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Posted By Discussion Topic: 1947 Ford Business Mans Coupe New tires     Fd1947 08-08-2023 @ 7:21 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 1 Joined: Aug 2023 I am getting my grandfathers 47 Business Mans coupe out of storage where it has been for the last 35 years. First thing to do is replace the tires, which are 600x16. Question - do I need to replace the tires with the same size or is there a more modern size that is close that would fit the existing wheels OK but would be more economical? Also should I plan on also installing tubes? Thanks, for your help. MG 08-08-2023 @ 9:28 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 1251 Joined: Nov 2009 Were it mine, I'd go with Radial Tires. I'd find the radial tire equivalent size and have them install with tubes for safety.... 1942deluxe 08-09-2023 @ 4:52 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 96 Joined: Oct 2009 My 1947 business coupe with the 3" Coker whitewall bias ply tires. I think the most I've driven it is 700 miles in a year. The 42-48 cars are easy to drive in my opinion even with bias ply tires. NON of the Early V8 cars drive like a modern car though IMHO but that's part of the enjoyment of driving them. You have to think and be engaged. woodiewagon46 08-09-2023 @ 6:34 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 697 Joined: Nov 2012 I would also go with MG's suggestion of using radial tires. If you do decide to go with wide whites do not use Coker junk tires. Get your tires from a national chain such as B.F. Goodrich or Diamondback's. I had an issue with Coker and they did nothing to help me. I developed a half tennis ball sized blister on a wide white with only 13,000 miles on it and there were other issues with the tires that I won't go into here. wmsteed 08-11-2023 @ 11:00 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 607 Joined: Oct 2009 Unfortunately there is no cheap way to replace the tires on a 47 Ford. The only practical solution is to stay with the OEM size.. 600x16 tube type which will correctly mount on the stock wheels. There are a few manufactures that make radials in the 600 x 16, from , my point of view i would opt for the radials. You could convert the wheels to 15", which the Merc's had in '48. Ford F100 1956-66 used the same type of 15" wheel. and the stock '47 hub caps will fit, then you could use modern tubeless radials, 23575R15 which is a 28" tire like a 600 x 16. The 235's will be a little wider but should not cause any fitment problems. The 600 x 16 radials will set you back about $1,200./1,400. for a set of 4.. Bill 36 5 win delx cpe kubes40 08-11-2023 @ 1:33 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 3374 Joined: Oct 2009 You may also install 6:50 x 16" that were optional on your car back when new. They are a nicer fit than their little brother 600's. Mike "Kube" Kubarth carcrazy 08-11-2023 @ 1:56 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 1597 Joined: Oct 2009 As previously mentioned buying 16" radial tires for your car is extremely expensive. I would change to 15" diameter wheels from one of the vehicles listed by wmsteed and use 205/75 R15 Radial Tires. I would run them tubeless. These tires have a diameter of 27". They turn at 769 revolutions per mile which is about 2% more than your 6.00x16" bias tires. The least expensive tires available in this size for cars are from Tire Rack and they are: Hankook Kinergy ST Standard Touring All-Season Blackwall 205/75R15 97T available at $101.99/tire The White Stripe (0.5 to 1.0") version of this tire is available at $107.99/tire. Running modern radial tubeless tires is the way to go to minimize your chances of having tire troubles, especially if you travel long distances at highway speeds. wmsteed 08-12-2023 @ 9:29 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 607 Joined: Oct 2009 Very good info about radial tires for the '47. Around town a 1" smaller tire would not be a big deal, hiway use is a whole different subject. Wheel variations are probably the most overlooked, misunderstood subject there is. The early Ford wheels will generally be 4"/4.5" wide at the bead line, however Ford did make 3.5" wheels for standard cars, the '48 to '66 15" wheels can vary from 4.5" to 6.5" wide. Looking at a tire catalog will show what size of a wheel various tires will fit. A case in point: I acquired a '38 Buick 2 dr sdn a couple of years ago. The car had 37K on the odometer, dead stock one owner, near perfect original paint and upholstery. When I bought the car I noted that it had 15" wide whites in lieu of original 16". I also noted that the wheels were black in lieu of gray with pinstrips . The Century's in '38 had 15" tires whereas the Specials had 16". The spare tire in the trunk was an original wheel, gray with pinstrips and 700 x 16 tire. I would surmise that the wheels were changed as a cost savings measure for wide whites. We are in the process of doing a complete brake job, replacing all of the oil seals/gaskets, hoses and suspension components to eliminate problems caused by "deferred maintenance" in the sake of preserving originality. When I had the tires dismounted from the rims I checked the rims for size, it was not much of a surprise to find that all four of the wheels were a different size, varying by as much as 1/2" in rim width and 1/2" in back-set. Whom ever changed the wheels only had one concern, that being that they were Buick wheels and that the original '38 hub caps would fit. Fortunately I had a couple of sets of Buick 15" wheels in stock that I had powder coated in a dark gray to match the original color. Bill 36 5 win delx cpe 1942deluxe 08-13-2023 @ 8:56 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 96 Joined: Oct 2009 If you do go bias ply tires don't rule out going black wall tires. In reality there's a strong chance that's what the car left the factory with. There is no factory photo of a 1946 Ford car with wide whitewalls . They became available sometime in 1947.

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