Any long-term mechanics out there who can address the belted vs. radial replacement tire issues on these birds? Any alignment changes necessary to AMA spec when switching to radial, or back?

I don't need radial tires for high speed or high performance on this car and am considering restoring the factory look of belted tires. If I can remember correctly, the tubeless belted tires were more prone to puncture but easier to repair, and had stiffer sidewalls when properly inflated.

Will gas charged shocks affect my decision? They weren't available when the car was new, but add immeasurably to its ride comfort.

The alignment specs are the same. The gas shocks will only improve on the originals. Look out for the tire spin!
Jim

Not sure if you plan on driving the car much, but you will notice a lot more steering wheel movement as the car will tend to "dart" back and forth on the road with the bias belted tires vs. the radials.

If you are getting the bias just for shows, then I recommend you get an extra set of wheels with radials for driving pleasure.

Tom

radials generally need less toe in. i err on the side of negative toe and camber, and positive on caster (within stock specs).

click on the smiley to check out david pozzi's website for some really good info on 1stgen suspension

Car is a part time show car, part time cruiser. It's a fully loaded convert with the factory 11/16" swaybar, and it corners like a loaf of bread even with new bushings, end links and shocks. Most of the issue is body roll, though the Radial TAs lose adhesion on tight corners. Because I do show the car and everything is pretty much stock, instead of modifying the suspension and wheels and tires for better cornering, I plan to retain the stock or stock replacement components (I did upgrade to gas charged shocks for better jounce control) and when the 1989 Radial T/As bite the dust I will replace the tires on the 7" Rally IIs.

I know Goodyear makes the original redline, WW and WO for the car, and Firestone carries them too. I see that Coker carries redline radials that may pass the casual glance test. Has anyone tried these? How do they look? How do they drive? My bird came with F70-14 boots. I don't have a metric tire conversion chart to find the "new" size equivalent.

TMJR, I remember my second car had belted tires and when I installed radials it was a pain in the *** to turn with manual steering. I had to have an alignment done because it wanted to go straight. The toe-in and caster had to be adjusted more neutral.

My bird has variable ratio power steering and since the ball joints were replaced it tracks as straight as an arrow. There is no problem with road crown unless I'm on the wrong side of the crown and steering effort is very light. Since the car is only on its second set of tires and only a minimum of maintenance has been done it may be the remnants of the factory alignment. I plan to have an alignment done as soon as I replace the tie rod ends.

What are the drawbacks or benefits to going back to belted or bias tires? It's been a lot of years since I drove on any. Don't radials have a "softer" road feel?

sorry, trmjr1. Too many lead fumes today...

OK yellowbird I know the post is a little old but I have to tell you i have had aset of f7014s Wide Ovals on my 68 for about 4 yrs now,and they can make your drive more interesting especially on uneven pavement. The car will feel squirrely now and then! Also make sure to run the front tires at 26-28psi. If you inflate to pressure listed on the tire they WILL prematurely wear in the middle,trust me I learned the hardway. On the plus side they look awesome they are original and the judges love em! hope this helps.

I have red line radials that I got from diamondback classic tires. I like mine

Thanks for bringing this post back to life! If I was going to drive the car hard, I wouldn't even consider belted or bias tires, but it is a fair weather cruiser, and with 2.76 axle it could use the help of a low traction tire to at least make a little noise!

I'm only 3 points shy of 100 now and the tires should be good for at least one. All the 100 point cars in the stock class have original or repro tires (depending on if they are trailer queen or driving show cars).

Seat covers, running clock and correct power antenna mast should take care of the other two points.

I need 99pt. to have a 100 pt. car so almost there

Gary, I think the show I go to is a little more generous than most. There were a dozen concours quality cars from 1916-1979, and they all took trophies. I got a commemorative license plate. My car will never be a concours car, but a local show trophy winner is attainable.

I'd like to get a second 'bird that I can play rough with, though!

Radial Tuned Suspension was essentially harder bushings to compensate for the more flexible radials. I used to run bias ply tires when I first started auto-slaloming my car. They were quite forgiving in a slide, which I always enjoyed (drifting is NOT new!). Neither the tires nor sliding were particularly fast.
The first slalom I did with the "new" BFG TA's I looped the car twice doing trail-braking. I had swapped the front drums to disc's but didn't change to the proper proportioning valve, 'cause the car needed a bit of help to pivot on tight corners. With the radials, the car let go quite a bit sharper, so it took a bit of getting used to.

just kidding alittle. I like the ride of the red line radials but since i don't drive it any farther than 50 max one way [my rule]. I wish I had gotten the bias red lines. The tires wouldn't fly at a POCI event. I do trailer the car a couple of times a year. So, i guess that makes me a trailer queen just trying to protect the investment. Still looking for the 14x6 steel wheels with the HH code. Your information yellow bird on that it came on the camaro with that code was helpful but haven't been able to locate. Once I do I may change to bias or where I can interchange. I suppose any steel rim that is 14x6 will work as long as it is for disc brakes regardless of the code, correct?

Gary, as long as the wheels fit the spindles, are the stock 14 x 6, have correct backspacing and correct paint, and have the wheel covers installed with original or repro tires mounted, will a judge read the rim codes? In the open shows here the team of judges (12 at the show I attend) are paired to evaluate different areas of the car, appearance and operation including headlights, wipers, power accessories including clock, lights, etc. I got nailed on points last year when an original T-3 high beam decided to burn out on me as I hit the switch. However, if I had a brand new set of working halogens I don't know if I'd have taken a hit, or would maybe have lost 1 point on lights instead of 3. Yet I have Radial T/As on the car, like most of the non-concours cars, and didn't take a hit on that. The Radial T/As are old, 1989 vintage, and although they show very little wear and no cracking they are definitely old tires. And I've found from personal experience that old tires can be hazardous to your health.

I guess maybe I put too much importance on showing instead of driving, but it's nice to get a positive comment from the judges, who are concours car owners and ineligible to enter the event, even nicer than the "nice car" comments at the traffic lights. The car is more than a "nice car" but only I know all the flaws, and the judges work hard to find them.

I don't put a whole lot of miles on in any jog, maybe 50 or 100 but not because the car can't handle it, just because we usually go out in the evening due to work schedules that keep us at work until 7 p.m. By the time it gets dark it usually starts to cool off, and riding around in the dark in a convertible with the wind blowing the kids around in the back seat is something they don't enjoy as much as in the daytime.

A true trailer queen only touches the earth long enough to get judged, then goes back into the trailer for a trip back to its climate-controlled resting place. If you drive it, it's a car, and until they make unchippable paint, chrome and glass it won't be concours quality.

Thanks for the help Vikki.

Any time, Gary. Good luck with your wheels. I'll let you know if I come across any.

The letter codes are just date codes, to be absolutely correct you'd want HH but functionally there isn't any difference. I sent you a couple of PMs.

I got the PM's and filed them in my car information.