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Wheels and TiresNeed help with wheels or tires? Got fitment issues? Have questions about tire performance and handling? Ask all of those questions here!
I got my "new" IROC a week ago Saturday, it has some really good looking just like new tires on it. I bought it about 50 miles from home and when I looked at the date codes I decided against driving it home and called a rollback,. the tires have a 3 digit number which I believe means manufactured before 2000. The car has been driven less than 3,000 miles since 2005. Any ideas on 15 inch tires and where to get them?
Are you stuck on 15's? Nothing wrong with 15's, but I just prefer the 16". Since you need tires anyway, now would be the time to change wheels. You could probably pick up a set off CL or FB for a few hundred dollars. Either way though, that's still a sharp car.
I've always used Discount Tire and Tire Rack to search tires and prices. Then I'll just do a google search for reviews. I have a local Discount tire a few miles from the house and I've been using them for many years now. They'll price match and can pretty much get anything ya want. I'm sure there are other good places as well.
I'd go with some BF Goodrich Radial T/A tires, good all around size might be 2;35x60 for a decent ride and good performance. Find them all over. If all your wheels look that good they'd be worth the new tires.
As 15" wheels go, those late model 15" IROC wheels are THE 15" wheel to have and could be worth keeping, even if you choose to go larger. And yours look like they're in excellent condition.
The optional "performance" tire size for 15" 3rdgen wheels was the 26" diameter 235/60-VR15. But there's another size that would also be excellent: the 25.6" diameter 225/60-VR15. And with 60 series tire having so much sidewall, the slightly shorter 225 might provide for more "spirited" driving and handling than the 235, if noticeable at all.
Neither size has a lot of name brand options available, a few, but many "off-brands" seem to be available in those sizes. However, there's one "brand" available in 225/60-VR15 that I doubt many people on TGO realize, even though they've been reading about it for over 5 years in another thread, and it would be a pretty cool tire for an IROC with its 15" wheels, if you don't mind the price tag:
Yup, the reproduction Gatorback from Kelsey Tire is available in 225/60-VR15. They've been available all these years we've been bugging Kelsey for 245/50-16 reproduction Gatorbacks. Kelsey reproduced these for 80s Mustangs, but it would be perfect for 15" IROC wheels. But like "Freedom," as sung in "Team America: World Police," "there's a hefty ******* fee" for these tires. But if you're keeping the wheels, then the money you would've applied toward new wheels, could be applied to these tires. See? There's always a trade-off somewhere that balances things out. The several "off-brand" tires in these sizes are priced decently, but the few name brand tires available in these sizes come with a heftier fee than you'd expect anyway. So why not these?
As 15" wheels go, those late model 15" IROC wheels are THE 15" wheel to have and could be worth keeping, even if you choose to go larger. And yours look like they're in excellent condition.
The optional "performance" tire size for 15" 3rdgen wheels was the 26" diameter 235/60-VR15. But there's another size that would also be excellent: the 25.6" diameter 225/60-VR15. And with 60 series tire having so much sidewall, the slightly shorter 225 might provide for more "spirited" driving and handling than the 235, if noticeable at all.
Neither size has a lot of name brand options available, a few, but many "off-brands" seem to be available in those sizes. However, there's one "brand" available in 225/60-VR15 that I doubt many people on TGO realize, even though they've been reading about it for over 5 years in another thread, and it would be a pretty cool tire for an IROC with its 15" wheels, if you don't mind the price tag:
Yup, the reproduction Gatorback from Kelsey Tire is available in 225/60-VR15. They've been available all these years we've been bugging Kelsey for 245/50-16 reproduction Gatorbacks. Kelsey reproduced these for 80s Mustangs, but it would be perfect for 15" IROC wheels. But like "Freedom," as sung in "Team America: World Police," "there's a hefty ******* fee" for these tires. But if you're keeping the wheels, then the money you would've applied toward new wheels, could be applied to these tires. See? There's always a trade-off somewhere that balances things out. The several "off-brand" tires in these sizes are priced decently, but the few name brand tires available in these sizes come with a heftier fee than you'd expect anyway. So why not these?
Although this size Gatorback was never used on an IROC, I have seen them mounted on 15" IROC wheels and they looked magnificent.
Thanks, very helpful. I will keep the 15 inch wheels on the car since they are original to it and are in nice condition, guess start shopping. Thanks again.
The best thing about the 15" Iroc styled wheel is that if you're not looking too close, you could mistake them for the 16" wheel. Always viewed them as an affront to the spirit of the Iroc. A backhanded slap to the idea that the Iroc is something more than a Z28. </Hater Society>
I'll go with some of the previous opinions... BFG Radial T/A's in a 235/60R15 are a perfect and meaty fit on a thirdgen with 15x7s. They're a decent performance tire (within the limitations of a 15" wheel) and they wear nicely. Ideal for a daily driver type car.
The original tires probably would have been a lesser variety of Goodyear Eagle like a GS or GA, not the Gatorback.
I'd also say as a stock Puritan that I'd store the 15" wheels and pick up a set of those super-swanky, Plus Size, Iroc repros from H... H... Haw... I can't say it. You know, the company that repros most thirdgen stuff, for the lowly sum of roughly a black market organ. With all respect to preserving originality, I can see no reason to maintain the 15" wheels on the car for a variety of reasons, the greatest of which is that a 16 or 17" wheel would restore a bit of dignity to the Iroc package. Not to mention it'd drive better, handle better, and look better, with the tertiary benefit of keeping the stock 15's in perfect condition in storage for when someone may want to return the car to pure stock for resale. Anyway I look at it, it'd be a win. At the very least I'd hang out on Craigslist for awhile and pick up a set of the stock 88-90 Iroc 16s and run those. But that's just my take.
I'd almost think a person could lull themselves into buying a fresh set of 15" tires and then end up regretting it later and upgrading. I hate buying things twice.
In my case, the car had been cursed with Weld DragStars by the previous owner. I hated them, and found the 15” IROC wheels for an irresistible price on Craigslist. I then sold the Weld wheels to my son for his ‘87 El Camino.
03-10-2019, 03:51 PM
