I am in need of new tires.

My rims are 15 x 7

I am kinda a fan of the "old school" raised white letter tires.

I would like something that will handle well on the track, (have great traction) but also something streetable.

Any suggestions?

Also what is the widest I could go with the 7 inch wide rim?

right now my back tires are 245 60r 15 and the front are 225 60r 15.

Thanks.

 

nitto drag radials 555r's do well on the street and good wearability too. I even feel comfortable using them on rainy days unlike the bfg drag radials

 

RWL's and performance are pretty much mutually exclusive when it comes to tires. BFG Radial T/A's look awesome, but performance is sorely lacking when compared to a modern performance tire. This is especially evident in the rain. Cooper Cobras and Dunlop's RWL tires aren't much better. If you want the look, Radial T/A's are the way to go. Just don't ask too much from them.

If you want performance, I'd look at either BFG Traction T/A's or the G-Force Sports, depending on how much longevity you're willing to sacrifice for performance.

 

You're already about maxed on how wide of tires you can use without rubbing. Some guys have gone past 245 in rear, but most say they rub. 225s in front is the widest that most can do as well.

I went with 235s in front and back because that was the narrowest my Goodyears came in. They fit now, but I had to have the suspension replaced ASAP because the 235s in front rubbed when I first put them on. In fact, I had to replace one of the front tires in the first week because it rubbed so bad.

 

if that's what you want:
"I would like something that will handle well on the track, (have great traction) but also something streetable. "
then don't go for BFGoddrich Radial T/As or Cooper Cobra Radial G/Ts. they look great but are useless, especially in a drop of rain.
Friend of mine has them with open rearend and low gearing. He has a hard time to accelerate from a traffic light in rain.
No i don't mean racing, I mean get your car going when it's getting green ...

 

I am going thru the same thought process as you are. I like the bfg radial look, but want bfg g-force or even drag radial performance. I am leaning towards the g-force and price is not terrible (compared to truck tires).

 

If you don't mind me hijacking for a second...I have 15x7s, waiting to go on the car, with 205s on the front and rear. It looks like (from above) that's pretty dang narrow? Should I get some wider ones?

 

put on what you have and decide then.
But 205 in the front is already much when you don't have powersteering.
and for the rear 205 is quite common as well I believe.
So if you own those tires already smack them on and see how it looks.

 

205 is perhaps a little narrow for the car but not for the 7" wide wheels. On my current auto-X car (626, 151 CID V6, 160-ish HP,2900-ish lbs) I've got 205/50's on 15 x 7's for competition and it drives quite well, considering its otherwise low level of preparation.

I wouldn't go past a 225 width tire on 7's even though it may be within the tire mfr's "acceptable range". Support for the tread while cornering goes a bit "soft", and I suspect that acceleration and braking grip aren't quite as good when the actual rim width is less than the "measuring width". The point here being that enjoying the way the car drives should mean more than what any random person who happens to look at the car might think.


Norm

 

I had 225's in the front and they used to rub only when taking a sharp left. I just switched them out to 205's and man it's no longer like trying to steer an aircraft carrier, more like a battle ship now...feels much much better.

I went with 205/70R14 93S for all four. The old school white lettering is a real nice look to me.