Original Fuchs tire size Options

[tomh]

This topic I'm sure has been covered many times however, I need to plow this ground again because I don't have a clue. What size tire came on the original 2.0 factory Fuchs.
Thanks

[Dave_Darling]

As noted, there were at least two different types of Fuchs wheels fitted to regular narrow-body 914s from the factory.

The 914-6 was available with the 5.5x14" five-lug wheels.
(It may have also had the 5.5x15" Fuchs available; it is not clear if those were fitted by the factory or by dealers or the importer or what.) The 14s apparently came with 185R15 tires originally.

The 914-4 had the 5.5x15 four-lug Fuchs wheels fitted in the 73+ model year.

There were 155R15 tires fitted to some early four-cylinder cars with 4.5" wide wheels. I suspect very few of those remained on the car by the time they were sold to customers; wheels and tires were easy profit for the dealers at the time. (And the 4.5" wheels were a cost-cutting measure so they base list price could be a bit lower.)

The 5.5" wheels were generally fitted with 165R15 tires. That size is available currently; there are some off-brand manufacturers that make them cheap for old non-sporty cars. And there are specialty manufacturers that are making them for "vintage" sporty cars. Check for Vredestien, check Coker Tire, and so on.

There were 185/70-15s as options on some wheels. I am not clear which they were actually available for.

There is a bit of controversy about exactly what the "aspect ratio" for the tires without one listed was. The most commonly-accepted figure is 80, so the equivalent modern size for e.g. 165R15 would be 165/80R15. Other figures have been discussed, but the closest modern size is pretty definitely the 80 aspect ratio.

Most narrow-body 914s can fit 195s on stock wheels under stock fenders. In some cases, the lip of one rear fender or the other needs to be folded flat or cut out. Many 914s can fit 205s with the same caveats, but there are those that fit 195s and have problems with 205s.

--DD