I own a 1971 elco...pretty much stock. I was wondering if anyone could tell me the largest wheel and tire combo that i could fit in the rear without having to alter anything. currently i have 15x7's with 235/60/15 tires. i want to get 15x8's, but i don't know what kind of tire to get. any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks.

I've got a 70 and JUST went through this.

I'm now running 235/60/15's in the front and 275/50/15 in the rear.

I opted for 8" wide 15" rims in the front with normal back spacing, and have no clearance problems whatsoever.

I chose 10" wide rims in the rear with 5.75 back spacing. They position the tire perfectly in the well, but rubbed on the shock mount. I added 1/4" shims (until I can move the shock mounts in a little) and that cured the rub. So 5.5" back spacing should be perfect.

I didn't have to roll the fender lip under or anything odd like that.

At a lot of the on-line rim places they offer a handy measuring guide you can use to measure your car exactly.

Be careful with one thing. Not all rear axles are positioned in the middle of the car. Mine's 1/4" off center. I saw one 1/2" or more off. Any offset will make a big difference in the max tire/rim sizes you can run.

Hope it helps.

I will give the tens a try. Do you know of any good online sites that carry them for an affordable price? Thanks again.

I will give the tens a try. Do you know of any good online sites that carry them for an affordable price? Thanks again.

I'm running 15x9 wheels(5 1/2 backspacing) with 2.75x60 tires. Like mnunn has said though there can be some variations. New rear control arm bushings and a rear sway bar will cure a lot of the rubbing issues that can arise.

Same for me! 15x7 front 235/60 and 295/50 on rear with 15x8 No rubbing at all and my Elky sits pretty low. I also have a brand new pair of Radial TA's 275 mounted on some Weld wheel prostars if any one in the area wouls like to purchase.

I've got a '70, went with 15" rims. Because I wanted a particular wheel (TQ), I had to live with width and rear spacing I did not find optimum for max tire size. So, that said, here's what I just installed:

Front: 15 x 7 (4" rear spacing), 255/60
Rear: 15 x 8.5 (4.25 rear spacing), 255/60

I love the way it looks/sits, but would have preferred more rear spacing on the rear making a 275 possible. Such is life.

I will give the tens a try. Do you know of any good online sites that carry them for an affordable price? Thanks again.

I was only interested in Corvette style chrome ralley wheels. Best price I found was at /Pete Paulsen (http://www.petepaulsen.com)