E30 14" tires 195/60 vs 205/60, good choice or not ?

[DanOKC]

I picked up another 91 318is, this time w/out bent valves :-0

It needs a few other issues addressed, one is the ugly 16" rims on it. I have another set of 14" basketweaves to put on there, but when tire shopping online, only have 2 tires listed at tirerack in 195/65 R14. If I go to 205/60 R14, I can get a better selection of performance tires.

Is this a good size or should I be looking for another size or another place to find 195/65 14 ?

I guess like 13's, 14's are getting hard to find in as many offerings.

[schwarz75]

There are no great tires available in the size 195/65-14. Previously I had Bridgestone Potenzas, then more recently Yokohama. I'll probably go withe the Michelin tires in the 195/65-14 size when I need another set, or upgrade to 15" wheels. I feel like the more narrow 195-65 tire will provide more than adequate traction and a little less friction than the wider 205/60-14 tire.

[RIMSPOKE]

I HAVE THE MICHIGAN 196/60 FOURTEENS ON MY E-30 .

I AM WELL PLEASED SO FAR .

[Harv]

I have pondered this for a while too. I actually have Uniroyal Tiger Paws on my e30 in 195/65/14. The only reason they are on there is because the PO put them there just before he sold it. On every car I have seen tiger paws on, they have been a cause of some driving problem. They are wonderful on my car. Smooth, quiet, track straight, good in the rain, wear extremely well and I think it's because of the width of the wheel, they handle very well too..

Now this is NOT an endorsement for Tiger Paws but if they work well on my e30 I'm thinking almost anything will work well on that wheel.

I forgot to add that I have H&R sport springs M3 CAB's and Billy Sports.

John

[2761377]

go for the 205/60's- there should no noticeable difference in mileage, in my experience. the 318iS i drive had goodyear eagle 195/65; went to sumitomo htr 200 205/60. the sumi's are a great, economical tire. you'll get at least 20k out of them.

the only reason i switched from them was to run a 15" wheel.

hth

robert w.

[Harv]

Looking at the Tire Rack site, I see the only one in a 205/60 is the Yomamma ES100. I had these on my old Volvo 145. They were great but some people said they were noisy. In the 145, everything was noisy so......

John

[eurotrash]

Anyone have a spare 14" 318is weave? I need one.

[schwarz75]

I have five "is" 6.5"x 14" alloys, so I could sell one. Zero flaws (no curb damage, etc.), and clean, but you may want to paint it to make it perfect. - Larry

[tjones02]

OK, guess I'll chime in and recommend Falken Ziex ZE-912 195/65-14 from either Discount Tire Direct (America's Tire and Discount Tire) OR Vulcan Tire. I have bought tires from both Discount and Vulcan with the same good service as Tire Rack. These Falkens should exceed your expectations.

My cousin Matt has a set of them in 195/60-14 on his '74 Tii and we both like them as a great normal street tire. And, I've also driven a few customer cars with these too.

http://www.discounttiredirect.com/direct/searchTiresBySize.do?sw=false&cs=195&ar=65&rd=14

http://www.vulcantire.com/cgi-bin/tiresearch.cgi?stock=853&f=ze912hp_t.cst

Cheers and HTH,

Tom

[teatoe993]

I'm having the Yokohama 205/60s mounted on some basketweaves for my new E30 as we speak. I bought the car with some nice 15" Team Dynamics wheels and Yokohama Advan Neova AD08 205/50s on them. They are quite noisy. So I'm just gonna use those as track tires and try these 14s for street use. I'll let you know what I think when I get em on the car.

[DanOKC]

I'm having the Yokohama 205/60s mounted on some basketweaves for my new E30 as we speak. I bought the car with some nice 15" Team Dynamics wheels and Yokohama Advan Neova AD08 205/50s on them. They are quite noisy. So I'm just gonna use those as track tires and try these 14s for street use. I'll let you know what I think when I get em on the car.

Yea, feedback on the Yokohama's would be good.

The Yoko AVS ES100 205/60 is what I'm looking at. I have those on my 2002 beater for last 5 years & have been happy with them for grip, how they wear & how long they last.

I meant to type 195/65 vs 205/60, stock vs next width up. I kinda bought this car for better MPG, but don't think going to 205 width would make MPG go down by more than a few percent.