Alfaholics GTA wheel: 14 or 15 inch? Michelin Pilot Exalto PE2 tires?
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For my own opinion, I think the 15 inch wheels don't look 'right' as the distance between the hub centre and the holes is a bit out of proportion compared to the 14 inch version. It's all in the eye of the beholder though I guess.
Must note vested interest - I work for Classic Alfa! Check out our range sometime too
Must note vested interest - I work for Classic Alfa! Check out our range sometime too
Most of the west coast performance alfas use 14 by 6 or 14 by 7 wheels; most of the midwesters use 15 by 6 or 7's. It's more about what tire you want and is the right size available? I have 225/60-14 on 14 by 6 Panasports which work fine with no fender mods. 14 by 7's would likely need the fender lip rolled.
I like the look of the 15 by 7 GTA's that Alfaholics makes (not original GTA - they never made 15's) with low tires - at least on a GTV or GTA, but I'm perfectly happy with mine too.
You can do the extreme as Murray does with separate wheels for Hoosiers (not at all a good street tire) when he's doing TT or AX......
Robert
I like the look of the 15 by 7 GTA's that Alfaholics makes (not original GTA - they never made 15's) with low tires - at least on a GTV or GTA, but I'm perfectly happy with mine too.
You can do the extreme as Murray does with separate wheels for Hoosiers (not at all a good street tire) when he's doing TT or AX......
Robert
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I also prefer the 14's. The 15's with the requisite lower profile tires look too modern for my liking. That being said, go for whatever you like best - you're the one looking at the car every day!
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Depends on your driving style. I have 185/70-14 tires for me street GTV for those times when I want the original Alfa experience, and 205/55-15 tires for a more modern feel. But I agree with Robert, the 15's never look right to my eye. Unfortunately, the selection of 14 inch tires is getting narrower every year.
Finding the right tire is really the biggest problem. 185/70-14 showed up on alfas in the early 70's, and have been ubiquitous since then. But finding a decent tire in that size is quickly disappearing. Heck, 70 series tires altogether are fading away. Other than the 85 series tall 155-15 inch Pirelli Cinturatos of the 1960's (also unobtanium), these 185/70's are the "classic Alfa" driving experience.
So were left with something decent in a 65, 60, or even 55 series. Just not the same driving! Lots of fun, mind you - wide, sticky tires with great rain performance. But you need to rebalance the suspension set-up, and you end up with something different than an "old Alfa" feel. I'll drive my BMW when I want that, or race my Alfa for the hot-shoe performance, but you can't dance across Mulholand Drive any more...
Robert
So were left with something decent in a 65, 60, or even 55 series. Just not the same driving! Lots of fun, mind you - wide, sticky tires with great rain performance. But you need to rebalance the suspension set-up, and you end up with something different than an "old Alfa" feel. I'll drive my BMW when I want that, or race my Alfa for the hot-shoe performance, but you can't dance across Mulholand Drive any more...
Robert
Just for interest, I put a set of Sumitomo's on my BMW in 245/17/16's. Really good driving tires, nice soft rubber - not great wear for a commuter, but great driving tires with especially good wet performance. About half the price of Michelins or other ultra high performance tires.
I generally choose a street tire by its wet traction performance - all of them stick better than I'm willing to drive on good dry streets and mountain roads
Could be a great choice for a limited driving street alfa. Got a set of Hoosier A's for the fun stuff....
FWIW
Robert
I generally choose a street tire by its wet traction performance - all of them stick better than I'm willing to drive on good dry streets and mountain roads
Could be a great choice for a limited driving street alfa. Got a set of Hoosier A's for the fun stuff....
FWIW
Robert
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I've done a direct comparison of 14" vs 15" wheels on my GTV. Both of the tires were a 205 section width and the rolling diameter was quite close. My observations were about what you would predict:
14" wheels: better ride quality, slower turn in/transitional response, better rear end traction in tight corners.
15" wheels: harsher ride, quicker turn in/transitional response, a bit less rear end traction in tight corners.
