cliffaud Posted November 5, 2009 Report Share Posted November 5, 2009 Hi, I have very recently bought a Grinnall V8 with the Grinnall body kit. When I had the front wheels balanced, the tyre fitter found a repair on the outer tread which he said was both illegal and dangerous. The tyre size is 215/15/50. There is only one manufacturer of that size at an outrageous price. The same make but with a profile 60 is available at half the price. Would fitting a 215/15/60 only on the front affect the handling? Cliff Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted November 5, 2009 Report Share Posted November 5, 2009 Hi Cliff, welcome to the Forum ! Bit of an unusual question, this one. My instinct would be to put the taller profile on the back, but there may be arguments for the opposite that I'm unaware of. Personally I find 205s quite enough width of rubber on a V8, from both a steering weight viewpoint and general handling - anything wider and breakaway tends to be snap rather than progressive. Presumably you're running 7" rims or wider with 215s ? They don't work well with anything narrower. Cheers, Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Hasbeen Posted November 6, 2009 Report Share Posted November 6, 2009 A friend of mine fitted 60 profile 15" tyres, on an 8, with only slightly lowered springs. I think they were 205s, but may have been 215s. These hit on the vertical stiffing gusset under the inner wing, before the suspension reached the bump stop. He would get a rub on that gusset , on even minor bumps. He had to change back to 55 profile tyres. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
cliffaud Posted November 6, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 6, 2009 Hi Cliff, welcome to the Forum ! Bit of an unusual question, this one. My instinct would be to put the taller profile on the back, but there may be arguments for the opposite that I'm unaware of. Personally I find 205s quite enough width of rubber on a V8, from both a steering weight viewpoint and general handling - anything wider and breakaway tends to be snap rather than progressive. Presumably you're running 7" rims or wider with 215s ? They don't work well with anything narrower. Cheers, Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
cliffaud Posted November 6, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 6, 2009 Alec, Thanks for your reply. Since posting my question I have been to a repairer of commercial tyres. His advice is that "illegal" is the policy of the that major tyre distributor rather a legal position. They don't want to do repairs rather to sell tyres. I am hopeful therefore to have the tyre repaired. All 4 tyres are otherwise in excellent condition with lots of tread. I am just beginning to get to grips with car so I will no doubt be seeking advice often. Incidentally I have a 3A too so I will be keeping an eye on Ebay. Cliff Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Wayne S Posted November 8, 2009 Report Share Posted November 8, 2009 I'm not sure I would be happy putting anything but brand new tyres on my V8, given the torques and pressures involved. I run 205 55 15's on mine that will fit your rims and arched perfectly no matter what suspension or body mods you may have. Toyo Proxes Z1's seem to be favourite tyres at the moment, i've heard a lot of good about them. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted November 8, 2009 Report Share Posted November 8, 2009 Hi Cliff, For sure at least some branches of the major tyre retailers can be prone to advise replacement as a matter of course - I've seen that at first hand, concerning tyres that could in fact be safely repaired. Commercial vehicle tyres and performance car tyres have very different repair criteria, a result of different construction, what might be repairable on the former may not be acceptable on the latter. Tyre manufacturers issue specific guidelines in respect of repair techniques and safety - a competent tyre shop should be fully aware of these, and be able to quote 'chapter and verse' relating to your particular tyre and the damage thereto. If they can't, you're in the wrong place ! Check the date code on your tyres, that might also influence a decision whether to repair or replace. Cheers, Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jemgee Posted December 1, 2009 Report Share Posted December 1, 2009 I am due to receive a set of 15" MG TF wheels (the near minilite design) bought off Ebay. They are shod with 185/55/VR 15 CONTINENTAL on the fronts and 205/50/VR 15 MARANGONI on the rears with apparently good tread depths. Does any one have any experience of these tyres and if I need to replace any recommendations as to profile and widths? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Neil_W Posted December 1, 2009 Report Share Posted December 1, 2009 Don't know if this helps Blackcircle on line fully fitted at a local fitting centre quote £100 each fitted for a Toyo R 888 although they say Trackday Tyre. Tyre Shopper on line fully fitted for Dunlops are £ 179 each fitted. Maybe other deals out there if you have time to trawl the net. Found Black Circle the cheapest for a set of Continentials on my TR7 which were fitted at my local National Tyres cheaper than National could do themselves. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted December 2, 2009 Report Share Posted December 2, 2009 Hi Mike, Difficult to comment without knowing which variety of Continental and Marangoni we're talking about . . . . and whilst you're checking, check the date code on the tyres ! Cheers, Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jemgee Posted December 2, 2009 Report Share Posted December 2, 2009 Plan A was courier to collect yesterday from seller and deliver today Plan B = +24 hours as courier failed to pick up. I will post tyre details when received! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jemgee Posted December 4, 2009 Report Share Posted December 4, 2009 (edited) OK tyres are Front 185 55 R15 82V Continental Premium Contact made in Germany date code 0604 ie mid Feb 04 Rears 205 50 R15 86V Marangoni Zeta Linea made in Italy date code 4505 ie mid Nov 05 Both have about 6mm tread left wth no sign of damage or uneven wear I think I got a good buy see ebay item no 150389819759 Can I get wheel centres and a touch up stick to match the MG silver paint? Edited December 4, 2009 by jemgee Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted December 4, 2009 Report Share Posted December 4, 2009 Hi Mike, that would have been a reasonable price for either the wheels or the tyres - for the whole lot, ridiculously cheap ! Nothing wrong with Premium Contact or Zeta Linea - just use them. The ZLs are a lot grippier though, at least in the dry . . . . and with narrower rubber on the front that will probably limit the usual V8 technique of unsticking the back to push round the front. The front will like as not wash out before the back end slides. In the wet the PCs may well hang on in there better than the ZLs, and you may find the back end prone to step out of line . . . . worth experimenting a little with pressures, perhaps ? Cheers, Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jemgee Posted December 4, 2009 Report Share Posted December 4, 2009 It was a good price as the seller had no bids after 10 days with a £95 starting bid.I only spotted it 2 hours before end time so I reckoned it was worth a punt! As we were out on Saturday night I did not find out I had won them until Sunday morning. Logging onto MG TF forum it seems that the paint colour is called Silver Sparkle so I will hunt for a supplier - I only need to touch up the edge of the rims in a couple of places. Checking on the rolling circumference it appears very close to the 185 70 13's on the car at the moment. It will be interesting to compare grip and ride comfort with the current Michelin MXL's. I surmise these are good for mileage wear but not as good for grip. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jemgee Posted January 13, 2010 Report Share Posted January 13, 2010 Hi guys The cars are languishing in the garage but I have made some progress obtaining a set of MG tapered seat wheel nuts so the last knockings need sorting out Do I need 5mm spacers due to ET difference 20 to 25mm between MG and standard TR alloys? If so any particular source recommended - On Ebay I have seen various universal 4/5 hole types - some appear very flimsy. Do I need centering spigots - if so who supplies them? The MG caps are OK but I need to replace the centre MG hexagon badge - any source and do the old ones come off with a heat gun? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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