New tire problem

[Jax79]

Well I got the BFG Radial TAs in 255-60-15. Wow they look really good:cool However when I turn the wheel all the way to the left the right tire rubs near where the fender well curves in and down. It seems that if I could just raise the car up about a 1/4" that the tire would clear. Would spring spacers raise the car enough or do I need to do some thing else:confused I really don't want to go to a smaller tire in the front but I will do whatever it takes:eyerole

 

[Phill]

Mine do the same thing. ive heard of trimming that part of the fender but i dont know about that.

 

[JohnZ]

St. Louis trimmed the fender opening flanges on all units specifying the optional 255/60 tires to prevent fiberglass damage.

 

[mkapp7879]

 

[Jax79]

St. Louis trimmed the fender opening flanges on all units specifying the optional 255/60 tires to prevent fiberglass damage.

What about the spacers or maybe a slightly bigger spring to raise the front. It seems that it will only take about a 1/4" to 3/8" to get the tire to clear?

 

[73shark]

Trimming is way easier and doesn't jack your car up. Replacing front springs is not a walk in the park.

 

[Vette79]

Well I got the BFG Radial TAs in 255-60-15. Wow they look really good:cool However when I turn the wheel all the way to the left the right tire rubs near where the fender well curves in and down. It seems that if I could just raise the car up about a 1/4" that the tire would clear. Would spring spacers raise the car enough or do I need to do some thing else:confused I really don't want to go to a smaller tire in the front but I will do whatever it takes:eyerole

Interesting, my front tires rub a little to but I can't tell where they are rubbing. John, do you have a pic of where to trim?

 

[Jax79]

Interesting, my front tires rub a little to but I can't tell where they are rubbing. John, do you have a pic of where to trim?

What about the the return edge of the fender well? It allmost seems that there is some body work to be done. Maybe it would be easier to just go with 235-60-15s and skip all of the hassle.

 

[73shark]

Interesting, my front tires rub a little to but I can't tell where they are rubbing. John, do you have a pic of where to trim?

Here's the two areas I had to trim just a little with 8.5" wheels w/ ~ 1.0" negative offset. These are on the driver's side. Only had to do the left pic on the psgr side.

 

[Jax79]

Here's the two areas I had to trim just a little with 8.5" wheels w/ ~ 1.0" negative offset. These are on the driver's side. Only had to do the left pic on the psgr side.

Mine is rubbing on the passenger side. How much did you have to trim off and how did you get the 90 degree return that makes it look as though it is a factory job? It looks like you did a pretty decent job on your car. I am not a body and fender or fiberglass man, is this type of work very expensive? The picture of the front of the fender well is exactly where my tire is rubbing.

 

[73shark]

Honestly I don't remember how I did it which was about 35 years ago. If I was doing it today, would probably use a sanding disk on a drill or buffer. Really didn't have to remove much material. You could do it manually by wrapping a large diameter dowel or pipe w/ sandpaper. Either way, wear a long sleeve shirt, hat, and dust mask.

 

[Jax79]

Honestly I don't remember how I did it which was about 35 years ago. If I was doing it today, would probably use a sanding disk on a drill or buffer. Really didn't have to remove much material. You could do it manually by wrapping a large diameter dowel or pipe w/ sandpaper. Either way, wear a long sleeve shirt, hat, and dust mask.

Thanks for your info. It will give me a place to start.

 

[Vette79]

What about the the return edge of the fender well? It allmost seems that there is some body work to be done. Maybe it would be easier to just go with 235-60-15s and skip all of the hassle.

I have new tires installed and to me it wouldn't make sense to down grade because of a little rub every once in a while. Thanks 73shark for the pics...

 

[Jax79]

Honestly I don't remember how I did it which was about 35 years ago. If I was doing it today, would probably use a sanding disk on a drill or buffer. Really didn't have to remove much material. You could do it manually by wrapping a large diameter dowel or pipe w/ sandpaper. Either way, wear a long sleeve shirt, hat, and dust mask.

I would really like to thank you for your valuable information. When I first tried to turn the wheels and check for rubbing I was home in my driveway which is on a downward incline and slightly uneven. However, When I put the car in the garage on an even floor the tire only rubbed very slightly so I have dicided to have the front end rebuilt and the caster adjusted. Again, thanks for your help it is greatly appreciated.

 

[Gohot]

I realize this is an old post but thought it would affect a lot of owners still. 255 60 15's on the rear fills the wheel-well pretty nice. I see that a 255 70 15 is also available, which should just about be the limit. At that point I worry about wheel travel and the tire hitting the lip. I would deffinately limit downward travel with bumpers or whatever need be. As for the fronts, I think 245 60 15's would be appropriate to avoid the said rubbing. Outwardly there would be very little visual difference from front to back I believe, and only an astute eye would spot the size difference if using the 60 series tires. The 60 front, and 70 rear might be quite visible however.

 

[73shark]

On stock wheels, I don't think the 255/60s would rub in front.

These pics illustrate how minor my rubbing was and my wheels are 8.5"