Demon front tire size advice

-
71DodgeDemon340

71DodgeDemon340

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 2, 2011
Messages
2,697
Reaction score
946
Location
Tennessee
Hey guys so heres my dilemma, well not really, im just in the thinking stage right now but my current setup is


205/65R15 bfg advantage t/a up front

275/60R15 bfg radial t/a in back

My tires are approaching 5-6 years old and was thinking of replacing them ( i know its kinda overkill but i dont risk things when it comes to tires and rubber hardens over time)

I would like to go wider on the front.

My question is i can either go two routes.

1. Save some money and go with the 275/60R15 bfg radial t/a in the back and go to a 225/60R15 radial t/a in the front. The 225/60R15 is the same diameter as the 205/65R15 but wider which im trying to go for as i think the 225 will look better on the 7” wide rally.

2. Go with a 275/60R15 mickey thompson drag radial or bfg radial t/a in the back and go to a 235/60R15 mickey thompson drag radial or bfg radial t/a in the front. The 235/60R15 is wider than the 205/60R15 but is also 1/2” overall taller which would be a 1/4” all the way around.

I have a good bit of clearance but im affraid the combination of 1/4” bigger and about 15 mm wider towards the outside of the tire will rub on the front fender opening.

Anyone have expirience running that size up front?

For reference they are 15x7 rally wheels and front has been converted to lbp

Heres how she currently sits, im thinking the 225/60R15 would be a better option as it will keep the same sidewall height and overall stance but give me a 20mm wider tire up front.

16991688-F591-436B-A8F0-A20D40D5552E.jpeg
 
What's the backspace on those 15x7's?

If you've got 15x7's with 4.25" of backspace, you should be able to manage the 225/60/15's. If you've got 15x7's with 4" of backspace, the 225's aren't going to work.

I ran 225/60/15's on the front of my Duster with 15x7" cop rims with a 4.25" backspace. I maxed out the lower fender corner-to-bumper brace to get the lower corner to clear the tire when turning, but I didn't have to modify anything. Yes, that was on a Duster and the wheel openings are a little different. But I've since changed my car over to a Demon clone with Dart front fenders, I didn't have any fender clearance issues with that fender swap. The Duster wheel openings are shorter in length, but the inside fender lip is pretty much in the same place as far as outboard tire clearance is concerned.

IMG_3619.jpg
 
Thanks blu, im almost 100% certain they are 4 1/4” bs. I still havent turned the wheels hard left and right to check for clearance, mainly concerned when turning left or right and the tire coming in contact with the front lip. It appears there is plenty clearance and being the 225/60R15 is the same od as the 205/65R15 i know the diameter isnt a issue. Its hard to see in the pic but i have about a inch or so between the tire and the front lip when wheels are straight, closest point of contact would be when they are slightly turned and the side of the tread is at its closest point. I am thinking now that the 235/60R15 would be too close, the 1/4” bigger tire would narrow it down to about 3/4” or so plus adding a little over .5” of width to each side of the tire may put it too close when they come to the closest point of contact with the front lip. Also my wheel well gap is pretty even front and rear so i think the slightly bigger tire wouldnt quite look right
 
Yeah I don't think you'd get away with a 235/60/15 on a 15x7 with a 4.25" backspace. Even with the 225/60/15's there isn't much clearance on that lower front corner of the wheel opening, that's why I had to max out the adjustment on that brace that runs from the lower front fender to the front bumper bracket.
 
Thats what i was thinking, i guess im really spoiled, i can get tires through my work and as long as i dont clean the blue off the white lettering its not a issue to return them which helps with fitting new sizes. After looking at it for 5 or so years the 205 is really too narrow for the 7” wide rims, the back are a tad to wide for the 7” wide rim but the fronts look too skinny, the tread isnt even as wide as the rim lol, im hoping that it will fill the wheel up a bit more and gain a little bit more stability up front, the 205 seem to roll a bit and i feel that the 225 will help with the feel on curves
 
They make a 215 in a 15 inch tire. 225 with 4 1/4 backspace is correct, max. IMO.
 
71DodgeDemon340 said:
Hey guys so heres my dilemma, well not really, im just in the thinking stage right now but my current setup is


205/65R15 bfg advantage t/a up front

275/60R15 bfg radial t/a in back

My tires are approaching 5-6 years old and was thinking of replacing them ( i know its kinda overkill but i dont risk things when it comes to tires and rubber hardens over time)

I would like to go wider on the front.

My question is i can either go two routes.

1. Save some money and go with the 275/60R15 bfg radial t/a in the back and go to a 225/60R15 radial t/a in the front. The 225/60R15 is the same diameter as the 205/65R15 but wider which im trying to go for as i think the 225 will look better on the 7” wide rally.

2. Go with a 275/60R15 mickey thompson drag radial or bfg radial t/a in the back and go to a 235/60R15 mickey thompson drag radial or bfg radial t/a in the front. The 235/60R15 is wider than the 205/60R15 but is also 1/2” overall taller which would be a 1/4” all the way around.

