[takid]

Im putting honeycomb rims on my 1970 formula firebird.Has anyone had any issues as putting P235/60 /R15 tires on 15 x 7 honeycomb rims? Such as rubbing while turning or rubbing when you hit bumps in the road when the car would bounce? Or should I stick with P225/70/R15. Also when I have the tires mounted on the rims, is there any things I need to know or pass along to the installer. Thanks for any feedback.

[njsteve]

No problems with 235. You can even run a 255. As for installation, honeycombs are lug centric not hub centric rims. You have to balance them on a wheel balancer that locates the wheel by the five lug holes and not by the large center hole. These wheels have a steel cone that is set into the urethane to form the center area of the face. It is not centered with any degree of accuracy. If you balance it using the center hole, you are wasting your balancing $.

[Dave M]

I have used P245/60 /R15 front and rear for years with no issues.

[LeighP]

Those 235/60 tyres are a lot shorter than the 225/70 tyres.....in case you hadn't considered that.

[PONTIAC-ONE]

255/60/15 BFG's that were on my 71 rubbed during sharp turns.

[FrankieT/A]

Balancing honey combs is definitely a problem. They need to be balanced on the car. As NJSteve said they can not be balanced on a regular balancer. I would agree it would be a total waste of money.

[njsteve]

Our local Midas Muffler shop had the correct balancer with the lug mounting fixture. It worked great on the rims that weren't too bent to balance. :-)

I have 235x60 in the front and 255x60 in the rear, on the Formula. The 235 is the closest modern radial to F60's original height, I think.

[Bentwheelbob]

I think with the increased popularity of of custom rims, both OEM and aftermarket, more tire shops have the correct equipment to deal with Honeycombs. I took mine to the top local independent tire shop here in Charleston and started to explain to the owner what I thought he needed to do. He looked at me dismissively and asked if I thought he was an idiot. He had the right stuff and even took enough care to clock the air valve and white lettering on each tire the same.

[njsteve]

Originally Posted by Bentwheelbob

He looked at me dismissively and asked if I thought he was an idiot.

I would have said, "I'll defer my answer until you explain how you're going to balance these wheels."

(When someone at a customer-based business talks to me in that fashion I always throw it right back at them, usually in a loud enough voice for all the other customers and employees to hear.)

I am THE crabby old man. :-)

[bird72]

Originally Posted by PONTIAC-ONE

255/60/15 BFG's that were on my 71 rubbed during sharp turns.

same tire on mine, on honeycombs, same rub.... I plan on going stock height (not low profile) 70 series to match vintage stock look. So many people go low profile these days, even on dead on resto's, then put a modern profile on the car. (sorry pet peeve and preference only, I know handling is another topic, this is looks department).

[njsteve]

I love the look of the original bias ply Polyglass F60x15 but I like to drive the car and there's no comparison in handling and ride quality. I wish there was a way for the aftermarket to make a radial with the Polyglass letters and logo but I know that's an impossible dream due to trademarks, etc.

[takid]

Yep i do too. Brings back good ole memories. But the price on the new Bias tires is very high right now compared to a white lettered radial tiremthey make now.

[PONTIAC-ONE]

Originally Posted by njsteve

I would have said, "I'll defer my answer until you explain how you're going to balance these wheels."

(When someone at a customer-based business talks to me in that fashion I always throw it right back at them, usually in a loud enough voice for all the other customers and employees to hear.)

I am THE crabby old man. :-)

Also in places & situations like this I'm more concerned about the 16 year old that comes after school to earn some cash working the tires, sure the boss may know but will the helpers listen or care??

[Bentwheelbob]

Originally Posted by njsteve

I would have said, "I'll defer my answer until you explain how you're going to balance these wheels."

(When someone at a customer-based business talks to me in that fashion I always throw it right back at them, usually in a loud enough voice for all the other customers and employees to hear.)

I am THE crabby old man. :-)

Wow, tough crowd today....Maybe I'm not the only one hiding from my wife today.



I guess you had to be there and understand the context. The old man owns the shop and does the work along with his 40 year old son. The young idiots that don't know much work the desk and answer the phone. Every set of tires I have ordered from the Tire Rack have been mounted and installed there. It's also where I take my brake drums for turning.

[njsteve]

LOL.

Reminds me of going to the local Midas Muffler shop a couple years ago. We have a 1975 Firebird that my Grandmother bought new. She got the lifetime replacement shock absorber warranty in 1977 and we still had all the paperwork. I went there to get new shocks. The 20 year old kid at the counter could not understand that the warranty covered free shocks and free installation, since they only do free replacement shocks for as long as he could remember. (what's that - around 2 years of working???) The original paperwork stated it in block letters: free shocks and free installation. He tells me that he doesn't know how to do this warranty claim because he had never seen a paper warrranty before as everything is on computers and there was no record of this car in their computer. He then tried to comvince me that I owed them $400 worth of installation charges.

I walked over to the very haggard looking, 50-something year old manager of the franchise and showed him the paperwork. He rolled his eyes, shook his head, and then shoved the kid out of the way from behind the register and tore up the bill.

He then told me how he used to have 73 Trans Am years ago.

This is the same Midas that has the correct wheel balancer for the honeycombs and I have gone back since then to have the "old man" balance the rims for me.

[RASK]

I got the typical BF Goodrich Radial T/As - 235 front, 255 rear with no problems. The T/A stands for Trans Am of course! It was a few years before I got them mounted. I would suggest you clean that blue stuff off the lettering as soon as you can. I could never get my lettering as bright as I would like.

[4birds]

I have BFG 245/60/15's front and rear on my 72 Trans Am with no rubbing issues. Maybe the bigger sway bars on the Trans Am's keep the body from rolling so much and prevents any contact. The Firebirds have no rear sway bar and that could create the rubbing issues in the rear wheelwell. Most Formulas have smaller front and rear sway bars than the Trans Ams and could be a contributing factor with rubbing with the wider tires also. What do you guys think?

[Nidan73sd]

I had my own experience last time I purchased Good Year Eagle GT tires for installation on Honeycombs for my 73 TA. I chose the 225 70R15 which are taller and fill out the wheel well better/my personal preference.

After they were installed there were vibrations that couldn't be ignored from 55-65 mph. I took the owner (Scott's U Save in Steger, IL) on a drive and his solution was "don't drive it between 55-65 mph". I then took it to Skip's Good Year (Homewood, IL) and they told me they have to be balanced on a "Mag wheel balancer" which they did and there was no problem after that. Skip's charged me $20 which I gladly paid. Then I wrote a letter to the original place I went to (thinking I MAY be reimbursed) but never heard from him. Short story long, I've been back to Skips's numerous times with the TA and also my Daily driver 99 Grand Prix GT w/ 176,000 miles on it.

[starlightblack]

Nice, nice car Nidan - great pic of you and the kids! Super-Duty - cool! 4spd.? TH400?

[Nidan73sd]

Originally Posted by starlightblack

Nice, nice car Nidan - great pic of you and the kids! Super-Duty - cool! 4spd.? TH400?

Hey thanks for the kudos! It's an Automatic Turbo 400, drove it home from Phoenix, Arizona when I acquired it (California car). Just a great all around car-has A/C and a 3.08 gear.