[T3] Tire Sizes

[Jim Adney]

On 3 May 2014 at 10:42, J. Jonik wrote:

> '71 T-III      Shopping for tires for T-IIIs isn't so easy anymore.
> When tire dealers on-line ask for year and make, they don't even offer
> anything before about 1984. 

> Bentley says, for radial, it's 165 SR 15...though my current tires just have an "R", not "SR".

Those are the same thing. The S is the speed rating, which is 
probably printed elsewhere on the R tires.

> Elsewhere I read that there's a size 6.00 SR 15.  Is that wider, or narrower, than 165 R 15? 

Same size

>  For the sake of the spare storage, there's not much room to shove in
> something bigger than 165 R 15. 

I'm not sure. A 175 might fit, but I'm pretty sure a 185 won't. Keep 
in mind that as the tire gets wider, it also gets taller, unless you 
go to a lower profile at the same time. Taller tires can tend to make 
the car unstable and wander around, so don't do this without making 
other adjustments.

> And...if nothing to find in Philadelphia area, where to get proper VW tires?

I keep hearing that Kumho (Korean) is making tires for us, but there 
are not many options out there. If you've got money to burn on this, 
you can still get copies of the Michelin XZX in 165SR15. Those were 
great tires.

> And...if one has to resort to salvage yards to find inspection-passing
> tires, what other car(s) used that size tire? 

I don't think many cars ever used this size. Late beetles and all 
Type 3s. Maybe some '60s British sports cars, 

-- 
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Jim Adney, jadney at vwtype3.org
Madison, Wisconsin, USA
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