Re: Station sedan tire size

Posted by su8overdrive On 2015/12/2 18:05:37

Get a set of Bridgestone 7.00 x 15 R230 LT radials, or the Yokohama equivalent, identical specs the latter, also available at a hefty premium from Diamond Back in South Carolina, if you feel the need for added whitewalls, which many owners in the day thought gauche, tacky. The beauty of these tires is that they come in our 7.00 x 15 bias ply size, and so look right in your fender opening, while giving you all the advantages of radials. Remember, Packard built cars, not batteries, generators, motor oil, brake fluid, tires.

Diamond Back offers, last time we checked, whitewalls vulcanized on Yokohama 7.00/15 bias-sized LT radials, as well as the usual SUV metric radials, which most people use despite not looking right in the fender openings. Only one car in 20 or 30 at any price level had whitewalls in the '30s, '40s, and dear few had fog lights, but that doesn't stop those today allegedly concerned with "is this correct" and scoring points. That the CCCA, PAC and others award perfect scores to 1946-47 cars with whitewalls unavailable when new underscores this mentality. Or gloss-painted engine accessories which were originally matte or semi-gloss black.

Don't take any nonsense about "truck tires" from the same people running 225/235/15R metric SUV tires on their Packards, since big SUVs are built on pick up truck chassis.

Michelin also offered 7.00/15 LT radials per above, identical specs, until the early aughts. Unfortunately, only a few savvy 1941-on Cadillac, Buick, Packard owners knew about them, there otherwise a small market, so Michelin bowed out.
If we don't patronize Bridgestone, Yokohama, we'll be dead in the water, forced to buy bias plies people in a third world wouldn't use, or else metric SUV tires which simply don't look right.

Again, as per Diamond Back, you can vulcanize a wide whitewall on anything, but a good design doesn't need tacked on ephemera, most high-end, top-line cars were free of such dreck originally. Similarly, you rarely saw fog/driving lights on cars in the '30s, '40s, but tell any of this to gotta have it clubbies today and watch the fur fly.