Tire sizes...?
 

Hi,

Tires are horse poo on the car...one won't hold any air, no tread either! Blah...need to find some replacements. What is the recommended size, and what is the coolest size without encountering problems. There are some 225/75 r14s in the paper here for 50 bucks...would they work? Meh he ...?

240D 14inchers

Thanks again,
-Kurt

225/75 r14s are way to large. I think the tire size you need are 175/80R 14's.

That is the standard size. I think 195/70/14 would fit just fine on the steel wheels. Do you have the alloy wheels?
If you do 205/70/14s would also fit, but would increase the overdrive ratio of the car.

do you have the owner's manual?
 

It would certainly tell you the recommended tire size. I was under the impression that 195/70/14 was standard for all w123's. Perhaps this is not a w123?
I think that you can get a way with 205/70/14 but anything bigger and you're going to have problems.

I know that some of the 240D's with smaller tires.

I've run 205/70/14 tires for years on my 240D 4 sp manual without any trouble with acceleration or hills. Do you have an automatic or manual? I might hestiate if I had an automatic. I need to replace this set soon (70K on them so far) and am going for the same size again. I get 31 to 32 mpg and I like the look better than the stock size.

JohnM 1983 240D 4sp manual 160K

The early 123's called for 175-14 or 185-14. These are, of course, sizes that are no longer available.

The ideal size for the 123 is 195/70's or 196/75's. In about 3/4 million miles in these cars, I have come to prefer quality 195/75's. They are generally higher mileage tires AND they cost less. These are not sports cars and the skid pad capabilities are limited, so the advantage of running wid profile tires is somewhere between minimal and non-existent.

the 225/75's are way too big for this car. Whatever tire you buy MAKE SURE that they are dynamically balance with weights on the inboard AND outboard lips of the wheel. Many tire stores will put them only on the inboard. On this car, that is a guarantee that you will have vibration. I got so tired of fighting with the tire store zero's that I bought a used computer balancer so I could balance them properly. This is the epitome of the old saying, "if you want it done right, do it yourself."

Good luck,

6" rim
 

if you have a 6 inch rim, the 225/60/14 makes a nice statement. rolling radius is near stock. and there is no rubbing. looks very manly.

On our 240 D we ran the 195/70/14 because we live in the high county.. and liked the bit lower gearing for getting over the long steep grades.. the 205/70/14 was just a little much.. In the winter I had an extra set of 6 wide wheels that I put the 195/75/14 studded tires on.. That did give just a touch more ground clearance and raise the gearing a little but in winter we did tend to move slower any way.. The narrower tire contact patch did help it get around in the snow and Ice well..

On our 78 300CD had the stock 6 inch wide and I left the 205 on them.. It worked OK but felt the car may have done a little better with the 195.. However liked the look so they stayed.. I used the winter wheels and tires on it.. Worked great.. Got around better than most other cars..

On the 85 TDT I have 6 1/2 wide wheels from a 126 and run the 205 again.. With the turbo and higher gearing it works out well for climbing in 3rd gear.. I still use the 6 wide wheels with the 195/75/14 studded snow tires in the winter.. Makes a great set up..

Ken