1973 Chevelle Best Tire Size for All Four Corners

by 73sssb Fri Mar 23, 2018 9:01 am

Looking to run the same wheel and tire size front and back on my 73. Previous owner put 235/60R15 on the front and 275/60R15 on the rear. Not only does the 275 hit the fender well occasional, but I'm personally not a fan of the staggered sizes.

Easiest option is to buy two more 235/60R15 for the rear... However I'm wondering if I could comfortably fit 245/60R15 in the front and match the rear.

Any 73 or later Chevelle owners run the 245 up front without issue? There is a small chance I will upgrade the front springs which may lower the car slightly (maximum 1" solely to improve handling).

I don't want the tires to hit/rub anything in any scenario - even with the wheel fully cocked and hitting a bump or something.

by Joe73 Fri Mar 23, 2018 9:57 am

I would do the suspension first, then take some measurements. To much variation in the body. There's plenty play in the way the nose sits on the chassis and firewall. Could mean the difference of 1/4" to 1/2".

Just a thought.

by 73sssb Fri Mar 23, 2018 10:18 am

That would be the smartest thing to do for sure. I will say the suspension is sagging a bit and the springs definitely need replaced. With the current sag it looks like there would be plenty of room - but I haven't driven the car much or hard so I'm not sure how the front gives to bumps and what not. I got it home and started taking it apart - and I babied it on the way home.

If I end up going with 235 in the rear to match the current front - do you foresee any traction problems? It seems most run much larger tires in the rear on these cars. Aiming for 375 to 425 ft lbs of torque in the end, but I will be gearing it for daily driving/moderate efficiency.

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by Iggy Fri Mar 23, 2018 1:22 pm

I ran 245/60R15's in all four corners on my 1977 Monte and had no issues on the front. On my 1975 Laguna I plan on going with 255/60R15 on Corvette Rallys (15x8).

by 73sssb Fri Mar 23, 2018 3:12 pm

Iggy wrote:I ran 245/60R15's in all four corners on my 1977 Monte and had no issues on the front. On my 1975 Laguna I plan on going with 255/60R15 on Corvette Rallys (15x8).

Do you intend to do any modifications to make the 255 fit up front? If that works for you I don't think I'd have any trouble with the 245.

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by JF74chevelle Fri Mar 23, 2018 9:09 pm

I have 295s on the rear of my 74 no rubbing at all with 245s up front, but I have my alignement more for handling so about 1* of neg. Camber to help tuck the tires. Viking coilovers, and global west offset control arms new bushings all around

by Joe73 Sat Mar 24, 2018 4:49 am

JF74, could be the pic, but in your avatar it looks like your rear 295s would hit if the suspension compressed enough. Do you have a closer side pic? Rear pic? Are they 295/50-15?

by bigredlaguna Sat Mar 24, 2018 8:16 am

I have had 245/60-15's on the front and 255/60-15' on the back on my first 74. Absolutely no rubbing issues. I am confident that 255's on the front would not be a problem either.

Having said that, the 76 I currently have with 255's on the front has one area that rubs. The right front rubs the frame when the steering is at full left turn. I am pretty sure this is due to the steering wheel not being centered when the wheels are straight. That was with 8" wide rims with 4" backspace, and bushings so shot there was no rubber in them anymore. I currently have these tires on rims that have a 4.5" backspace which means they are closer to the centerline of the car, so I will find out real soon if new bushings and a proper alignment will keep these from rubbing.

My daughter's car has 265/50-15 tires on the front on 8" rally rims and does not rub. Hers has new bushings and at least a factory spec alignment. She took it to a local alignment shop and just had them do it, so I don't know what the exact specs are right now.

The 275's shouldn't hit or rub the rear, what are the dimension of the rim the tire is on? Will you be using the same rims for the smaller tires? I have run 295/50-15 on the rear on an 8" rim with 4" backspace and there is plenty of room. The same tire on a 10" rim and 4" backspace will cut the tire on the wheelwell lip. If that 10" rim had 5" backspace, it would have cleared everything.

I think 255's would be good all around on an 8" rim with 4" backspace. Traction issues may require a different thread, lol.

by 73sssb Sat Mar 24, 2018 9:04 am

The 275 on the rears are either on too large of a rim or the wrong bs (or both) then. There are literally circles on the side wall of each rear tire. I don't think this guy was too bright.

Completely up for suggestions on rim size if I can fit 245/60R15 up front. It sounds like if (at a minimum) I get my suspension up to stock quality/position it should work without issue.

Thank you all for the input so far. Even though it's marginal I really want to fit the wider tire (245) under all four corners. I don't think I'd risk using 255s in case I decide to lower an inch in the front.

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by bigredlaguna Sat Mar 24, 2018 10:00 am

I like 8" rims. But both those tire sizes can fit on a 7" rim. If you use a 7" rim I doubt you would have any issues at all with 255's even with worn out bushings. Have you picked out a set of rims to use?

by ant7377 Sat Mar 24, 2018 7:17 pm

I have a 255 60 on the front of my 77 Monte 275 60 on rear on 3.5 bs 8 inch rim. Nothing rubs. Go with a little bigger tire.

by JF74chevelle Sat Mar 24, 2018 10:13 pm

Joe73 wrote:JF74, could be the pic, but in your avatar it looks like your rear 295s would hit if the suspension compressed enough. Do you have a closer side pic? Rear pic? Are they 295/50-15?

It must be the pic because they still clear, with more room to go towards the frame too.

by 77cruiser Sun Mar 25, 2018 7:13 am

I used to have 275/60/15 on all 4 corners, 8" Vette ralleys.

by Iggy Mon Mar 26, 2018 6:10 am

Do you intend to do any modifications to make the 255 fit up front? If that works for you I don't think I'd have any trouble with the 245.

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You will not have any issues with 245's! I will not know for certain on the 255's but sounds like many here have run them with no issues.

by 73sssb Mon Mar 26, 2018 6:16 am

Thanks guys, this all helps for sure.

I haven't decided on rims yet, but I've always been a fan of the 8 holed Cragars - not sure what it would look like on this car though.

If you think even 255s would fit, what diameter rim do you think would work without having a lot of bulge? (I don't want anything extreme)

Sounds like if I want to be completely safe 245 on a 7" should work?

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1973 Chevelle Best Tire Size for All Four Corners

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