I attribute the rear end traction issues to the shorter sidewall of the 15" tires being less compliant, and skipping in tight, bumpy corners, such as mountain switchbacks. This is not an issue 99% of the time.
14" wheels: better ride quality, slower turn in/transitional response, better rear end traction in tight corners.
15" wheels: harsher ride, quicker turn in/transitional response, a bit less rear end traction in tight corners.
I attribute the rear end traction issues to the shorter sidewall of the 15" tires being less compliant, and skipping in tight, bumpy corners, such as mountain switchbacks. This is not an issue 99% of the time.
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I've got 14x6 GTA replicas and couldn't be happier with the looks and performance. Currently have 195/65/14s but plan on switching soon to 185/70/14 Pirelli P4s (about $65 @ tirerack.com - plus very highly rated in customer survey). The 195s ride great but slightly labored turning at low speeds (parking) also speedo off buy about 7-8 MPH (high). Looking forward to lighter steering feel, continued great traction, and more accurate speedo with the 185s.
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That is interesting considering that I have read that GTA drivers back in the day actually favored 13" wheels over 14" wheels for "quicker turn in". At that rate I'm surprised to hear you say that your 15" wheels had quicker turn in than your 14" wheels.
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14 or 15 ?
I would choose the 15" rims. I assume you already have 14" Alfa rims on the car right now, the 15"would provide you with a different ride and handling feel, and a different look. Dont forget your Bertone body was originally designed for a 15'' rim, to me 15'' looks better on the car.
I would choose the 15" rims. I assume you already have 14" Alfa rims on the car right now, the 15"would provide you with a different ride and handling feel, and a different look. Dont forget your Bertone body was originally designed for a 15'' rim, to me 15'' looks better on the car.
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I've never heard that about GTVs just 105 Ti and Supers. Were 15"s offered as an option for GTVs from the factory?
The early GTA 13 inch wheels were 8 to 10 inches wide, with racing slicks. They needed the very wide fender flares common to GTA's to keep the wheels inside the car! Just slightly smaller overall diameter (about 22.5 inches). Effectively low profile tires as you might put on a wide 15 inch GTA replica rim.
The early 15 inch 105 wheels were 4 1/4 J by 15's, with typically 155/85-15 Pirelli Cinturatos. The cars do look good with these, but they are nearly half the tread width of a 225/60-15. Just about the same overall diameter (about 24 inches, or right around 840 revs per mile AFAIR), so the speedo is still right. A 7 inch wide 15 inch rim (GTA replica) is similar in diameter, but really does not look the same.
Robert
The early 15 inch 105 wheels were 4 1/4 J by 15's, with typically 155/85-15 Pirelli Cinturatos. The cars do look good with these, but they are nearly half the tread width of a 225/60-15. Just about the same overall diameter (about 24 inches, or right around 840 revs per mile AFAIR), so the speedo is still right. A 7 inch wide 15 inch rim (GTA replica) is similar in diameter, but really does not look the same.
Robert
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fangio8c, The 1965 and 1966 Sprint GT and the series 1 1300 GTJr. had 15'' steel wheels. What I was trying to say was, when Giugiaro was working for Bertone in the early 60s and designed the GT, it was with 15'' rims. The 1st few years of GT production had 15''wheels. They went to 14'' (and even 13'' on some GTA race cars) in 1967 - 1968 because low profile tires were not common. They were not able to plus 1 or plus 2 the wheel package as we can easily do for the last 30 years. If Alfa tryed to get a wider tire on the original 15 x 4.5'' rim the 165 80 15 or 195 80 15 would have been way to tall. If low profile tires were common Alfa could have gone to 175 70 15 on 15 x 5 then to 185 65 15 on 15 x 5.5 and to 195 60 15 on 15 x 6 as they did on the Spider in the 90s.
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Does someone has pictures of the 14 and 15 wheels (on the car) for visual comparison?
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73montreal, Check out threads, What Wheels Best Suit a 105 ??? and, Idea How about Photos of 105 GT's only? I am sure there are lots of 14'' and 15'' GTA rims in the posts.
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