Finding Classic Car Tires Online

People will spend great amounts of money and invest huge amount so time in restoring and maintaining their classic automobiles down to the smallest original parts. While not really overlooked, the tires are something that doesn’t really hold the same sense of desire in the hearts of classic car owners as some other parts of the vehicle. You will never hear someone talk about their radials for hours on end, where you may well hear just that about the 454 cubic inch V-8 stuffed under the hood.

This is a shame, because tires contribute so much to the driving experience. In many cases, they contribute more than the engine itself. The first job of the tire is to provide a cushion between the metal rim of the wheel and road itself. All the suspension in the world won’t make for a comfortable ride if the wheel were directly on the pavement. The tires are also the only part of the vehicle that is touching the road, so no matter how much power the engine has, your performance is still dictated by how well the tires can grip the road beneath them.

When accelerating, if you don’t have enough rubber on the road, you will perform spectacular smoky burnouts, but won’t go very fast. When going through a high speed turn and the items on the dash all slide to one side but the cars stays on the road, this is the tires lateral grip, another of their jobs. Braking works in the same way, the tires ability to grip the road is what is actually slowing your vehicle down. Finally, the tires help with slippery conditions. The channels and raised portions of the tire divert water away from the contact patch and break though snow to find the road beneath.

Tire Construction

While all modern auto makers work on the tubeless tire concept, where there is a liner on the inside of the tire to prevent air from escaping, rather than the more cumbersome design of earlier tires that actually had a separate  inner tube,  much like most bicycle tires do today.

Bias Ply Tires

At the time that the classic cars were made, the tires that were installed on them were bias ply tires and not the radial tires that cars use today. For one seeking the ultimate in authenticity when building or outfitting a classic car, bias ply tires are still the norm. Bias ply tires are designed without belts except with special bias tires. A bias ply tire has cords running from one bead to the other on an angle. The angle is reversed for each ply, or layer of the tire, giving a signature criss-cross appearance. The tread is affixed directly to the outermost ply. This configuration allows the whole of the tire to flex, which can help smooth the ride. However, it sacrifices traction, tire life, and rolling resistance to do so. There is such a thing as belted bias ply tires, in which case a standard bias ply is reinforced with a stabilizing belt under the tread. It doesn’t continue around the full body of the tire, but does reduce rolling resistance somewhat. And improve traction.

Radial Belted Tires

Today, virtually every car on the road is outfitted with Radial belted tires. For most people that are shopping for classic car tires, they will trade off that last percent of authentic reproduction to go with the more modern design. The radial tire works by using ply’s that run straight from bead to bead. This is then reinforced with belts that run the same way. This gives the tire a consistence contact patch with the road as the tire sidewall do the flexing and not the tread itself. With more contact on the ground, braking, steering, acceleration, and wear are all reduced. The rolling resistance or how much energy is needed to overcome the tires tendency not to turn is significantly reduced when using radial designs. These tiers are still available in the original equipment sizes to fit classic cars. The most common material for the belts to be made of is steel. However, this can be made of other materials as well.

What To Look For?

When buying classic car tires, you want to get as close as you can to the original look. Often this will mean knowing the original specifications of the tire. This is the information on the sidewall of the tire that lets you know the details about it. You will often want to replace the tires with new tires of the same size. While many hot rods also go for larger than stock tires, remember you will likely have to replace the wheels as well in order to do so. This can cause issues with older speedometers that were calibrated to count the revolutions of a tire that was a specific height. Often, the vehicle came with either white walled tires, or white letter tires. Both of these options remain available, but it is important to make sure it is on the model you are buying if you want to retain the factory look.

Where To Get More Information Online?

There are many good places to find classic car tires online. Some of them are listed below.

Tirerack.com

One of the largest tire and wheel sellers on the internet is http://www.tirerack.com. They have tires and wheels available in just about every conceivable size and configuration. Their large volume of sales allows them to offer very competitive pricing.

Online Tires.com

Another large internet tire seller that is able to offer discounts on some of the major brands of tires is located at http://www.onlinetires.com.

Discount Tires.com

One of the places on the internet to find deeply discounted tires is http://www.discounttire.com. They have physical locations across the country that will install the tires as well.