15x7 wheels on an Amazon

R32RennSport said:

15x7 on both alloy wheels and banded steels with 205/60/15 here. I do have to say the steel wheels with all that mass to the outside make the handling noticeably worse then originally designed, you may not feel it if you just putt around town in your car but if you start to drive it like you stole it you'll definitely notice a difference from say a set of 5.5s with 185s mounted. The alloy wheels on the other hand manage the weight placement much better and feel more like 5.5s with 185s. The deeper the dish though the more weight you are putting to the outside which was never built into the design of the suspension or the steering. Optimal performance in my opinion would be a 6 inch alloy wheel with 185 or 195 tires but if you want steel wheels the 5.5s are your best bet. 7 inch steel wheels on a vague old domestic machine works just fine but it's really just too much for our cars imho.

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I went through some old guides on preparing these cars for rally that I am using to plan out engine mods (all I need to do now is head work) and the same story is 5.5" wheels and lowering it a bit.

I definitely like slinging it around on mountain roads. I may not "drive it like I hate it" as the old ads say but I do push it a bit. I have more fun in this car at or under the speed limit than I did driving my father's 540i m sport.

The compromise I also have to navigate is keeping the thing comfortable enough that my fiance would actually be willing to ride in it.

spock345 said:

I have more fun in this car at or under the speed limit than I did driving my father's 540i m sport.

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with my pizza cutter wheels I have more fun a lower speeds than I do in better handling/ faster cars

going though the mountain passes around here I still get people pulling over to let me pass
doing 80 feels way faster


I'll probably still stick with stock wheels after I get my 16V carb conversion done on the wagon too

front ends are soft as cheese on these cars and strengthening is key, wide tires if anything should come after

Majority of old cars just dont get driven enough where long term issues due to design/modifications get resolved …

Jack said:

with my pizza cutter wheels I have more fun a lower speeds than I do in better handling/ faster cars

going though the mountain passes around here I still get people pulling over to let me pass
doing 80 feels way faster


I'll probably still stick with stock wheels after I get my 16V carb conversion done on the wagon too

front ends are soft as cheese on these cars and strengthening is key, wide tires if anything should come after

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I agree, adding wide tires to our cars should be part of planned system and a clear goal. Making sure you've reinforced the known areas and having new bushings, bearings and joints is key here. If you want to do it for looks, fine, whatever, but you will start breaking things eventually if not wearing them out prematurely. Just know what you're signing yourself up for and you won't have any surprises.

I drove my car on stock 165s for years and loved it. Then I fully overhauled the suspension, gave it 120hp to the wheels and added an overdrive so I naturally updated the tire package as well. Out of everything I've tried over the years 5.5 to 6 inches seems pretty optimal with 185 to 195 width tires, with alloy wheels always benefiting you when compared to a steel counterpart, but the real key is to know where you are putting the rotating weight no matter what wheel and tire package you go with.

You said you made 110hp in your thread

^ my point being is that bushings, sway bars aren’t enough . Firewall junction above the already thin frame rails cracks even with stock suspension

Move your steering wheel with the hood open and watch how much movement there is where the steering box bolts up to. Steering junction is another weak point

The stock (even) welded x member is sloppy where it bolts into the frame
Front of frame rails under the radiator needs boxing in

The loop around the x member is crappy too

TLDR: Everything in front needs more bracing

Jack said:

You said you made 110hp in your thread

^ my point being is that bushings, sway bars aren?t enough . Firewall junction above the already thin frame rails cracks even with stock suspension

Move your steering wheel with the hood open and watch how much movement there is where the steering box bolts up to. Steering junction is another weak point

The stock (even) welded x member is sloppy where it bolts into the frame
Front of frame rails under the radiator needs boxing in

The loop around the x member is crappy too

TLDR: Everything in front needs more bracing

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I've already gone through the whole suspension with new bushings, ball joints, and tie rods. Rebuilt the brakes as well. I've read about the possible cracking at that junction with the firewall. Any ideas on how to shore it up?

Jack said:

You said you made 110hp in your thread

^ my point being is that bushings, sway bars aren’t enough . Firewall junction above the already thin frame rails cracks even with stock suspension

Move your steering wheel with the hood open and watch how much movement there is where the steering box bolts up to. Steering junction is another weak point

The stock (even) welded x member is sloppy where it bolts into the frame
Front of frame rails under the radiator needs boxing in

The loop around the x member is crappy too

TLDR: Everything in front needs more bracing

Click to expand...

Definitely agree here, these cars are tough but they do need some extra love to be beat on. Just look at the factory rally cars and even cars being used for competition today.

RE: HP levels, I've made quite a few adjustments since my initial dyno which has also yielded higher static compression. It's not an official number but the car runs much stronger then when initial numbers were taken. Butt dyno, take it with a grain of salt.

My favorite example is the 2jz 800hp? 245 in Sweden

Guy makes a #viral video doing smoke #drift etc

Few years later … less popular video …he says hes selling the engine and needs to rebuild the chassis

https://youtu.be/EuLrG88ePk8

This thread is oddly relevant to me right now as well since I just sold the 15x7 AR Torq Thrusts and temporarily put on my old banded 15x7 steel wheels. All I can say is boy are the steel wheels awful, like absolutely terribly. Sorely missing my Torq Thrusts... oh well, on to the next bad decision.

R32RennSport said:

This thread is oddly relevant to me right now as well since I just sold the 15x7 AR Torq Thrusts and temporarily put on my old banded 15x7 steel wheels. All I can say is boy are the steel wheels awful, like absolutely terribly. Sorely missing my Torq Thrusts... oh well, on to the next bad decision.

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Good thing I didn't jump on those mopar cop wheels.

Huge increase in Sprung weight and reduction in breaking force


edit think of all the DONK boi vehicles with huge ass heavy wheels on stock brakes

Over the years and 100s of thousand miles, I've owned over a dozen 122S and two 1800S and have tried many different wheel and tire combinations from stock to 8" wide and 14" and 15" diameter.

The present and best setup I've used so far for actual driving (not appearance) on both the road for 5K+ miles and 1K miles a year of vintage road racing a year is a set of 7" alloy wheels with 3-3/4" backspacing and 195 tires. Not too much offset, so it doesn't stress the front end components that much or the weak "toothpick" tapered and keyed rear axles which are prone to breakage racing on pavement (changing to an 1800E rear end now because of the axles.)

Your mileage may vary....

Timely, as I needed to replace the 11 year old 205/60 Tiger Paws on our 122. I almost went with the same, so thanks for this thread.

195/65 is a little taller than 205/60 but closer to stock and is a nice fit on 7" wheels.

I thought I'd resurrect this thread instead of making another. I got a set of the 5.5" VP wheels from someone nearby. Then got a set of 195/65r15 tires mounted. I took it for a drive this weekend and it went pretty well.

I noticed an improvement in traction around corners and it takes sharp bumps a bit better than it did on the 4" wheels. The steering effort isn't that bad. Although increased stresses on the suspension are notable as every poly bushing that needs grease started squeaking.

I also need to take it back down the tire shop. I am getting what seems to be radial pull (swapped front tires and pull changed direction) and one of them probably isn't balanced right as it gives me a nice noise on the highway. Kind of hard to give them a fair appraisal in light of those issues.