the "80" is  about.   
And, I think these tires are Chinese.

One person  told me that the only other car that used that size was 
Triumph...but don't  know what years.

What's to know about this?    What range of  sizes are compatible with a 
T-3 ?   How wide is the  limit?
Are such tires now turning into some "specialty" item that  needs to be 
mail-ordered?  Are there any known "hoarders" of 165R 15  tires who ship them?  
 

This can be a real problem if  traveling and getting flats...only to find 
no tires are available  nearby.    A question then is...what to do in a pinch 
as  temporary tires?

Salvage yards?   No luck.  Most old VWs  have been long trashed for 
metal...and any tires ON the car would be rotted  into the ground.   Gotta get 
lucky finding one in the  trunk.

To those with parts cars out on the lawn...get them off the  ground if the 
tires are still usable.



Is there a question in here somewhere? Type 3s used either a 600-15 bias  
ply tire, or a 165-15 radial tire. When you convert these 2 numbers to their  
modern day equivalents, you get a 165-80-15. These have been getting harder 
to  find in the last 10 to 15 years or so, and the good tire companies like 
 Michelin, Pirelli, and other big names have discontinued them from their 
product  lines. Some brands to look for these days are Cooper and Nankang, or 
possibly  even Coker (expensive, like 125 per tire plus shipping). You 
might want to try  your local Discount Tire, or even Tires Easy, or even Tire 
Rack.for  them. Keep in mind you might have to order them. But, like you said, 
 plan on spending about 60 to 80 a tire for them.
I'm getting a set of Nankang's for my T-34, if I stay with the stock rims.  
Otherwise I'll step up to some 195-65's on some aluminum 5.5 inch wide 
rims.  

Bob 65 Notch  S with sunroof and IRS (Krusty)
64 T-34 Ghia (Wolfie)  
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=412120
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.vwtype3.org/private.cgi/type3-vwtype3.org/attachments/20120204/61cbb08f/attachment.htm>