13 inch tire recommendation

[amsiegel]

I am finally read to put tires on my car. I have decided to keep the 13 inch rims cause I like the way the original hub caps look.

Any recommendations on brand and what size to use other than the 165 R13 that are on there?

[manoa matt]

The following is a list of available tire sizes for 13" rims of about 5-6 inches wide. I think the 165/SR13 tires are pretty close or exactly the same size as 165/80R13

Tire size tire diameter tire circumference
155/80R13 22.8 71.63
165/70R13 22.2 69.74
165/80R13 25.4 79.79
175/70R13 22.7 71.31
185/70R13 23.3 73.19
195/60R13 22.3 70.06
205/60R13 22.8 71.62

Some of these sizes are pretty rare now that most car manufacturers have moved away from 13" tires in favor of 15" tires as standard on small cars and sedans.

The 165/SR13 tires will have the tallest profile and consequently help with acceleration, but the high sidewall and narrow footprint limit its performance capabilities. The 165 tires will be most period correct, but will appear way too skinny by todays standards.

Most people are probably running 185/70R13 tires.

[Redline]

Useful:

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

[Jozy]

I have a 1971 Fiat 124 spider that I would like to put a set of 205/60 R13 tires on . Can anyone tell me if this size tire will cause any issues with rubbing or performance?

[18Fiatsandcounting]

You should be fine, but two things to think about:

1. A 205/60R13 will be slightly smaller in diameter than the stock tire, so your speedometer will read a little over 2% high. Given the accuracy of the stock speedometers, that's probably not an issue.

2. If you have the stock 5.5" width rims, a 205 is about the widest tire that you can put on them. It probably will work, but a 6" rim would be better. A tire shop could give advice on this.

-Bryan

[Jozy]

Thanks Bryan, that helps.

[Jozy]

I'm in the process of a ground up restoration on a 1971 124 spider. Having issues bleeding the brakes. New Master cylinder, new rear calipers, rebuilt front calipers, flushed and blew out all lines,new rear brake compensator. I have tried gravity bleeding and mechanical, starting with the right rear and I am unable to get any fluid moving. I have also removed the linkage for the rear compensator during the bleeding process. Does anyone have any suggestions?

[18Fiatsandcounting]

Did you fill the new master cylinder with brake fluid before installing it? If not, sometimes the master cylinder doesn't start pumping until it has been primed a bit. You don't need to totally remove the master cylinder to prime it, but you can carefully (with a eye dropper) drizzle some brake fluid into the top connections that go to the hoses to the reservoir. Sometimes it works to wait overnight and let fluid slowly drain in. But not always. And I'm assuming your brake fluid reservoir is full.

Note that brake fluid is corrosive to paint. Not immediately, but if you spill any on the paint, wipe it up within a few minutes.

-Bryan

[spidernut]

The 13" tires are hard to find. I found a set at Firestone called Primewell Tires. They were HOOOOOORRIBLE. They could only find two round tires out of five tested. The out of round tires were discovered during the test drive which was so bad that the tires vibrated the car. They were a good 1/2" to 3/4" out of round and this could be seen on the balancer as the tire rotated. The rim was perfectly round but the tires were not. I eventually found a set at Discount/America's Tire store. I don't recall the brand but they ran well on the car.