ghia body roll/tire clearance question

gerico · Post by **gerico** » Fri Aug 13, 2004 4:39 pm

Ghia tire clearance in the back is very limited. A 205 series tire will fit but just barely....perhaps only 1/4" clearance

at maximum suspension deflection. I do have a 3/4" sway bar on the rear but what happens to this tiny bit of clearance when cornering hard?? I've seen several ghias with 205s but they have not run in auto x. Any of you guys know if it's safe to auto x with 205s in the rear or will I have to drop down to 195s?

gcorrado · Post by **gcorrado** » Fri Aug 13, 2004 7:13 pm

sorry can't help with whether it will rub.

i'd like to add that 205 on 5.5" rim is right on the line of safety.
some street manufactures say it's okay, but i wouldn't exactly
recommend it for autocross. it's not a TUV approved combo.

if you can you should have at least a 6 inch rim...

gerico · Post by **gerico** » Fri Aug 13, 2004 8:13 pm

I was kinda' wondering about the rim width as well. Looks like I go with 195s on my porsche 5 1/2" rims. Guess I should ask....are 195s on 5 1/2 rims an approved combo?

Thanks

rsrnate · Post by **rsrnate** » Fri Aug 13, 2004 9:30 pm

I run a 205 on a 5 1/2 inch rim and that is the smallest tire i would run i am going to start running a 215 on a 7 inch rim next year. your tires realy make a diffrence when cornering, and the more tire the better. The small clearence you have will decrease if you have rubber spring plate bushings, the rubber could deflect and cause the tire to make contact with the fender. I would run urethane spring plate bushings and all should be good. If the tire rubs then i would bow the fenders out a little bit, i had to do that to my 914 to fit 205's on 8 spokes on the rear. You could not tell that i had bowed the fenders when i was done and the tire's fit no problem. In my opinion you should not run anything smaller than a 205 all the way around if you want to be competitive, but that is just my opinon.

gerico · Post by **gerico** » Fri Aug 13, 2004 10:22 pm

Thanks for the tip on the urethane spring plate bushings. Since the ghia is my daily driver it's simply never going to be a class competitive car...too heavy. I plan to auto cross every now and then just for the fun of it but the street is it's real home. Of necessity the entire car has been a exercise in extreme budgeting so another set of wheels is out of the question. I was lucky enough to find a good set of 5 1/2" Pedrinis at an inexpensive price so those are the wheels I'll run. Never the less I do want to assemble the best combinition possible within my constraints. Given the relatively narrow wheels it looks like I'll put 195s front (already have them) and also on the rear even though it's not the ideal combination.

I curious how you found room for 215 on a 7" rim in the rear of a ghia.

gcorrado · Post by **gcorrado** » Sun Aug 15, 2004 4:45 pm

195 is the largest TUV approved tread for 5.5 inch rims, but
those germans are pretty strict. sounds like 205s on 5.5s will
be fine for your needs.

just a note:
to fully realize the cornering benefits of wide tires, they should
be used in conjunction with wider rims. but if that's not in the
budget, then it's not in the budget.

gerico · Post by **gerico** » Sun Aug 15, 2004 6:10 pm

gcorrado,

So for street use and the occasional local autocross do you think a 205 section tire will generate any more cornering power that a 195 given the 5.5" rims? I've got "V" speed rated 195-50-15's on the front....wear rating of 160 so they are fairly sticky.

73notch · Post by **73notch** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 6:26 pm

falken tire says the max on a 5.5 rim is 205

ericsbracer · Post by **ericsbracer** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 7:14 am

I ran 205/50X15's on 5.5 Chromies for the G-Force, and the BFG gents didn't see any problems.

gcorrado · Post by **gcorrado** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 4:30 pm

well then TUV must just be off their rockers...

run the 205s.

gerico · Post by **gerico** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 6:12 pm

OK, 205s it is. That means I can go with 205x50x15 Falcon Azenes...treadware 200. Should be a decent match for the 195x50x15 Nitto 250s (treadware 160) in the front.

73notch · Post by **73notch** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 6:18 pm

i heard falken azenis really hook up.

i have 195 ziex all around

Good luck
-ryan

gerico · Post by **gerico** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 8:06 pm

Hey Ryan...how do you like your ZIEX??

73notch · Post by **73notch** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 8:59 pm

i love them, considering i had econo tires with huge thin sidewalls on previously. i got them cause my notch is my daily driver.

after going from 195/65 series tires to 195/50 series tires, you really realize how high vws are stock, after lowering the car, it handles ALOT better. i used to think the car was going to roll over. once i get the new torsion bars, sway bars will go on, and hopefully ill have a daily driver go kart

.

next time im going to try out the yokohama es100's, ive also heard they are awesome.

btw, if anyone is wondering, Falken makes Ziex 512's, and they are only 50-60 bucks a pop.

gerico · Post by **gerico** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 9:24 pm

Check out this link:

http://www.vulcantire.com/azenis_t.htm?refad=GooAzenis The 205x50x15 Azenis are $68. This is far and away the cheapest I've seen them.

195 ES 100s from either Tire Rack or Discount Tire Direct are about $65 shipped.

Pretty inexpensive for decent tires.

BYW, `73 notch, did you actually lower your car or just put on shorter, wider tires?

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ghia body roll/tire clearance question

ghia body roll/tire clearance question

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