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In the manual it says 6.00/6.40 15 and when calculating that to a metric size articles say 165R 15 is the best match and that's what is on my car now.
However the car sits a bit low to the ground and the over-all appearance always seemed a bit small. I think these tires are better suited for Volkswagen bug.
I've seen people use 205/70 R15 (this tire is getting too close to the fender skirt and looks a bit wide).
I can find 195/70R 15's here in Canada (probably will go with this) and I may be able to get some Pirelli's in 185/70R 15 _ this is what XKS.com have, but not Pirelli of course. I'm trying to find something available in Canada here rather then have some shipped up from the US. (gets expensive of course)
I think my Mark 2 was 185/15.These earlier radials didn't quote aspect ratio. Common fitment was Pirelli Cinturato, Avon Turbospeeds, and Dunlop SP Sport. Here's a UK classic car tyre supplier details for the Mark 2.
Later Mark 2s on radials had the wheel arch lip relieved to make sure the slightly wider radials didn't rub on it. This was done by double bending the lip after it was pressed. Again, my Mark 2 had this done as it was a 1967.
The 6.40X15 tire has a diameter of about 26.5". The closest would be a 195/75R15 which has a diameter of 26.52". This will keep your speedometer about right. I have 205/70R15 (about 26.3", previous owner choice) on my car and I have to go with the pseudo-Coombs rear arches. A 185/80R15 will measure 26.65", so your speedo will be a bit pessimistic :-)
JP
3.8l Mk2
Audi TT
Audi S3
I'm going to resurrect this thread rather then starting a new one.
Found these.
Or the Vredestein Sprint Classics for 73.09 Canadian Dollars more for 4 tires, including shipping.
Both tires are available in 185/80r15.
I was thinking that the side wall of the Nexen tire looked a bit too modern with on the large logo's on it.
For stock rims you can always go up to about 2 sizes wider without issues so I would say you could go with a 195. If you stay with stock narrow tires then I would spend more money on a high quality tire to make up for the narrow width.
If you upgrade to custom offset rims you can easily put 225 on all four corners without any clearance issues. If you want to go to the maximum the right offset rims will allow 245 in the rears; 245 can be also put on the front but a lot of modifications will be needed so unless you are willing to do a lot of work the max without mods is use a custom offset rim and you can go with a 17" rim that is 8.5" in the rear and a bit narrower in the front (probably a 7") so you can then have 17" 225 in the front and 17" 245 in the rears.
FYI, I am running 17" 245 40 series on all four corners with no rubbing at all.
I wouldn't want to go any wider then 195. Lots of 195/70's out there, but then that's a bit small and my 340 has no over drive.
I've seen 205/70's but then it's getting a bit close to the fender skirt.
You're not the first one to tell me that the Verdestiens are not that great.
Is there a problem with them that I don't know about ?
6.40X15 has a tire diameter of about 26.5"; The closest is a 195/75R15 which has a diameter of 26.52", meaning that you won't have to re-calibrate your speedometer. A 165/80R15 is about 25.39" and a 205/70R15 (which is what I have on my car) is 26.30".
JP
As long as the tire does not rub there is no issues. You can easily go with a 195 and I bet a 205 might work as well. Remember the wider the tire and the better the quality the tire will improve performance. Those stock tires are poor quality for handling. Getting close to the skirt is not an issue at all as long as it does not rub and in fact most people would agree eliminating the ugly gap looks a lot better. A good all purpose no hassle tire is the new Michelin run flat as it uses a special polymer for side wall so it is not noisy yet has the features of a run flat so you never worry about a flat and the handling is pretty good quality. If a 205 will clear yes that would be way better than a 195 for performance. I ran a ES 250 lexus made to fit 185 tires stock and ran 225 on the stock rim with no issues and the handling increase with just that wider tire and better quality tire was tremendous.
If you go with a three piece custom offset rim you can increase that tire and rim size with still no rubbing. To me the ideal with no suspension mods would be a 17" x 7" in the front with 225 wide tires and a 17" x 8" with 235 or 245 in the rear. I am running 17" x 8.5" on all rims with 245 wide tires but that requires suspension mods for the front not the rear. My speedo is calibrated and I am running a stock gauge. My car has a modern eng/trnas that is electronic so I use the Dakota Digital to covert it back to old school rotating cable stock input to the stock gauge and that will calibrate any rim/tire with no limits on how wide or tall they are.
The 205's do work, but for my taste (the cars that I saw) they're just getting too close to the rear fender skirt. I'm just the opposite, I don't like the look of a tire that's not meant for the car _ getting to close to the fender skirt _ I prefer the gap.
While the original 6.40/15's would have been too narrow though.
When I bought the car it was running 215 Toyo tires and I could barely get my fingers in there _ it was a squeeze and what ever tire shop mounted them, they had to put in these spacers to raise the front springs up a bit so they wouldn't rub on the front fenders.
With 205's my fingers would not be tight, but still too close.
I guess I'm just looking for approval to buy inexpensive tires _ the car doesn't get used that much.
The guy and Longstone tires didn't think much of the Vredestein's either.
Then you have XKs.com who sells them and promotes them _ it has become very confusing.
As for changing out the rims, I don't want to go there, too much expense.
Oh I see you position. Based on that though I would recommend not to push it to the 205 but then use a 195 but use a high performance tire or the Michelin new run flat tire. The reason is that you do not drive it that much so when you do you want good performance and you do not care then that much on longevity of the tire. If the later is true you can even go with a soft compound like the Michelin Pilot Supersport. I liked them but they did not last that long and I put way more miles than most here on my Jag as I am already approaching 50,000 miles in less than 2 years. I really like the new Michelin run flats as they are not expensive. The reality is every 15" tire is fairly inexpensive so go with something the highest rated for dry weather since it sounds like you do not drive the car that much and who cares if the tires are soft compound for good handling yet low tire life when you do not drive it much at all and most of the performance 15" 195's or 205's, even 215 or 225's are cheap like under $100/tire.
For stock rims I would get the Michelin Premier A/S all season 205 15 60 series tire also not expense at about $117/tire.
It would be much better to upgrade rims to a 17" as 15" is limited in general and your left with not the best performance tires as new cars now are typically 17" and taller. If you do not go to a more expensive custom offset you can go with a less expensive 17" x 7" rim and run 205 or even up to 225, just use a lower profile to keep the overall height around stock and then you will get much more quality options for tires.
Be careful with wide tyres - the steering effort will become very high at low speeds making parking a real effort. I guess if you have power steering that could alleviate the effort.
Power steering is one of the best upgrades to make the car more enjoyable and bring it to modern standards that many do. FYI, I highly recommend Jag Outlet for sourcing the bracket for the power steering. They have the correct bracket that gives the right geometry vs some create an incorrect angle causing bump steer. JAGUAR MKI MKII MK2 3.8S 240 STEERING BRACKET LHD & RHD. JO-MK007 (JO-MK007)
I would recommend this upgrade to any of the early sedans and yes that eliminates any issues with wide tires. Back in the day they did not have the tire/rim sizes of today. Putting wider tires will make the car handle much better and today most of the high quality tires do not make their premier performance tires in the old school 15" size anymore so I also highly recommend upgrading to a more modern 17" rim as then you will have a huge variety of much higher quality tires to choose from.
Mark II/340 Tire (Tyre) Size
