Time to step up and help me out

Marian

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 24, 2012
Messages
826
Reaction score
371
Location
Leavenworth, Kansas
All right you guru's. I need some help. Time to buy the tires. Cokers tells me that I need 855x14's for the original fit. Last receipt I have from my dad was Montgomery Wards H78x14. Cokers can sell me a tire for 223.00 a piece. Seems a bit high. What should I do?
 
It depends. Are you going to drive the car, or restore to original standards, and use strictly for show? If you are going to use it as a driver, I would not recommend the coker repro bias ply tires. Modern 225/70R 14 radials in a whitewall are available from several makers such as Hankook, Cooper ect, and are much more roadworthy, provide better traction and stopping, and last a lot longer. I bought the 225/70R 14 Hankook whitewalls for my car from Discount Tires Direct for around 350 for the set, including shipping from Arizona to North Dakota. Having them mounted and balanced isn't that much more. You might be able to find some locally too.
 
855 by 14? Is it a 57 Imperial? If so, get the proper(sadly pricey) replacement from Coker...the car was made for them.
 
If they were making better tires in '57 they would have been using them then, put radials on it. My 2 cents...
 
I would go for original style looking bias ply tires. It needs a wide white stripe, too
 
I really like the look of period correct tires. Plus suspensions were tuned differently to harmonize with radials (Radial Tuned Suspensions that were advertized around the mid 70s), don't know how big the difference is with US cars. New bias plies I got on a few European cars were not that bad handling, they seem to have advancements in rubber technology built in as well. Tire pressures for the bias plies are a bit low recommended by the manufacturer for soft ride, I usually inflate them a bit higher. If you have tube type rims you have also issues combining tubes and radials. But with a 65 model you should have tubeless rims already.
The General used Radials here I guess :)

 
Last edited by a moderator:
​safety!!!

+ Tire life, fuel mileage, price ....... Bias ply tires are fine... especially for the faithful period restoraton that is driven for parades, show ect,, but I prefer modern radials for frequent use, high speeds with other traffic and the possibility of wet or slippery roads. In the early 70's when radials were first getting wide use in the US, I heard over and over that cars designed for bias ply tires were not "tuned" for radials and the suspension and tires would not work together. I listened and believed that at first, before bias tires got harder to find and I was forced to buy my first set of radials. Since the mid 70's I have used radial tires on everything from a 55 Pontiac to a 70 Super Bee to a 65 Chrysler without a single problem with the radials not working with the suspension. Bias tires were great in their day, but if they were equal to radials, every Firestone or Tires Plus would have a showroom full of them.
 
So are headrests and three point seat belts. I agree though bias plies make no great sense to the average car starting but not ending with price, but personally I really don't like the look of radials when they're not period correct on an otherwise very original car and I am actually that masochist to try to relive the handling characteristics of that period, maybe because I was missing the first hand experience. No big safety issue in my opinion when you don't ride competition style. Just stay away from NOS in this case.
 
Last edited:
What happens when the idiot in the new Caddy with radial tires slams on his brakes right in front of you and stops on a dime? The bias ply tires on your vintage car reduce your chances even more of avoiding slamming into the back of him and literally cream acting that caddy while all of his plastic parts really scuff the hell out of your bumper.
 
I hear you. There's always a possibility that this is "the" thing to save your car or life, but I have a slightly different attitude.
You could argue as well to not drive such a car cause you could run over a child that otherwise wouldn't be hurt if you had a new car with 4 wheel disc anti lock and so on. Where do you stop ?
 
There's no doubt that there are things that happen that are beyond our control but you can take some simple steps to reduce your chances to falling victim to such things. IMO if you can buy a better quality, longer lasting and better performing tire that is much cheaper then an inferior one, why wouldn't you?
 
I would have radials on all C-bodies.....bias ply belong in museums.
 
Bias ride so smoothly if your car was originally bias.
But I would not drive further than the County line.
 
Back
Top