1989 Festiva L - tire size and sounrce help

[RBlakeman]

We;ve had this Festiva for a while, a 1989 L model. Back about 9 yrs ago it blew a head gasket and while I had the head off I managed to get a new short block and rebuilt head assembly for it but it has sat with the head off since then, waiting for the time I could work on it to put the new engine in. Wel lI have the time now but having sat so long it will need tires and I know that 12 inch tires are not the easiest to find. Why work on it then try and find tires? Well I want to avoid that and get some bare tires I can put in the garage till the work is done then have a tire shop mount them.

I am in central Kentucky in the US for those wondering.

Ties on the car currently are 155-80R12 and most sites show 145SR12 for this year and sub model Festiva. What do most use in terms of tire size on a comparable Festiva and are there online or chains that still carry this size? I have not yet checked with the local Walmart T&L or the two tire shops in our area to see if they can get that size. If someone is aware of an online source that wont kill me in shipping/freight that would be ok as well. I dont want to order tires either until I hear what the Festiva experts can pass along.

[ricko1966]

I have run geo metro wheels and huyndai wheels with 155 80 13s and 175 7013s my luck has been metro wheels or hundai wheels with 155s bolt on with no issues 175s I had to run spacers in the rear so the tires didn;t rub the struts. The hundai wheels had a little more offset and should be easier to find but they were not hub centric. I prefer the geo wheels if you can find them. I changed wheels because 12 inch tires are hard to find especially if you need one that day. I took a pic of the huyndai I took the wheels and tire off of I will try to find it so we can determine year and model the GEO wheel were GEO metro. I pulled wheels and good tires off cars at the KC pic and pull for about 20.00s each then when they wore out I had 13 inch rims to buy tires for.

[RBlakeman]

How does the 13" 155 or 175 tires affect the accuracy of the speedometer?

[theastronaut]

Another option is 14x5.5 or 14x6" wheels with 165/55-14 Achilles ATR-K tires. The tires are around 180-200 shipped and will make the car handle and stop much better than the 12's. Speedometer will still be accurate.

[RBlakeman]

Yeah I forgot that the first number is the outer diameter, the rim doesnt matter if the whole assy is the same height/diameter. This is starting to get to be a lot to get new rubber on the rims, I might just consider selling it and get my 84 Ranger back on the road. I'll wait on that till I figure this out with the help from all of you.

[firebush357]

We;ve had this Festiva for a while, a 1989 L model. Back about 9 yrs ago it blew a head gasket and while I had the head off I managed to get a new short block and rebuilt head assembly for it but it has sat with the head off since then, waiting for the time I could work on it to put the new engine in. Wel lI have the time now but having sat so long it will need tires and I know that 12 inch tires are not the easiest to find. Why work on it then try and find tires? Well I want to avoid that and get some bare tires I can put in the garage till the work is done then have a tire shop mount them.

I am in central Kentucky in the US for those wondering.

Ties on the car currently are 155-80R12 and most sites show 145SR12 for this year and sub model Festiva. What do most use in terms of tire size on a comparable Festiva and are there online or chains that still carry this size? I have not yet checked with the local Walmart T&L or the two tire shops in our area to see if they can get that size. If someone is aware of an online source that wont kill me in shipping/freight that would be ok as well. I dont want to order tires either until I hear what the Festiva experts can pass along.

145/80/12 for $26.08 plus free shipping if you order today from simpletire.com but I recommend finding a larger wheels like a 14x6 or something similar because they make the car handle much better.

[RBlakeman]

The standard tire size works as we plan on using the car for a local grocery getter so stock works. The info on Simpletire is greatly appreciated. I am weighing the pros and cons now of whether we keep or sell the Festie vs the Ranger. I did also find a listing on ebay for P155/80R12's on ebay from discounttiredirect so thats another option for the 12 inch replacement tires.

[ryanprins13]

I prefer stock sized tires over larger ones. Even the 145 80 r12s feel better to me than the 155 80 r12.
I would stick with 145 80 r12 or get 14in rims and the 165 55 r14 achilles tires. That was $200 for 4 tires shipped, not one tire in case thats what you were thinking.
With a proper alignment the tires last quite a while and they are cheaper than tires on anything else really. Once you get the motor done and new tires your festiva should save you a fair bit on maintinance and gas over the ranger.
Its not for everyone but i didnt buy new tires for my festiva for many years. I went to the wreckers and got tires off other festivas. It was $15 for a tire balanced on a rim and the selection used to be good 10yrs ago.

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[RBlakeman]

The Festie and the Ranger are about the same in terms of maint costs though as the Ranger I have is a 2.3L with 4 speed carb'd and very basic, Ive seen easily 30mpg on it when I ran it before I parked it for the trans. Leaning towards the Ranger because it has a chassis and is rear wheel drive and has the long cargo bed and I can tow with it. Who knows but so far a lot of very good info both in terms of stock and alternate tires/wheels

[ryanprins13]

The Festie and the Ranger are about the same in terms of maint costs though as the Ranger I have is a 2.3L with 4 speed carb'd and very basic, Ive seen easily 30mpg on it when I ran it before I parked it for the trans. Leaning towards the Ranger because it has a chassis and is rear wheel drive and has the long cargo bed and I can tow with it. Who knows but so far a lot of very good info both in terms of stock and alternate tires/wheels

Ok! I love towing with my festiva. We use Canadian gallons but i got 34mpg monday coming back from the rockies at 70-75mph. 4400-4500 pounds depending how much water i carry. (Trailer itself is 1800-1900). Was loads of fun! (but 2 winters of work on the car to make it capable of doing this)


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[RBlakeman]

I guess what I was meaning is that the Ranger is setup for towing already, I would have to get a hitch to use the festie

[Dragonhealer]

The 145/80-12 is the correct size and provides the best economy, as well as light steering.
Your Ranger is so good, because it is a re-badged Mazda 2300....
Just as our Festys are a re-badged Mazda 121

[denguy]

I recently put some Nanking 12'' tires on the front stock wheels of my 92 Festy. I found them on Amazon and I couldn't be happier. My car is riding better than ever. They were CX668 Radial Tire - 165/70R12 77T

[Sid_RallyX_82]

I've used Falcons and Nankangs. Any 12" tire 145-165 wide will do alright. Cheaper ones might be a bit noisy above 60, but it's not that big a deal. They're kinda hard to find on major company websites like Big O, but I think Pepboys has them. If not, just call around and ask if they can order them