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MG MGB Technical - What brand of tires?

As I get closer to the end of my project I am approaching the need to buy tires. I have a 66roadster with wire wheels. I plan to use 185/70r 14 tires. I don't need tires that will have 50000 miles of wear in them because they will dry rot before I use up the tread. I am sure I am opening up a debate but has anyone had a better ride on one brand than others? I will be using it for motoring only, no racing or aggresssive driving. The Dunlop 20 series looked reasonably priced, about $50 per tire. I have a local shop where the owner has an MG that will install them for me. Also any mail order tire company better than others?

Thanks
Dave
D Enghauser

Dave. Not sure why you are bothering to post since you seem to have made up your mind already.

There are two brands of tires suitable for MGs--Michelin and "Others".

You seem to have chosen the later brand. Unfortunate, but not my problem.

Les
Les Bengtson

Hello,

Wire wheels are sensitive to stiff sidewall. As 70 series are more firm than originals 165x14 you must rely on something flexible like Pirelli P4 or a cheap tire like some models available at walmart. Ex: Douglas brand.
I made a mistake one time to buy Yokohama that size and they were stiff on ride and for wheels. If you want something more soft you could also search for 175/75x14. You can use that site to compare size possible.

http://www.stuegli.com/tiresize.htm

Cheers,

Jean G.
Jean Guy Catford

185/70 14 tyres have the same sidewall height as 165 14 tyres - the sidewall is at a different angle because of the wider tread but I would have thought that would make them softer if anything.

The 185/70 14 tyre is heavier than the 165 14 and that will make a difference in feel, especially on wires.

My experience over 32+ years of owning MGBs is that Michelin wear well but offer least grip especially in wet weather, Continentals run really quiet, Yokohamas give superb grip but wear fast, Pirellis are a good balance between grip & wear, Avons and Uniroyal are superb wet weather tyres, Dunlops are rubbish that wear fast.

Generalisations, I know and there are differences within the brands for various specs of tyre.

My cars wear either Avons, Uniroyals (MGBs) or Yokohamas (midget/Sprite)
Chris at Octarine Services

Actually Les I have not decided what tires to buy, just posing a question. Sorry for the unclear nature of my posting.
Dave

Dave,

I put a set of General Altimax RT on my 77 wire wheel B roadster. However, since I am still in the process of sorting the car out, I have never pressed them and have not yet driven the car in the rain. So, though I have no complaints, I can't give you much of an impression.

I bought them based on test results comparing them to three other tires. You can look at those test results (as well as others) on the Tire Rack web sight. If you look at the test, note the tab that takes you to the results in chart format. They are about $50 plus shipping if you order them from Tire Rack.

I tried to buy them locally, but the only place I found that had them wanted about $90. The $90 figure included mount and balance, but I didn’t really trust the shop to do the work on wire wheels, and they would not reduce the price for an over-the-counter purchase.

Charley
C R Huff

When I worked at a Volvo dealership I got a set of 185/75 X 14 Kumhos for $35 each. That was 10k ago. No complaints about wear or traction at all.

cheers

Gary
79 MGB
gnhansen

Chris. I have little recent experience with the Pirellis is somewhat dated. Back in the early 70's I had a 61 MGA 1600 with Michelin ZX tires while a friend had an identical car with Pirellis. Thus, an opportunity to test the two brands side by side. Michelins were markedly superior.

Within modern memory (last 10-12 years) I have been running four MGBs and a Miata, allowing me to do some side by side testing of some of the modern tires. When switching to driving an MGB with the Michelin tires, after having driven one with some other brand for a week or two, I am always surprised at how much better the grip on the road is. I have to remember, when switching over to a non-Michelin equipped car for that weeks driving, that I do not have the traction that the Michelins provide. Especially a problem when it is hot (110+F) where I will squeal the tires when taking off until I get used to the lesser traction of the other tire brands. In my climate and under my driving conditions, the Michelin tires are vastly superior to anything else I have tested. Probably one of the reasons that Michelins were original equipment on the B.

The Miata is sufficiently similar to the B that I include it in my testing. Yokohamas lasted 18K of their 40K warranty. Replaced with Michelins which had notably better traction, wear life, and made for better handling. They lasted about 25K of their rated 60K warranty. Then, Kumhos at the suggestion of the tire store people. Poor handling, compared to the Michelins and Yokohamas, and about the same tread life as the Yokohamas. Put on a fresh set of Michelins just before the younger daughter took the Miata off to graduate school. As a degreed engineer, she has the experimental background to understand what is happening with her car (she is also a graduate of the Boundurant School of High Performance Driving) and has come to demand Michelin tires on her car.

I have used a number of different brands of tires over the years, both in the US and in Europe. I have used them in the dry, desert areas and in Germany when some form of rain happened almost every day. Michelin makes the best, all around tire that I have found. But, my cars are daily drivers and a less expensive tire may well suit a limited use vehicle and a specialty tire may be needed under certain conditions of use. But, in general, there is Michelin and there is "other" in some fairly extensive testing.

Les
Les Bengtson

Hi Folks:

I have been driving MK1 MGB;s with wire wheels for more than 45 years. The best tire I have ever used was the Pirelli CA67 Cinurato (165SR-14), and each set I got more than 80k miles per tire. My car came with Dunlop radials (SP-41) and wore them out in approx 18k. I then tried the Pirelli's, and it felt like riding on chewing gum. Great tire; 2 ply side wall, 7 ply fabric radial belt with no wire reinforcement. I am presently using Michelin MX Rain Force 165R-14 with inner tubes, and they have a hard & stiff ride, but have great controlability in turns.

Recently I read that the CA67's are being reproduced, but have lost the web connection. I will be looking for new tires soon to be mounted to a set of Dayton chrome wire wheels (5" tubeless). I have heard that Vrederstein still manufactures a non profile fabric radial.
In any event I will keep up the search for the CA67's.

Thanks: Rich Boris
Rich Boris

This thread was discussed on 19/03/2009

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