i have a 75 with the 1.8 engine and need new tires, the rims on it when i purchsed it is 15 in. empi 8- spoke. my main concern is side clearance between tire and body i want to get away from 165sr15 if possible.

Go out and check your current tires, which I assume are 165s? How much clearance do you have between the tire and the fender? Inner fender and outer fender? On both rear wheels? Yes, that's four measurements you need to make. If you've got about an inch (or more!) in all four places, you're good to go to 205s. If you've got 3/4 of an inch (or more) in all four places, 195s should fit nicely.

If any single one of the measurements is less than 1/2", you should consider getting different wheels so you can fit decent tires under your stock fenders.

--DD

i have 1/2" on outside 2"on inside roughly, there is 1 1/2" from the top of the tire to the the top lip of the fender opening. would a 60 or 65 series make a differance?

I run 205/55/15 on my Empi eight spoke. But check the width of the tire you might want to use! They all vary! I rolled my wells just a bit. Real close they are.

was it hard to roll out the fender? im a little new on trying or doing modifications.

I just bent the inside lip up just a bit. Thats what happend when i tried to roll it. A baseball bat works (old school) Just be careful you do not want pull the fender out to far doing this (ask me how I know).

ok how do you know?

This is well covered in the General FAQ

Is this for the rear fenders? Both fenders? Remember, 914s often have slightly different clearance on the left side than on the right side.

If you have 1/2" clearance on the outside, it sounds like you have wheels with an offset that is not well suited to the 914. I wouldn't want to try anything wider than about a 175-width tire, if you only have 1/2" clearance from your current 165s.

You can pull the fenders outward or roll the fender lip flat, which can help a little, but after a certain point things start looking odd. The lower corners of the fender start to pull inwards, and it looks pretty funny.

I personally would start thinking very hard about finding wheels that have a better offset for the 914. The stock wheels work pretty well...

--DD

basically... you have Beetle offset wheels...

Buy some FUCHS, MAHLE or (late) Pedrini wheels. they all have the backspace you need.
Benefit in Fuchs are usually pretty straight and lighter and oh so sexy.