Tire widths for 7.5" wide wheel - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

winmutt · #1 10-16-2008, 10:16 AM

I currently have 225/60R15 on there. I was looking to see if 215 would be a more suitable fit?

remotemark · #2 10-17-2008, 10:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by winmutt

I currently have 225/60R15 on there. I was looking to see if 215 would be a more suitable fit?

That's an interesting question. I have some Pentas with 6.5" width and I've started looking at tires for them. I have been assuming I'd put on 205s. But if you think 215s are suitable for a wheel a full inch wider, I'm wondering if I assumed wrong.

My thought process was that since my 6" bundts and my 6" 124 wheels both take 195s, a half inch higher should get 10mm more tread. Following that logic, you'd get a 225 on the 7.5 wheel.

Do you think the 225s are too wide?

remotemark · #3 10-17-2008, 10:27 AM

Recommended tires sizes:

7” rim 215 – 225 tire
7.5” rim 225 – 235 tire
8” rim 235 – 245 tire

I found this chart on an Acura website. Notice that it's "recommended".

winmutt · #4 10-17-2008, 11:25 AM

235/245 R15 is all but impossible to find.
225/50R15 is hard to find. 9" wide. /60 has more options but to much side wall imo.
215/60/R15 has more options, more availability. Still an 8.6" wide tire. I found Costco to have the best option.

BFG Traction T/A H, mounted, lifetime balance/rotate, nitogren, road hazard cert for $89.99 per tire.

All said and done best tire for the buck IMO. Fair wear rating and pretty good reviews on TireRack. I have a set of Falken 512 225/60/15 on there and though I am happy with the grip, they only lasted a year. To be fair I did not rotate frequently (directional tire) and I had a horrible alignment issue when I first got them.

remotemark · #5 10-17-2008, 11:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by winmutt

BFG Traction T/A H, mounted, lifetime balance/rotate, nitogren, road hazard cert for $89.99 per tire.

All said and done best tire for the buck IMO. Fair wear rating and pretty good reviews on TireRack. I have a set of Falken 512 225/60/15 on there and though I am happy with the grip, they only lasted a year. To be fair I did not rotate frequently (directional tire) and I had a horrible alignment issue when I first got them.

Not to mention all your drag racing!

That does sound like a good deal. There is a Costco about a mile from my work, I might go take a look.

I guess my only question would be whether the thinner tire is still wide enough to seal properly against the lip of the rim. At 8.6", that shouldn't be a problem I suppose.

What kind of wheel is this? 15x7.5 is unusual.

Filmguy · #6 10-17-2008, 01:43 PM

There's a pretty cool tire size calculator at: http://www.alloywheels.com/tyrecalc.asp

It shows BOTH 215 and 225 tires being suitable for 6-7.5" wide wheels. I believe that 225 is the "standard" size for 7.5s, but 215's should work just fine if that's what you prefer.

winmutt · #7 10-17-2008, 03:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by remotemark

Not to mention all your drag racing!

That does sound like a good deal. There is a Costco about a mile from my work, I might go take a look.

I guess my only question would be whether the thinner tire is still wide enough to seal properly against the lip of the rim. At 8.6", that shouldn't be a problem I suppose.

What kind of wheel is this? 15x7.5 is unusual.

Google Hipari, you can mount any tire practically.

ACT is the manufacturer, they were OEM for BMW and the rims I have were used in a MBZ racing W126 coupe, I found I had a pic of them from the trip to the Museum in Stuttgart.

remotemark · #8 10-17-2008, 08:38 PM

If they were BMW OEM, did you need to get an adapter to make them fit?

winmutt · #9 10-17-2008, 10:04 PM

Sorry, ACT was an OEM provider for BMW. The ones I have are 5x112et25

hey_allen · #10 12-22-2008, 06:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by winmutt

I have a set of Falken 512 225/60/15 on there and though I am happy with the grip, they only lasted a year. To be fair I did not rotate frequently (directional tire) and I had a horrible alignment issue when I first got them.

You might also consider the tire load rating.
I had a set of Falken ZE-512 tires on a surprisingly similar weight vehicle (Subaru STI) and found that they were almost dangerously flexible overall, and ended up having to run the pressure up to the rated maximum before it didn't exhibit large amounts of flexing due to the thin tire carcass.

Admittedly, the STI is likely to be driven much harder than any of our 126 benz's are, and they worked well on an older and lighter car I had before, but I ended up getting rid of them and went to a set of Michelin's.

Now, I can't say on 15", but for 16", I went with 225/55x16" Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S, ~$600 for the whole set mounted, balanced, warranted through sears.

Just my two cents, hopefully more helpful than just confusing the issue!

winmutt · #11 12-22-2008, 10:16 AM

Digging up old bones. I now have 215/60R15 Bridgestone T/A directionals on there now. They handle almost as well as the Falkens in dry and MUCH better when wet. They are also stiffer.