TheSamba.com :: View topic - Which Tire Size Would You Use On The Front Of Your Buggy?

Tue Apr 24, 2012 12:12 am

195x60xR15

Or

205x60xR15

I can't seem to make my mind up, although it's getting easier as the tires I'm looking to buy "BF Goodrich radial TA and the 195x60x R15's" are back ordered at every store that I buy from on line (tire rack, tread depot, discount tires & wheels and auto parts warehouse). Local stores can never beat their prices even after I pay S&H.

I like the 195's as they are not quite as wide as the 205's (7.68 vs. 8.07) and I've been told that they will ride and handle better on my mainly bumpy mid west roads. Of course the two tire widths aren't that much different and I'm wondering if they'll handle much or any different at all.

What's everyone else think and which of the two would you rather use and why?

I'm also trying to get my speedometer to read as close as I can get to being correct and I was told that the original Beetle front tires were 25 inches tall. My pan is a '56 if it matters although I don't believe it does.

Richard, AKA Undecided

Tue Apr 24, 2012 4:38 am

It kinda depends on the size of the rear tires and the look your after. I like to get my tires locally, I've found a couple of tire shops the go out of their way to make you happy and you can see the tires and compare them before you buy. It seems the sizes vary from manufactor and model.

Tue Apr 24, 2012 5:22 am

How wide are the wheels?

These are 185x60x15 on 4 inch wide wheels...

Tue Apr 24, 2012 7:13 am

I've found the skinnier the better. Wide tires temd to hunt all over the road and you have to constantly correct the steering. I would choose 185s or 195s.

brad

Tue Apr 24, 2012 7:23 am

Keep in mind as well the minimum recommended rim width for the tires you are selecting -

bryan

Tue Apr 24, 2012 7:56 am

I have 4 inch rims for my front and 8 inch for the rear. The rear is getting a 275 60 at 28.1 inches tall.

I have been torn between a 165 80 15 which is about a 25.5 inch tall tire and a 185 65 15 which is 24.5 inches tall. I would like the 185, but the minimum rim spec is 5.0 inches wide.

I am wanting to have a wider front tire for the sand when I go to the Manx on the Banx this fall. Looking at pallen's 185 on a 4 inch rim, I do not think it is much of a problem in a light weight buggy.

I would like a 70 or 75 series 185, but no one makes it except Coker and they are expensive for 2 tires at $ 348.00 shipped. I paid $ 290.00 shipped for the 275 60 15 Mickey Thompson Sportsman tires.

Tue Apr 24, 2012 8:35 am

205/60/15 on 7x15 since 25 years :)

Tue Apr 24, 2012 8:35 pm

slalombuggy wrote: I've found the skinnier the better. Wide tires temd to hunt all over the road and you have to constantly correct the steering. I would choose 185s or 195s.

brad

This is the kind of info I was hoping to read, the local VW mechanic has been trying to get me to put on even narrower tires than the 185's or 195's, something around the original bug width. he's been telling me for years that the skinnier the better. That's not for me though, my buggy has to look good as well as handle good and I'm willing to lose a little handling to have tires that are wider than the stock VW width.

My current front tires are 215x70 R14's and I'm all over the road but the buggy still needs to be aligned, all the same they're way too wide.

I forgot to mention on my first post that the rear wheels are 15x8 with 275x60 R15's BF Goodrich radial TA's. To get the wheels I wanted for my buggy the narrowest I could get for the front was 15x7. That's okay though because I've been planning to put 205x60 R15's on them for several years anyway. Now it's time to do it though I've actually been thinking about 195x60's instead as I mentioned in the above post.

I'm trying to find out if the 195's would handle any better than the 205's or not enough to make using them worth while. Especially since the 195 BF Goodrich's are back ordered most every where.

In the past I've heard many people on here say they had 205's on the front with 275x60's on the rear but I don't remember many say they had 195's though.

I could have saved some typing I suppose if I'd just asked in the beginning "which tire would you use on the front (195x60 or 205x60) with 275x60's on the rear". I like the idea of the 195's being narrower but I don't know if they're worth waiting to get they may not handle much if any better than the 205's.

Tue Apr 24, 2012 10:27 pm

I have 205/70R15 tires on 5" wide wheels up front and 235/75R15 tires on 6" wide wheels in the back. I couldn't be happier with the combination. I would go with the 205's in your case. I solved a minor wandering problem many years ago by installing caster shims between the lower beam and the frame head. The buggy tracks straight and true, even in a cross wind at 60 MPH.

Lee

Wed Apr 25, 2012 9:44 pm

LeeVW thanks for the reply, It looks like I'm going to have to get the 205's as the 195's are back ordered every where I've looked. As I said earlier they're the ones I wanted to get originally so it's no big deal. The reason I started the thread in the first place was to see what others thought about the two sizes. I was curious if the 195's would handle quite a bit better than the 205's because of the narrower width or not enough to wait to get them.

I was told that the caster shims were for buggies that were lowered, is yours lowered?

I already have a set of them, I didn't think they would help as my buggy isn't lowered. I've been thinking about lowering it with the adjusters you weld on but until I finish altering the torsion leaves and put on the new tires and wheels I'll wait and see how it sits.

Wed Apr 25, 2012 10:03 pm

No, my buggy isn't lowered. The deal with caster shims is they help restore the caster when the front is lower than the rear. This is the case with my buggy (and most buggies for that matter), as the front tires are a smaller diameter than the rear tires. The resulting rake cancels out the caster that's built into the pan, so the shims help bring it back.

My buggy is the blue one in this photo:

With the weight of the water, gas, and other accessories the suspension is sitting about in the middle of its travel. The best way for me to get some more ground clearance would be to go to larger tires, but I like the way it climbs the grades the way it is. :D

Thu Apr 26, 2012 9:14 pm

Thanks for the info, I'm putting my shims on as soon as I get the chance. The local VW mechanic had me believing the shims were only used with lowered front ends period. I guess he didn't know what he was talking about. I wish I'd known this many years ago.