Need some input on wheel/tire choices...

[Andrew Pullin]

Hi folks,

I have to eventually do something about wheels and tires on my neglected car. There's big gaps in my knowledge here, so any input on the topic would be totally welcome.

The car currently has a mishmash of sizes on it.
Front driver's side is a 6.5-16 tire.
Front passenger's side is 700-16.
Both rears are 7.0-15.
All the tires are totally shredded, so I have a blank slate there. Much to decide on.

I'm not particularly concerned with getting restoration accurate sizes, here, just something that is maximally functional.
From what I've seen, 7.00-16 is the standard size, but I do have a commercial chassis.

Should I consider switching to a modern style tire, for availability, safety, and price?
I would like to be able to drive this on the highway eventually. (but I'm in California, so that's a dangerous proposition even in a modern car)
I'm unsure if a tubeless tire can even be made to work with the wheels I have.

If I stay with tube type, the nice Coker's are ~$300 a piece. There are some bias ply types for less, but I've heard that bias play tires are less safe at speed.
And then modern tires in the 215/85-16 range are cheap enough to be worth consideration.

I do see that there are some moderately prices new wheels from Wheel Vintiques, which might be my only option for switch up to 16" in the rear.

So, shrug, clearly I need some wise input here, before I start throwing money at it. Sizing, types, matching?
Thanks!

[Scot Minesinger]

Andrew, is this a 40 LaSalle?

[Andrew Pullin]

Whoops, the link wasn't in my profile. I remember the site admin did that due to some issues with my host a while back. Edited back in now, or here:
http://andrewpull.in/hearse/

I *should* have a definitive answer to your question, but I don't    I believe it is 1939 LaSalle sheet metal that Superior put onto a commercial chassis. I think I've heard that the commercial chassis is actually considered a Cadillac item, because it has compatibility with a Series 72 (brakes and suspension).

[harry s]

Andrew, Given that your chassis components are the same as series 72 Cadillac and the additional weight of your car the original  tire size should be 7:50X16 in a 6 or 8 ply rating. One consideration with the after market wheels is whether or not they have the clips for attaching the hub caps. According to the MPB wheels from 1940 thru 1949 large series cars should work. If using original wheels I would recommend using tubes with either bias or radial tires. Good Luck,   Harry

[Andrew Pullin]

Hrm, well, I only have only one hubcap, and replacing them is pretty dollar intensive. So sidestepping that for a plain hubcap might actually be welcome.

Do you happen know if a 7.5 tire will fit on a 7" wheel?
It looks like none of the repro wheels are made in 7" width w/ a 5x5 pattern.

[Tom Boehm]

Hello Andrew, My 1940 Lasalle was built on a commercial chassis. The original tire size for a commercial chassis is 750x16 6ply. The tire size for a regular 1940 Lasalle is 700x16 4 ply. The wheels on the CC are wider than those on regular Lasalles. Have you considered blackwalls in the 750x16 size ? If you change wheels, keep your originals because they are hard to find. It seems to me that these cars won't go fast enough to make them unsafe with bias ply tires.
The commercial chassis has a 4.31:1 rear end ratio. The correct hubcaps are not reproduced anymore. I am going with a set of originals that are not perfect but pretty good. Your only option is to buy the best used ones you can afford. The correct center colors for 1940 are black letters on a red background. Harry S is correct.

[Tom Boehm]

Hello Andrew again, I did not read your post carefully the first time.  Now I understand why you were looking for wheels. The back two are the wrong size. I needed a wheel for mine and I got two (one for the spare) from CLC member Bruce Berghoff. 231 889 3343. or berghoff@chartermi.net. He knew the difference between a CC and a regular Lasalle wheel. The correct wheel is harder to find because they only used them on the CCs and senior series cars with lower production numbers. I can post a picture and dimensions of the correct wheel if you want. Are you sure the other two 16" on the front are correct?

[Tom Boehm]

Hello Andrew, I made a mistake in my response about tire size. The correct tire size for the 1940 Lasalle Commercial Chassis is 700x16 6ply. The tire size for regular 1940 Lasalles is 700x16 4ply. 1940 Cadillac 72,75,90 series used 750x16.

[Andrew Pullin]

Thanks for the clarification, Tom. It seems that the commercial chassis isn't quite a Series 72, then.

The dimensions would be helpful to have, in case there were different widths or offsets, for whatever reason. Please post or private message the info you have.