Re: Tire Shopping for a '54 Clipper
Posted by Mark Buckley On 2015/1/7 23:12:40
For what it's worth, my 1950 Packard has been a daily driver for the past ten years. About nine years ago I purchased a set of 225/75/R15 wide white tires from Diamondback. These replaced an older set of bias ply tires that came with the car and were a significant upgrade in terms of handling.
Diamondback's owner, whom I spoke with on the phone, told me he drove a Packard. I believe he said it was a 1948. He convinced me to opt for what he called the "beauty ring," which was an additional layer of whitewall material about .75 inch wide around the outer perimeter of the whitewall. The tires I got had 3" whitewalls. The tires themselves were made by Hankook.
I liked the tires and put between 35 and 40,000 miles on them. I drove the car up & down the East Coast from Newfoundland to the North/South Carolina line and then up & down the West Coast from British Columbia to San Francisco, along with numerous shorter trips. I never experienced any unpleasant business from those tires.
My chief complaint was that when the car was stopped the front wheels were terribly hard to turn.
When my treads showed enough wear, I bought a second set of Diamondback 225/75/R15 tires, again with the "beauty ring" and again with 3" wide whites. This set was made by Cooper Tires. I am very happy with the Coopers. The handing is similar to the Hankooks but the great advantage is that the front wheels are WAY easier to turn when the car is stopped.
If I'm fortunate enough to put 40,000 miles on these Cooper Tires, I'll be back at Diamondback for a third set.
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Diamondback's owner, whom I spoke with on the phone, told me he drove a Packard. I believe he said it was a 1948. He convinced me to opt for what he called the "beauty ring," which was an additional layer of whitewall material about .75 inch wide around the outer perimeter of the whitewall. The tires I got had 3" whitewalls. The tires themselves were made by Hankook.
I liked the tires and put between 35 and 40,000 miles on them. I drove the car up & down the East Coast from Newfoundland to the North/South Carolina line and then up & down the West Coast from British Columbia to San Francisco, along with numerous shorter trips. I never experienced any unpleasant business from those tires.
My chief complaint was that when the car was stopped the front wheels were terribly hard to turn.
When my treads showed enough wear, I bought a second set of Diamondback 225/75/R15 tires, again with the "beauty ring" and again with 3" wide whites. This set was made by Cooper Tires. I am very happy with the Coopers. The handing is similar to the Hankooks but the great advantage is that the front wheels are WAY easier to turn when the car is stopped.
If I'm fortunate enough to put 40,000 miles on these Cooper Tires, I'll be back at Diamondback for a third set.
Attach file:
(145.35 KB)
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