Just ordered Dayton Wheels

[Basil]

I just ordered a set of 4 Dayton 72 spoke wire wheels for my Jag XKE. I had the option of getting the original 15x5 inch wheels or a slightly wider 15x6 inch. I decided to go for the wider version because I think the car will look better with slightly meatier tires. The standard tires were 185 15/5 bt these wider wheels will accommodate 205's. These will be chrome wheels with stainless spokes and, unlike the originals, I can use tubeless tires. Now I need to decide which tire to use - Parelli P4000 looks like a good option, but I'd like to hear from others who have an EType for recommendations.

Basil

 

[Tophatchef]

Sounds great. I myself prefer the wider tires on my xj40, and on most cars, of course, the 205's are still a bit thin, but regardless.
When I saw the title "just ordered dayton wheels" I must say, I was a bit nervous. I've heard of xj40's and the x300's breaking the wheels under their weight, but those were on less spoke wheels, and I believe they are heavier cars.

 

[tony barnhill]

Sounds great. I myself prefer the wider tires on my xj40, and on most cars, of course, the 205's are still a bit thin, but regardless.
When I saw the title "just ordered dayton wheels" I must say, I was a bit nervous. I've heard of xj40's and the x300's breaking the wheels under their weight, but those were on less spoke wheels, and I believe they are heavier cars.

Yep, Jaguar doesn''t recommend putting wire wheels on XJ6's.

 

[jessebogan]

No they did not, but the dealers around here sold zillions of sets of bolt on Daytons when the cars were new. I have only seen a very few of those, even in the 60 spoke versions that ever had problems at all. Usually there was an underlying problem like severe corrosion, or heavy corb hits. They look OK on XJSs and series 3s, but I never liked the look on XJ40s and beyond.

 

[Exotexs]

Basil,

Dunlop, not Pirelli. Pirelli tires wear out quickly, and they suck in the rain. Back in 1969 I had Pirelli Cinturatos in my MG, almost killed myself in a wet road. I'm sure that tire technology has improved in the last 40 years, but I also had a 1979 Saab 900 Turbo with Pirelli P6 and they didn't last either and they were terrible in rain.

In 1990 I installed Dunlop in my XJ-6 and no wonder Jaguar cars came with Dunlops since the 1930's, they're superior tires in many ways. No more Pirellis for me.

And Michelins are too hard and harsh, but that's why they last.

All the above is a matter of opinion of course, but that's what you asked for, opinions.

Ex

 

[Deleted member 8987]

I had one set of Pirellis.....never again.
I suppose for a garage queen that gets trailered they'd be okay, but, geez maneez, them suckers wore out fast.

Ward's Riverside 500 in Bias ply!

Them things went for-freaking-ever!

The locals prefer Vredesteins on theirs, E type, 120, 140, 150...

 

[tony barnhill]

Vredesteins would be my choice....contact Coker to see what they say....oh, thin red lines!

 

[Basil]

Vredesteins would be my choice....contact Coker to see what they say....oh, thin red lines!

I've been doing some research and am leaning toward Vredesteins, but not sure if I want to go with close to stock size 185R15 or 205 70/15. I am pretty sire either way I want to go with the wider 6" wheels (originals are 5")

 

[Exotexs]

wider tires will look better. If you look at the front of a E-type, the tires look too far in, so if the tracking could be widened, the car would look better proportioned. Note that this difference in front and rear tracking is also evident in the S type and 420. Jaguar widened the track in the front of the S type so that the edges of the front tires were "flush" with the wings. But being that the rear is narrower, the car ends up with a narrower track in the rear.

Another issue you need to be aware of is "tramlining". Wider tires will exagerate tramlining in any car. (the tendency of the front end to be "controlled" by the ruts on the asphalt).

Ex

 

[Basil]

wider tires will look better. If you look at the front of a E-type, the tires look too far in, so if the tracking could be widened, the car would look better proportioned. Note that this difference in front and rear tracking is also evident in the S type and 420. Jaguar widened the track in the front of the S type so that the edges of the front tires were "flush" with the wings. But being that the rear is narrower, the car ends up with a narrower track in the rear.

Another issue you need to be aware of is "tramlining". Wider tires will exagerate tramlining in any car. (the tendency of the front end to be "controlled" by the ruts on the asphalt).

Ex

I've heard some complaints by other EType owners that, while wider tires "look" better, drivability isn't as good. So I'm leaning towards the narrow tires, but haven't committed yet. Another consideration is the effect a different radius would have on the speedometer readings, as it is calibrated for a certain radius tire.

 

[tony barnhill]

Well, do the math to see what size tire you can get while keeping the same wheel/tire diameter as your speedo calibration.

 

[John_Worthington]

There are a few websites called "Tire Calculator" or "Wheel Calculator"- just google them and plug your OE wheel/tire numbers in versus your desired wheel/tire option and that will give you the differences and/or gear ratio adjustments you would need to keep correct gearing or speed measurement. I have used these sites often when I was tooling around with big wheels and big tires for off-road four wheel drive builds for a few different jeeps that I owned. My main use for them was to identify gear ratio options to avoid mechanical issues in the drivetrain at low speed/high torque as well as just a simple calculation to prevent speeding tickets on the open road! These sites can let you know what options you can achieve and still stay within close tolerances from OE.

John W

 

[Glen_J]

I put 15 x 6 Daytons on my 69 OTS to give myself more (wider) tire options. I only went to 195 x 65 for fear of inadequate wheel clearance (speedo still reads correctly). In retrospect, I wish I had gone to 205 x 60's. There would have been plenty of room.

I went with Bridgestone RE960AS's. They are smooth and quiet on the road at 30 psi. I have also run then through several JCNA slaloms (at 38 psi) and I think they are pretty grippy for a street tire. They are AA traction rated, got good reviews from Tire Rack and only cost about $100 apiece at Sam's.

Of course, I have heard good reviews about the Vredstein's but the 185 width is just too narrow for my tastes.

 

[Basil]

I put 15 x 6 Daytons on my 69 OTS to give myself more (wider) tire options. I only went to 195 x 65 for fear of inadequate wheel clearance (speedo still reads correctly). In retrospect, I wish I had gone to 205 x 60's. There would have been plenty of room.

I went with Bridgestone RE960AS's. They are smooth and quiet on the road at 30 psi. I have also run then through several JCNA slaloms (at 38 psi) and I think they are pretty grippy for a street tire. They are AA traction rated, got good reviews from Tire Rack and only cost about $100 apiece at Sam's.

Of course, I have heard good reviews about the Vredstein's but the 185 width is just too narrow for my tastes.

I have decided to go with the 185 Vreds. Last time I drove my car I had 185 Michelin XVS and was quite happy with the way the drove. A week ago, I was in Phoenix and visited member "koolkat" who was nice enough to let me drive his 68 E. He has wider tires (205 or 215)? and, while it definitely looks good, the steering was too heavy for my tatse, especially at low speeds. I am getting the 6" wheels though so I can maybe try some wider tires in the future. The other good thing about the Vreds is they are relatively inexpensive, but with reasonably good reviews.

 

[jessebogan]

We just put a set of 15X5s and Vredsteins on a customers 2+2. This guy just picked up this car (a 70) from the original owner in California, and shipped it back. We also "upgraded" to the early style knockoff, just because they look better than the "federal" version it came with. The car had 25 year old HVSs on it. The cost something like 325.00 apiece now. Yow!! Really nice car though, as it was a cherished car with one caring owner. First used E type I have ever encountered that did not need some remedial mechanical work.This one just needs some electrical sorting, mostly as a result of sloppy reassembly after paint some time ago.