Tyre Recommendations Super on R15's - 185/60 ?

[AikenDrum105]

Hi folks,

I'm just about to re-boot the Super on some new TZ 15x5.5 wheels.   Any recommendations on tyres for a warm daily driver ?

I ran a set of Michelin XM1's  on my duetto - which seemed a great daily driver tyre,  had a great run on the A509's on my GTV6 a few moons ago (they're called c-drives now ? )   I read on the forums that a few folks recommended Toyo's as well

I'm thinking 185/60's at the moment - gives me the right rolling dia to fill the arches / keep the ratios.

Best tyre conversations can be a bit like best pizza place discussions: but I'm really interested in experiences / thoughts if you can spare em.  Particularly about the tyres

[Barry Edmunds]

Scott
The 195.55 X 15 tyres will give you as near as possible the correct rolling diameter for speedo accuracy.
Tyre brands open up a veritable can of worms on any forum. As many as you ask you cam multiply the answers by 10 and mot of the will be different sugegstions.
I am currently running Yokohama A460 on my Super and with 50K fast approaching I doubt if I will get too many more K's from them which is a bit disappointing so I will probably switch to Bridgestone Adrenalins. I had the Adrenalin's predecessor, GIII, on a Giulietta and they were very good in all conditions.
There is an Italian-made tyre, Marangoni, which are supposed to be good. Available in the right size too and a whisker cheaper than the Bridgestones.
Barry

[BLU-125]

185/60 & 195/55R15 are fairly close to the same diameter. I suspect that a Toyo Teo+ would offer good value for money. BTW, a 195 may be too wide for a 5.5"rim.

[alfa75gta]

I would definately recommend 185/60's.

I have 195/55's fitted to Superlight wheels on my Berlina and they scrape the rear guards, make the steering heavy and take away a good deal of that "delicate" feel.  Even though generally speaking, 195/55 is not wide for a tyre, for a 105 it is quite.  Considering that Giulia Supers were fitted with 155's on the original 15" rims and 165's on the later 14" rims. I'll definately be buying 185/60's when I fit new rubber...

There are not many tyres available in 185/60/15 because they are a unique size, fitted to Suzuki Swift Gti's and perhaps a few others.  I enquired about them perhaps 12 months ago and Falken and Bridgestone offered them then for about $130 and $170 respectively but I think they were the only suppliers.  Alot could have changed in 12 months however..

[pep105]

Ive run Michelin XM1s on my 105 for a few years now, even though they haven't covered many kays, my 105 had a few stints as a daily driver when other cars in the family were out of action (147 !!!  )

Like you I found them to be a great daily driver tyre plenty of grip wet or dry, good steering feel, although Im running 195/60 on stock steel rims so I suspect the steering feel would be even better on 185's.

On those TZ rims 185/60 15 would probably be the way to go considering they are only 5.5 inches wide, weird size yes but some of the current crop of small hatches use that size as OE fit (e.g toyota yaris) so should be available in a few brands.

Good on you for using a Super as a daily driver.

[philpot]

Just searched Bob Jane T Mart website, in 185/60 x 15 there are: 2 x Bridgestones; 2 x Michelins; 2 x Yokohamas and one style each of Pirelli and Falken in that size. Imagine there are Goodyear, Dunlop and other brands too that they dont stock.  You won't seem short of choice in that size !

[AikenDrum105]

Thanks everyone for the tips - much appreciated !

As the TZ's are only 5.5 wide - I'll stick with the 185/60's - if I had some 6" wheels I might be tempted to go a little wider, the tyres / wheels on Barry's super look great.

I ran my old 1750 gtv briefly with 190 tyres (on the 14" steels)  and well remember the agony of the steering column/box when parking after those tyres wore down a little.  (I'm about to recondition the box in the Super as well)

I'm chasing up some pricing on the XM1+, C-Drive, Adrenalines and Marangoni Versas (groovy tread)  http://thetyrefactory.rtrk.com.au/?scid=20403&kw=4216451   and we'll see how it goes.

