I have a set of 14x7 Western Wheel slotted mages that I am going to install on my 66 Cuda. My question is what size tire should I use? The rims have 3 5/8 backspacing.

I am mostly concerned with clearances in the front. My ccar has the fcormula "S" suspension so I won't get too much body roll on corners, but I still am worried since this rim is 1.5 inches wider than the largest factory rim for that year.

I knw that the factory tore size for the formula "S" was P185/75r14, how much bigger than that can I go? I would like to take advantage of the 7 inch rim width.

Anyway, thanks ahead of time!

Reed

Sorry, I forgot to log in. THe above post is mine. And I need to start using that spellchecker function.....

Reed

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Casually looking for a Clifford hyperpak intake for cheap.

I have used 14x7" rims with 235x60 tires on a '66 Dart. This required rolling the fender lip and removing the lower front tip (about 1/2") of the fender.

Thanks kesteb! now that you mention it, I think I asked this question before... So, would say a 225 50 or a 235 50 clear?

Reed

That combination (225/50R14 tires) is likely to fit in the rear without too much trouble. Up front, though, I don't think there is enough backspacing - although if you don't lower it too much you may not rub anyway. I am running 16" x 7" wheels on my '66 Dart. They have 4 1/4" backspacing, and I had to roll the inner fender lip up front to clear the 225/50R16 tires on corners. With 2" shorter tires you may be OK.

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"Mad Scientist" Matt Cramer
'66 Dart - turbocharged 225
My blog - Mad Scientist Matt's Lair

When I was fitting tires for my '65, I tried several differant rims widths. In my opinion a 7" rim is to big for the front of an early A-body. My choice was a 15x5.5" rim with a 206x60 tire. This fits nicely, doesn't give you the "pigeon toed" look and it will match the rear rims with a LBP disk brake setup. On the rear I used a 15x7" rim with a 235x60 tire. This fits with no clearance problems. I also used stock plain steel mopar rims.

The problem with the cast aluminum slotted mags is that they are "generic". They are not designed for any particular brand of vehicle. I would suspect that your 14x7" rims with a 235x60 tire will not clear your fender lips in the rear. My experience is that the offset is all wrong. They are about 1" offset to the outside and your sidewalls will meet the fender lip. Which is sad, because there is more then enough room for a 7" rim with the proper offset.

This is why air shocks and spring shackles for lifting the rearend were so popular during the '70s.

The first stab at fixing this problem was the fender flare, canyon racer craze of the late '70s. This worked, but the cars looked ridicules. I did this with a '66 Dart using 14x7 and 14x8 Permacast mags. The second phase during the '80s was the pro street, radically narrowed rearends. My old '71 Demon had a narrowed rearend and had 14x7 and 15x10 Centerlines. It wasn't until the '90s that the magazines and the rim manufatures got a clue and actually started to design the rims to fit the chassis. It should be pointed out, that all thru the period you could order custom offset rims, but they were extremely expensive.

As you can see, I have used just about every type of rim on an A-body. In my opinion, the best setup is the one I am currently running on my Dart.

It would be interesting to see your car with the 14x7s and 235x60s on the front with a set of 15x10s and 295x50s on the back. Of course you would need to narrow the rear axle or flare the rear fenders to make that work.