I have had 16" rims for past 2 years and on them I hve the Bridgestone Potenza RE-11.s which are a very wide tire as well,
thing is the 7's are very tight even with some extra work on the wheel wells and the lips modified, I still don't feel safe with new paint etc I don't want to rub and blister the paint, so I am looking at options but also brings up the question of diameter since the 205/55 16 are 25" tall, and speedo is off , so I was going to go down to a 205/50 16, which is closer to stock diameter.

- tires vary with width and this tire is 8.7" wide , so I was thinking a different tire might give me an extra 1/4" or so and I could keep running the RE-11, OR
I just put these tires on my other set of 6" fuchs and I still get over 8" of tread on the ground with no issue of rubbing. BUT I still have the tall tire/wheel combo-

- I see a lot of guys running the 15" rims, and have 205/55 15, which is about the same as a 205/50 16 - is that more correct for proper diameter? I can tell you I already have lower RPM in 5th gear due to having put in a taller gear back when I had smaller wheel and tire combo on the EMPI before going to 5-lug fuchs, so I think the faster RPM with higher gear would be better,

- bottom line is I have a very nice set of RE-11 that have less than 10,000 miles of road wear on them, they are a few years old, great very sticky tires and are not made in this size anymore - I would love to sell them and get enough to go with a good performance tire that might not be quite as wide where I could still run the 7" fuchs, but at the very least change to the 205/50 16 .

I am looking for advice, as I have read LOTS of the other threads here and learned a lot, - what is your experience??
what are the best choice for a softer rated tire that still has good rain/dry performance- we get a lot of rain and as much as you try not to drive in rain its going to happen

Hi Philip, I'm somewhat confused here if this is regarding a 914. For example, my '75 came with 165R15 tires, which have a nominal outer diameter of 25.4". In this case, for a 6" wide wheel, 195/65R15 at 25.0" or 205/55R16 at 24.9" are an acceptable compromise considering market availability.

Just about every modern tire of interest for sports cars is available in 205/55R16, by the way. Strongly considering going this route with 16x6 wheels for my car, despite my opinion that it doesn't look quite right.

yes, my 914 - I guess for some reason I thought the diameter of the stock tire and rim was a bit less than that, so if the 165 15 are giving us a 25'' diameter then the 206/55 16 is right there. going with a 205/50 would be ok , a bit lower rpm but pretty low and I bet pretty unforgiving with that low of a profile, if you want to know what they look like they look great! they fill out the wheel wells nicely. old ones are so narrow and just look punney in the wheel wells. - no rubbing in front, and the rears well are tight with the potena, so I might find a slightly narrower 205/55 tire and stay with the 7" but I know the 6" will fit no issue .

What type of wheels are you using and what is the offset?

They are 911 6'' and 7'' actual Fuchs, so the difference in the 7" vs 6" is a whole inch extra toward the outside. I know the offset on the 944 wheel is a better fit for our cars due to the different offset back set etc.

Figure out what is most important to you. Look, fit, rpm’s and speedo reading. You probably can’t get all 4 so set the priority and then live with the rest or make other changes- adjust speedo, change trans gearing, change wheels and/or tires.

Remember, the bigger and wider the tire is, the heavier it is and can actually degrade your performance with unsprung weight. Our cars are light and every pound matters.

Used tires, even in good shape, bring pennies on the dollar.

Are you using any type of spacer or adapters on your car? If not maybe consider using a 195/50/16 tire. That way you still get the good look & grip and make the rubbing a non issue.

true, and I thought about doing that if I keep the 7" rim, I could certainly put on a 195 tire or one of the narrower 205's, and not rub. If I keep the current tires until I wear them out I will have to put them on the 6" rims.
no spacers in rear , that fit is with out spacer. I do have spacer on the front to eliminate the slight rub when turning. I will probably put the 1/2" spacer back on the rear if I put the 6" rims on, that will put them in the perfect position and still give a good 1/2" space from the tire to the fender.
but once these tires are worn and I replace I'd like to put the 7" back on the rear.

These are 195/55 16's. Sure, it may sacrifice a slight bit of tread width, but it's still leaps and bounds more traction than the original equipment. IMO it's a great fit, inner fender lips rolled flat in the rear, never any rubbing issues.

Wheels are 16x7 on all 4 corners with a 23.3mm offset.

What ever combo you come up with I'd stick with OE diameter IMHO it's more than speedo or gearing I just think smaller diameter tire looks like crap.

nice pics, I heard you were having a mild winter but snow in August?

ok just kidding- I was back home for a graduation over memorial day weekend and it hit 100 that Monday! ,

btw do you have spacers on the front, or are they not required with the 195/55 tires? - what brand tire are you using there, that can make an half inch difference from one brand to the other as well I found out.

Thanks! No spacers, I'm running Firestone Firehawk, really good balance between performance and budget.

I will check that out- have you ever gone to the Cars and Coffee event in Shokapee? I guess it was moved down to Cantebury Downs lots after the city of Chanhassen chased them out!

Sure have, just not much this year. Luis F. is a friend of mine.

Usually not a fan of smaller diameter tires versus OE, but I have to admit this car looks great. The 16x7 Fuchs wheels definitely have a better look than the 6s, with the more sunken face, and I suppose the smaller tire helps make those 7s possible on stock fenders. Saved for future reference!

for now I pulled the 7" rims and put my Potenzas on the other 6" for the rear. It was just too tight with the 205/55's - I know that they are wider than most tires of the same size and that a different brand might fit ok or going with the 195/55 on the 7's would work but according to tire rack, my 205/55 on the 6" have just as much tread width on the ground as a 195/55 on the 7's. So I have lost nothing on grip, but maybe as you say a bit of the look, which I love too , the deeper dish on the narrow car does look great!- I will renew this thread later when I get to testing some tires on those 7's and see what fits and what does not- Bob Woodman Tires will be helping me when the time comes.

i pulled the 205/55 off the 7” rims and moved them to the other 6’s for rear, and once the car is on the ground and the motor is in it we will see how mich space i have with the half inch spacer, it should have a bit more space than the 7’s . also might have to adjust camber , but we can look at all that later. i still would like to try the 7’s with a 195 tire and see how that fits , but these tires have about 60-70% wear left so i am going to use them up before trying to make the change back.
And with the spacer i can use my closed end chrome nuts, otherwise the studs are too long and i have to use the open end steal acorns

this is the front but you get the idea.