nop

There is thread on this forum looking for support to bring back the 205/60-13. The link in that thread to the Mexican tire website doesn't list a 205/60-14 used by the SE. So far, in the US, the only 14" street tire that I have found is made by Nankang in China or Taiwan. It was available from discounttiredirect.com (as of last week).

I thought the solution was to use the 195/65-14 which is 24" OD vs. 23.7" for the 205/60-14. There appeared to be a decent selection of them about three weeks ago. But today I found that Discount Tire is no longer stocking the General Altimax RT. General is discontinuing it. As of today Discount Tire only list a Falken Sincera SN-828. Tirerack.com has only the Kumho KR-21. Another local source has offered a Hankook Mileage Plus II. That is also a discontinued tire. The reviews I have read on all these brands have ranged from awesome to awful.

I found onlinetires.com and they list 18 tire choices (though 1 is incorrect). There is no way to check availability except by calling. When I called they did not have the General Altimax RT in stock. He did say that it was being discontinued but they have a shipment coming in on Aug. 1 (2014).

My '85 SE has a been my daily driver since I bought it new 30 years ago. I really don't want to change the wheels but tire selection is really limited. Instead of looking for a tire with good wet traction my only choice appears to be something that is round and black. And if I wait much longer that may not be a choice.

Do any of you RX-7 gurus here have any words of wisdom on 14" tire choices and/or online tire suppliers? I have never purchased tires online before.

Thanks,
Steve

Cookboy

iTrader: (10)

195 60 14 offers some choice. That's what I currently have on my s model panasports.

Spannerhead

iTrader: (1)

I look at it this way: The rarer the tire size, the more expensive the tire. At a certain point, it actually becomes cheaper to buy new larger wheels and a more common tire size than it does to buy just the OEM tires. That's what happened with the Michelin TRXs, and it's rapidly happening to our cars. At some point, you break even.

I don't think we're quite there yet, though. But if I were in the market for new tires, I would certainly pitch it to my wife that I'm getting a discount on new tires by buying new wheels too!

t_g_farrell

iTrader: (1)

Steve, first of all welcome. I think based on your post that you must be an OGTA or should be
since your in the Atlanta area. (OGTA - Old Guy with Twelve A) Theres a great group that meets
monthly on the north atlanta suburbs, 1st Tuesday of ever month. Heres the link to the thread
maintained here on the forum Old guys with 12As club meeting - Page 671 - RX7Club.com

To your point, yes getting tires, especially decent performance tires in 13 or 14 inche is near
impossible unless you step up to RDOT tires like Hoosier or Toyos.

Cameron38

iTrader: (2)

When I bought my SE, it had Bridgestone 195/65-14's. They are a crappy family car tire with lousy handling characteristics. I ended up going to 15x7 wheels with 205/55-15's. I think they fill up the wheel wells nicely without any modifications to the car. $800 for wheels and Tires (Kumhos) from TireRack.

I did find the 205/60-14's listed from a brand called Nexen. I think they are Korean, but could be Chinese.

High Performance Tires | Winter Tires | Passenger Tires | SUV/Light Truck Tires | OE Tires | Nexen Tire USA

nop

Using CookBoy's suggestion for 195/60-14 tires, it appeared that I hit the mother lode at onlinetires.com. They listed ~40 tires. But when I called they only had one, the Hankook H724. They also listed a BFG g-force Super Sport but it was out of stock and the rep thought it was discontinued. The rep at DiscountTire said the same thing and TireRack has an expected delivery date of Oct 1 for the BFG. But there are three other choices to consider, the Copper CS3, the General Altimax HP and the Hankook Optimo H426. Any feedback on these would be appreciated.

SpannerHead, I considered getting new wheels, but I just like the stock SE wheels. I don't love them but I do like them. It's not that I'm a purist, numbers-matching owner, it just happens that the car is stock and if possible I'll keep it that way. Over the years, I have satisfied my desire of converting money into noise by playing with other cars. So if I can find one more set of tires, they will probably outlast me and the car.

And yes t_g_f, I'm an old guy. I will add the OGTA meeting to my Outlook calendar and maybe I won't forget it. At the rate I'm going with the tires and wheels, the SE may still be up on blocks at the August meeting.

Thanks for all your help.

nop

Even though I just posted that I didn't want to change the wheels, I must admit that I like your wheels Cameron. In my mind, I couldn't picture another wheel that I thought would look good. And if you had told me what you did I would still be skeptical. But after seeing your picture, I may have to rethink this. You and Spannerhead may have the right idea. (Life was simpler just a few moments ago.)

Would you mind telling me the wheel manufacturer and the Kumho tire model for your car? That is a beautiful example of an SE. Mine is still in good condition but I would love to have it looking that sharp.

I haven't seen the Nexen 205/60-14 but thanks for the link.

Cookboy

iTrader: (10)

I bought a set of the Generals for my sous chef a couple years ago (volvo 850 turbo) and he was pleased for 20,000 miles, at which point a tree fell on his car and totaled it.

Having just read reviews of the 3 you mentioned available, I'd say the generals would be what I'd buy.

Cameron38

iTrader: (2)

The Wheels are American Racing AR95 Estrella's 15x7. They have the correct offset.
I liked these wheels because I thought they look period correct for an '80's car.

http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/Wheel...oat&tab=wheels

The Tires are Kumho ECSTA 4X's, 205/55/15

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....Model=Ecsta+4X

I sold the crappy Bridgestone tires but I kept my original SE wheels. They are kinda beat up but the next buyer might want them.

nop

The Generals seemed like the safe bet to me as well. Thanks for the input CookBoy.

Now I have to decide on the whether to swap wheels or not. Thanks for the details on the wheel and tire Cameron. I agree, that the wheel is similar to what you might have seen on cars back in the 80's. That's why I'm interested. Now I have to think this through and make a decision.

Siraniko

iTrader: (13)

No they werent, at least not in LA. Hayashi, weds, epsilons, compomotive, ssrs, gottis were the style and for low budget, rikens, enkei 92, AR 4spoke libre and stretchies (old school 13' modified to 7" wide by welding another barrel)

Cameron38

iTrader: (2)

I meant they look like period correct OEM wheels found on '80's Sports coupes. Not After Market Wheels.