Looking for new tires to replace my old Firestones. Any
suggestions for contacts would be appreciated.–
autoluke
–Posted using Jag-lovers JagFORUM [forums.jag-lovers.org]–
There is a lot of information in the archives as it has been discussed at
length. Perhaps most predominantly has been: Radial vs Bias ply and Fender
skirt clearance, if applicable. Does your car have fender shirts and which model
XK do you have. I have had a variety of radials on my XK120, ( with fender
skirts), including the Firestones. It was my experience that, although I liked
them, they were softer than the Pirellis, but with a wider track making the car
more difficult to steer that the Veredesteins or the Michelins. The Vered’s and
Michelins are by far my preferrence; they bot have a narrow profile and clear
the skirts, and make steering much like my car did on the bias ply that were on
it when I bought the car.
I have even had the car is a severe sideways drift on Road Atlanta, ( not on
purpose ! ) with the Michelins and no disaster occurred. Still, I wouldn’t want
to do that on radials again.
I hope this is helpful,
Knight
PS - Now when I go to buy tires for one of the 120s, I let price govern between
the Vereds or the Michelins, since they jockey back & forth, marginally, on who
is less expensive.----- Original Message ----
From: autoluke jphilip.lukens@gmail.com
To: xk@jag-lovers.org
Sent: Sun, June 5, 2011 7:51:25 AM
Subject: [xk] New Tires
Looking for new tires to replace my old Firestones. Any
suggestions for contacts would be appreciated.
autoluke
–Posted using Jag-lovers JagFORUM [forums.jag-lovers.org]–
In reply to a message from autoluke sent Sun 5 Jun 2011:
Thanks Knight…
Car is now equipped with Firestone bias/tube tires. It is
an XK140 with spokes so that the tread width would not be a
problem. My main concern is road traction at moderate
speeds of 40 to 50 mph.–
autoluke
–Posted using Jag-lovers JagFORUM [forums.jag-lovers.org]–
–Support Jag-lovers - Donate at http://www.jag-lovers.org/donate04.php –
Luke,
You also didn’t mention your preference, driving or authenticity. If it’s
the latter, you’ll want to replace the current tires with like size and
construction. If you’re more interested in driving, then 205/70R16s as
fitted to the Toyota RAV4 are perfect. They’re about an inch wider and
almost identical in diameter. Given that the suspension on the XKs wasn’t
designed for radials, IMO, there’s no reason to get too fancy. I’m on my
second set of Dunlop Grand Treks on my 120 and they are far superior to
bias-plies. I slalom my 120 and have been known to put on a bit of a
drifting exhibition (without the smoke) on occasion when I over drive the
course.
My personal opinion is that you don’t want too soft of a compound because
the wire wheels weren’t designed for the lateral grip of radials. I’d rather
lose grip than have a wheel collapse. The Dunlops have a treadwear of 360
which is a moderately hard compound and seems good for my 60-spoke wheels.
I’ve had to replace one broken spoke in 15K or so miles of driving. If I had
54-spoke wheels, I’d buy the hardest-compound radial I could find. The least
grippy radial is still going to be superior to most bias-plies.
You also didn’t mention if cost is a factor. The Grand Treks can be bought
for a bit over US$100. I think some of the other brands are a bit less
expensive, but I like the Dunlop name on the sidewall, however tenuous the
connection to the original Dunlops is.
“Mark 1” Mark Stephenson Phoenix, AZ
52 XK120 S673129; 59 Mark 1; 84, 85, 86, 95 XJ6-----Original Message-----
From: owner-xk@jag-lovers.org [mailto:owner-xk@jag-lovers.org] On Behalf Of
autoluke
Sent: Sunday, June 05, 2011 6:23 AM
To: xk@jag-lovers.org
Subject: Re: [xk] New Tires
In reply to a message from autoluke sent Sun 5 Jun 2011:
Thanks Knight…
Car is now equipped with Firestone bias/tube tires. It is an XK140 with
spokes so that the tread width would not be a problem. My main concern is
road traction at moderate speeds of 40 to 50 mph.
autoluke
–Posted using Jag-lovers JagFORUM [forums.jag-lovers.org]-- --Support
Jag-lovers - Donate at http://www.jag-lovers.org/donate04.php –