Cheers !

[Barry Edmunds]

Scott
Agree with you re the groovy tread on the Marangoni. If you want to follow up on the Marangoni have a chat to Corrado or Seb at Mauceri Motors in Clayton 9543 6466. Club supporters and all round good guys
Barry

[AikenDrum105]

Hi Folks,

Struggled to find some of the XM1+ or the Verso in the 185/60 over the last 2 weeks,  but it might be fortunate....

I did a little more research on the tyre size for the super,  and have come up with this...

The original tyres that the Supers came with appear to be the 155R15 '82' P series,  which works out as two tenths of an inch larger in rolling diameter to a 155/80 R15 in the current money.

155R15   =  25" (635mm)
155/80 R15  = 24.8" (627mm)  
185/65 R15  = 24.5" (622mm)
185/70 R15  = 25.2" (640mm)
195/60 R15  = 24.2" (615mm)
195/65 R15  = 25" (635mm)

The practical upshot of all that is, looking for 185 width and to fill the guards per the original tyres,  the 185/65 R15s appear to be the way to go (as the 195/65 is a perfect match, but would require more than a little nudge to the rear guards to make them fit.)  - I've sorted some Marangoni Versos in that size, popular opinion on the internet places them above the michelin XM1,  and in line with the Yoko C-Drive (which I'm sceptical about,  but we'll see)

- I'll keep you posted on how they go.

[Davidm1600]

Hey Scott, once again a most useful discussion and this too will be helpful to me in future.  I am not quite (read by far) for tyres and new wheels for my Super, but am tending to lean towards either Superlites or GTA replicas from ClassicAlfa/Alfaholics.   

I currently run 195x65 ? x 14 Pirelli P6000 on 6 inch BWAs on my 1750 GTV and love them.  So much so I put a set of Pirelli P7s on my 156 wagon.  I also run Pirelli P600s on my Fiat 124 sport. 

I used to have Hankooks on the GTV but was glad to get rid of them. No grip.

From all I have read in the past the limiting factor re tyre width with Supers is related to the shape of the inner rear guard.  The same is essentially true for the Berlina.  I used to run the 6x14 BWAs on my Berlina, but that was with a 185 x 65 tyre.

At the moment I am chasing up some more trim parts, for the interior, (rubbers seals, carpet sets, lights etc) from Alfaholics/Classic Alfa.  Just waiting to hear back from re some questions I asked. 

[ItalCarGuy]

Try this...

[AikenDrum105]

but am tending to lean towards either Superlites or GTA replicas from ClassicAlfa/Alfaholics.   

Supers do look great with the GTA Reps.   - Make sure you check prices with Vin Sharp too on those - he usually has a set of them in stock in Melb.

I ran a set of Pirelli's on my 1750 GTV a while back and liked them,  but kept coming back to the Michelin's - they used to have a brilliant R14 tyre,  the MXF  which I loved dearly.    I tried the old Yoko A509s on my GTV6 and thought them brilliant tyres,  then the A539 that replaced them.   I'm borrowing a 1750GTV at the moment with yoko A-Drives and they're good but a little squirrely in the wet I think.

The Marangoni's weren't much cheaper than the C-Drive (replacement for the A539)  but I've heard good things about them from a couple of sources and thought I'd give them a go....  

The XM1 tyres I've used a few times,  most recently on the Duetto - they were consistent throughout their wear in wet / dry performance - only real difference was heavier steering at low speeds as they aged / wore (but all tyres do that.)  I think they provide a bit more of the original feel of the cars,  with a bigger safety net/envelope - if that makes sense.

Cheers,

[AikenDrum105]

Try this...

155/82 R15   5th @ 8000:  295.3 kph
185/65 R15   5th @ 8000:  288.9 kph.   *D'oh*

[AikenDrum105]

Shiny...