I have a good bit of clearance but im affraid the combination of 1/4” bigger and about 15 mm wider towards the outside of the tire will rub on the front fender opening.

Anyone have expirience running that size up front?

For reference they are 15x7 rally wheels and front has been converted to lbp

Heres how she currently sits, im thinking the 225/60R15 would be a better option as it will keep the same sidewall height and overall stance but give me a 20mm wider tire up front.

View attachment 1715144345
Click to expand...


Nice ride, love the color!
 
71DodgeDemon340 said:
Thank you! Nice to recieve a compliment instead of recieving a message about someone complaining about how much lower my stripes are than they were from the factory
Click to expand...

Holy crap. Really? I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Stuff like that is what gives Mopar fans a bad name, and is one of the reasons I've pretty much stopped putting my car anywhere other than the parking lot at shows. Sure, maybe the stripe is a little lower than what the factory guidelines show. But you know what? The factory was all over the place on that stuff. If a car was "perfect" by the factory diagram the stripe is what, a 1/4" higher? 5/16"? Like the Monday morning and Friday afternoon cars never left the factory less than perfect.

You've got a great looking car. :thumbsup:
 
Yeah im not gonna name any names but i recieved a message about that this morning lol.

Thank you, my dad installed those stripes by himself. Unfortunately i was sick the weekend we were suppose to do it and i ended up going home from work early. We researched a bunch and i just think it looks better with the body line centered between the stripes but i guess thats what makes it mine, i took what was original and tweaked it to what i would of wanted it to lool like if i was in the 70’s
 
72bluNblu said:
Yeah I don't think you'd get away with a 235/60/15 on a 15x7 with a 4.25" backspace. Even with the 225/60/15's there isn't much clearance on that lower front corner of the wheel opening, that's why I had to max out the adjustment on that brace that runs from the lower front fender to the front bumper bracket.
Click to expand...


Took one of my front tires off gonna take it to work tomorrow and mount the 225/60R15 and see how it fits. At the closest point of contact i have about 1/2-9/16” clearance between the edge of the tread and fender lip. The 225 is about 3/8” wider on both sides and hopefully i will have at least 1/4” clearance but we will see. Upon measuring it appears the bs is 4.5”? Is that right for a lbp? I measured from mounting flange to the lip of the bead

Also blu how close is the 225 on your dart front end. And how much adjustment should there be with that fender brace
 
Last edited:
They fit!!!!!!! Well only tried one side lol. But they fit good. Maybe a little over 1/4” clearance, i even jounced the car up and down in the front with the wheels turned so the tread was at its closest point to the fender and doesnt even come close. Now i gotta take it back off to balance it lol

CBD92A28-5BAF-4262-9C50-13C923BF3A76.jpeg
BA940671-7028-452A-9299-63577C66AC9A.jpeg
282B7A23-3EC0-4F45-AC45-7062E15E15BA.jpeg
 
71DodgeDemon340 said:
They fit!!!!!!! Well only tried one side lol. But they fit good. Maybe a little over 1/4” clearance, i even jounced the car up and down in the front with the wheels turned so the tread was at its closest point to the fender and doesnt even come close. Now i gotta take it back off to balance it lol

View attachment 1715144872 View attachment 1715144873 View attachment 1715144874
Click to expand...

Nice! :thumbsup:

Did you look and see if you have any adjustment in that fender to bumper brace? There isn’t usually a ton there, but even if you can push the lower corner of the fender another 1/4” or so it makes a difference. I think the adjustment slot on the brace is about an inch, maybe a little less. Most are in the middle, so you might be able to get some more clearance.
 
Thank you i will try and see if there is any movement, i was looking at them compared to the 205’s and i was like man these are gonna rub lol
 
I will be glad to get some wider meat up front. Those 205’s were starting to look like they belong on a honda lmao
 
Nice! :thumbsup:

Had your alignment done recently? From the picture it looks like you’ve got positive camber on those wheels up front, and that’s not what you want for radials. Could just be the picture though.
 
Its from the front being jacked up, i pushed down as much as i could on the front bumper but i can only roll the car about a foot forward and backwards and its not quite enough to settle the suspension, other tires i took off were wearing perfect
 
71DodgeDemon340 said:
Its from the front being jacked up, i pushed down as much as i could on the front bumper but i can only roll the car about a foot forward and backwards and its not quite enough to settle the suspension, other tires i took off were wearing perfect
Click to expand...

Yup, that'll do it! Just checking, would be a drag to mount brand new tires and have them wear funny or handle poorly.
 
Yeah for sure lol they arent exactly cheap either.

At least you said something about how the tires looked cambered outward instead of saying something about how much lower my stripes are than factory

:lol:
 
The new tries look good and your demon is sweet! How much clearance do you have from the tire to the top fender lip?
 
Thank you! The front isnt completely settled but i should have plenty, the tire is almost all the way behind the fender lip so i shouldnt have to worry about a clearance issue. Once i drive it and its settled i can snap a pic for you, but the 5 3/4” bs is what helps them sit in far enough to clear the fender lip on top
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
-

Back
Top