Wheel and Tire Help... 65 Barracuda

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Shane65

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Ok, so i've read numerous threads, and it's hard to get a clear answer so I'll just ask you guys... will this set up fit?

65 Barracuda, all stock, small bolt pattern...

15X7 on all four (4.125 backspacing)
-215/60/15 on front
-245/60/15 on rear
 
Yep it will work. My 65 dart had 225's on the front and 245's on the rear. It gets real close to the spring. If I'm not mistaking I put a super thin spacer to gain about an 1/8 of an inch of extra clearance but you shouldn't have any issues. Good luck man.
 
Yep it will work. My 65 dart had 225's on the front and 245's on the rear. It gets real close to the spring. If I'm not mistaking I put a super thin spacer to gain about an 1/8 of an inch of extra clearance but you shouldn't have any issues. Good luck man.

did you have 15x7's as well?
 
14x7 rally's. Height is not the issue it's width so you should not have any problems
 
Okay, what about 215 65 15? anyone run this size? its about 26 inches tall...
 
4.125" backspacing is probably going to put tire closer to the fender lip than the spring on the back. I use to run the centerline small bolt pattern wheels 15X7" with 4-7/8" backspacing and those were close to the spring I would run a 1/4" spacer with a 245/60/15 tire.

I think that backspacing will probably work on the back without spacers. Not sure about the front I always ran skinny wheels. Good luck!

Here is the Barracuda I ran them on it's pretty tight. 4.5" BS would have been my prefered backspacing on the 7" wheel.
 

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remember a 8 3/4 is 2 inches narrower than a 7 1/4 so if you see guys telling their wheel sizes, note the rear end used.
 
remember a 8 3/4 is 2 inches narrower than a 7 1/4 so if you see guys telling their wheel sizes, note the rear end used.

I have never noticed an "A" body 8-3/4" being any narrower than any other "A" body rear end. Of course I'm talking overall with factory brakes measuring wheel mounting flange to flange. I could be wrong, but I have swapped a few and never noticed any difference in wheel fitment.
 
When I went from the 7 1/4 to 8 3/4 they were the same width. If you go with a B or E body of course they will be way wider.
 
My '65 cuda has an 8-3/4 rear from a '70 Dart with factory 10-inch drums. The distance between wheel mounting flanges is the same with this setup as on the 7-1/4 rear that came in the car. I am running 14 inch Centerlines with 215/60/14's all around. Clearance is okay in front, except for a little interference with the fenderwell headers at full steering lock. Rear clearance is a couple of inches at the springs (which also came from the '70 Dart), but tight at the fender opening. Height does matter--I used to run taller tires but had worse clearance problems at the fender lip.
 
63-72 A-body 7 1/4" 53.200" flange to flange

73-76 A-body 7 1/4" 51.400" flange to flange

73-76 A-body 8 1/4" 51.400" flange to flange

All A-body 8 3/4" 51.400" flange to flange
 
Fronts will be ok....Maybe a tiny bit of trimming on the front bottom portion of fender. No biggie

245 are starting to get very close on the rears. Backspacing will be key
Here is a pic of a 235/60-14 on the rear on a factory 14"x5.5" steel wheel.
To play it safe,I would go with a 235.
 

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What I am doing is:
65 Barracuda
8 3/4 rear
Cragar s/s
14 x 6 up front 4 inch? back spacing
14 x 7 in back 4.125 back spacing
going with BFG T/A's
What is the recommended size for this set up?

Thanks :prayer:FABO
 
63-72 A-body 7 1/4" 53.200" flange to flange

73-76 A-body 7 1/4" 51.400" flange to flange

73-76 A-body 8 1/4" 51.400" flange to flange

All A-body 8 3/4" 51.400" flange to flange

I might be wrong, but the numbers I had on the 8-3/4" for early A-bodies were 52.625" flange to flange, and 57.125" drum to drum (wheel mounting flange).

I have another issue I wonder if anyone else has experienced: First, let me say that I added a leaf to the passenger side spring to counteract chassis twist at launch. However, this side measures almost an inch lower at the fender wheel opening than the driver side; even more interesting is that the passenger side is lower at the front also! As far as I know, the car has never been wrecked--I have owned it since '78, and bought it from the second owner. I did not see any evidence of body repair when it was stripped for painting in '82. I didn't notice the height difference until a few years ago--maybe it's just the result of years of twisting from the torque of the mighty 340...
 
I might be wrong, but the numbers I had on the 8-3/4" for early A-bodies were 52.625" flange to flange, and 57.125" drum to drum (wheel mounting flange).

I have another issue I wonder if anyone else has experienced: First, let me say that I added a leaf to the passenger side spring to counteract chassis twist at launch. However, this side measures almost an inch lower at the fender wheel opening than the driver side; even more interesting is that the passenger side is lower at the front also! As far as I know, the car has never been wrecked--I have owned it since '78, and bought it from the second owner. I did not see any evidence of body repair when it was stripped for painting in '82. I didn't notice the height difference until a few years ago--maybe it's just the result of years of twisting from the torque of the mighty 340...

Got my numbers out of the "Chrysler performance Upgrades" book.
Some of these Mopar books have been known to be all over the map with their numbers,so I apologize for that,if these are incorrect. Your numbers can very well be correct.

Basically,what you did was make a set of Super stock springs. But that's odd that the right side is still lower. Something is askew here. First i would give the bottom of the car a complete visual,to make sure everything is the way it should be. Then I would start off with a set of known good SS springs. They are cheap,and everywhere. Hopefully that fixes the rear. Then you can adjust the front accordingly.

PS; Just noticed we are doing a little thread jumping. My apologies to the original poster.
 
63-72 A-body 7 1/4" 53.200" flange to flange

73-76 A-body 7 1/4" 51.400" flange to flange

73-76 A-body 8 1/4" 51.400" flange to flange

All A-body 8 3/4" 51.400" flange to flange

Thanks, Johnny. that is what I had. and I went from a 65 7.25 to an 8.75 and lost clearance by my springs by about an inch per side.
 
Johnny, you are absolutely right about the variance in information--do the Chevy guys have these problems?

Yes, I have been kicking around the idea of springing for (pun intended) a new set of SS springs, but since I am on the verge of a total revamp, possibly including a coil-over front suspension, I might do something totally different in the rear also.

Yep, the thread has wandered somewhat, but I think all the info might be interesting to the original poster since it is all relevant depending on situation--that is, until I hijacked it with my question about left/right ride height--sorry!
 
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