Where on earth to get stock Festiva tires?

[Greywolf]

They're getting thin on the ground - few if anybody make 12 inch tires at all anymore.

And I DO NOT want NANKANG tires under any circumstances, I don't trust them.
In 2006 and 2007 I was working as a tech at an RV dealership, and we found fraudulent date of manufacture markings in the DOT stamp on the sidewalls of almost all the NANKANGS we looked at (post-dated into the future) At the time, a lot of RV's were having highway tire failures that caused huge damage to RV sides when Nankang tires just BLEW UP at freeway speed.

I found one that was dated as having been molded in the year 2011 - which was five years in the future!

I'll shell out for Yokohama's or Coopers before I risk my butt on them ever again.

Basic size is 155R12, and may cross over to 155/60R12 or 155/70R12

I'm looking for a cheap set of wheels and tires to serve until I upgrade to 13 or 14 inch rims with low profile sidewalls

ODD thing this: If you do a make, model, and year search on most tire sites they will say "Sorry! Nothing we have fits your car"

But if you do the search again and specify a classic Mini (as in Austin Mini Cooper, which also has 12 inch rims) all of a sudden they list a bunch of tires on 12 inch rims

I found a couple on Amazon with free shipping that are 155/80R12, speed rating "T"
The tread to tread diameter is 21.5 inches

Tire Rack also has 155/80R12's by "CLASSIC" load range 77, speed rating "T"
(900+) lbs per tire, 118 MPH) for approx. $55 each

Yokohama also has them, but @ $89 per tire


All I need to verify now is that 21.5 inches diameter is not "OVER" what should be put on


*Tall sidewalls cost fuel, but prevent bent rims and embarrassing "STRANDEDNESS"

[jawja jim]

My Discount Tire can get them next day in 155/80-12.

[TominMO]

I remember older Minis as having 10" rims, but maybe they went to 12" eventually.

The Nankangs were made in 2011 and sent into the past, where there was greater demand.

I've got a set of decent Metro 13" steelies with 3 good/1 iffy 155/80 tires. Center caps are epoxied on. $80? Meet you in Sikeston, MO, about halfway. You could run these until you upgraded to Achilles 122s in 165/60-13 from tires-easy, for example. If you come to Lakestiva in May to pick 'em up, the price is $60 (saves me driving to Sikeston).



Worst rim

[william]

I can get "good ride" 12 inch tires here local and there ok I get about 30k out of them not bad for 28$ each installed.
But I wend to 14's about 5 years ago and never looked back. 13's are nice as well. I would buy those from tom and weld those 12's together for a wood stove on your garage lol.

[FestYboy]

21.5" is still .5" short of being correct for the speedo.
So you're all good.

[TominMO]

Keep one good 12" tire for your spare tire well.

I can come up with a better 155/80-13 tire to replace the most-worn one on the wheels above, so you would actually have 4 decent ones.

[Greywolf]

I have a set of four 155R12's by IRONMAN (8-ply) on the way from a local tire shop, $238 after taxes, includes balancing. But I can use all the tires I can get my hands on right now - there are two other cars here besides the B6T and the "Shopping Go Kart". I know that Studebaker was also looking for tires and wheels that at least hold air. I wouldn't mind getting ahold of one or two of his old chassis' that he has pushed off to the side.

The plan IS to change them over to 14" wheels, but this is here and now
I'm looking at something like the Innovit force 4 rims with Federal FD-2's on them

PS: I already have a set of "Boomerangs", they're very nice...



*In 13 inch tires I found KUMHO Sense tires were a great buy

[Greywolf]

The stock spec tire is 155R12, which these are. T2T diameter comes out to 21.5", so I think 22" may be a mis-read. I may run it by a speedo calibration shop or something, all I really need is a measured course from google maps and I can confirm by the odometer reading using the trip meter.

The tires I got are definitely some kind of industrial small truck or kart tire, with a max PSI of 65 PSIG. Real beasts to get on the rims without a machine, and seriously deep tread. Max load is 1330 Lbs single (each)

I focused on the one with corrosion around the bead seal yesterday and finished it all up at 10:30 PM. As of 4:30 this AM it holds pressure, so the goal today is to finish up the other three in time to run them over to Bailey's and get them balanced

*I'm not kidding about them being tuff to mount. The first bead was easy, the final one went a CM at a time!

[bhazard]

Those are NOT going to be good to drive on at all.

If I were to run 12's I would run nothing but the yokohamas on tire rack.

[reddragon]

I'd like to see these on a festiva

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Offroad-tire-TRAC-155-retreaded/dp/B00HCGDZMA

[FestYboy]

The stock spec tire is 155R12, which these are. T2T diameter comes out to 21.5", so I think 22" may be a mis-read. I may run it by a speedo calibration shop or something, all I really need is a measured course from google maps and I can confirm by the odometer reading using the trip meter.

The tires I got are definitely some kind of industrial small truck or kart tire, with a max PSI of 65 PSIG. Real beasts to get on the rims without a machine, and seriously deep tread. Max load is 1330 Lbs single (each)

I focused on the one with corrosion around the bead seal yesterday and finished it all up at 10:30 PM. As of 4:30 this AM it holds pressure, so the goal today is to finish up the other three in time to run them over to Bailey's and get them balanced

*I'm not kidding about them being tuff to mount. The first bead was easy, the final one went a CM at a time!

Not miss read, I've verified this on 4 Festivas and 3 aspires. 22" tall or approx 915 revs per mile is correct to the speedo/odometer.

[ryanprins13]

So the oem recommended 145/80 or 165/70 is 3% too small for the speedo?
I have never used the 165/70 but i much much prefer the 145/80 to the 155/80's. Noticably less power and wobbly handling with the 155's. Its like you can feel the sidewalls roll over every time you go around a corner with the 155's, lol.


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[Greywolf]

They're mainly "YARD DOGS". They'll do until I upgrade rims.
I see 145SR12 in the sticker above, too so there may be some variance.

I used a tool on Google maps to lay out a measured course from where I'll be dropping them off to balance back to my drive at home that is exactly 6.8 miles. If it's at all close, that should be fine.


*Either way - this means the halfassed battery mount in the B6T car definitely has to GO!

[FestYboy]

6.8 miles isn't a large enough sample to see the 6% difference... I verified mine with 200 mile samples.

[Greywolf]

I'm not there yet. What I'd really like to do is bring out the B6T car and see what IT needs. But it already needs enough to keep me busy for a while...