Tire size

[Charles Johns]

YES, but a V8 makes gobs of torque at low RPM compared to a 2.3 4-banger. Running electrical wires right now and MUST stay home or catch a nasty virus. I am in the COVID-19 seek-and-destroy group with heart problems, bad lungs from birth, and old. Since my whole family is military, and I took 1st aid training in the Navy for radiation, chemical, and biological wound treatment, I am fairly sure any virus that attacks the whole world, shutting it down, as in PANDEMIC, is not natural but probably man-made. If Mother Nature did this on her own, I do not want to be around when she comes up with the next GOTCHA!

 

[Bill Blue]

There is no reason for all this to be man made. Mother Nature is incredibly capable of taking car of Herself, constantly running millions of labs, creating new and hybrid organisms. That's why the CDC has to come up with a new flu vaccine (and they often miss the mark) each year.

But I understand your comment about being old, unwell and Covid 19. To make matters worse, I ended up in the hospital about when this all started.

I think the lesson from Joel's post is to plan on a cruise rpm of about three grand and go for it. It is a good one for the D'tec and I bet that overall, you'll like it in the Iron 2.3. Smooth, responsive and not screaming.

Bill

 

[65beam]

Coker Tire sells 13" tires that are tall enough to fill the wheel wells with no turning problems. They also lower the RPM's. Doug Jennings @ Tiger Auto has these tires on his Tiger. He may still have a set at his shop that he would sell. If you want info you can call the shop @ 937-252-3317. If he doesn't answer leave a message and he'll call you.

 

[gary1725]

I just went through a similar discussion - ended up fitting 15 inch wheels with 25 offset and 195/60 tires - there are size calculators online to show fitted tire diameter and one here somewhere that calculates road speed and RPM based on axle ratio, tire/wheel size and O/D or not - I did have to trim the front valance slightly because the tires just grazed the trailing edge - other than that everything fit perfectly - I previously had 185/70's on 13 inch wheels and the overall diameter change for me was about 1 inch larger - overall I am not regretting the change.

 

[Bill Blue]

It seems the "big" 13 inch tire provides a way to give the owner a different look with essentially the same size tire. Its all good. Having said that, I do think it wise to take advantage of the advancements in tire technology. I really really do like these new Coopers. Very smooth, quiet and grippy.

Bill

 

[Charles Johns]

For now looking at taller rear tires for MPG gains. I built my engine for highway cruising in the 2500 to 3500 rpm range. That is the sweet spot for the cam I installed, which means it makes TORQUE there. The torque curve is from 1500 to 4000 rpm and I did not built the little motor for high revving racing... though the early 2.3 can make 400 hp with a carb and no turbo, (Esslinger Engineering). Quiet, smooth, good mpg, no computers or electronics but maybe PerTronix, and easy to service with over-the-counter parts anywhere in the USA. THANKS for all the tire info. I have had all the automotive engineering formulas to figure rpm, gears, tire height, speed, etc. for decades, and use them in building. The 3.89 gears and .75 overdrive should work great on the little 2500 pound car. Bill's ran with authority in my short time behind the wheel, but it gave me an idea what the car/engine combo can do. Figuring HP the old gross HP way, my build should make about 135 HP (110-115 net) at around 4800 RPM. It will most likely run out of muscle around 4400 - 4500 RPM which is well over 110 MPH...with the tires I am looking at. Low 30's MPG, 115 HP, cool looking ride, fun to drive, and over 450 miles between fill-ups. At 450 miles I'll definitely need to PEE!