Thread: Wheel/Slick conversion to street question

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Guys,
Sorry for what you all would probably consider basic questions, but I'm moving out of my comfort zone turning a drag car into a pro-street cruiser and need your advice. I've acquired a car that currently has 9.5" rear wheels (Drag Lites) with M/T slicks that measure about 27.5" in diameter by 9.5" wide. I would like to convert over to a street-legal tire but wanted your recommendations.

1.) Is there a particular street tire that you would recommend that has similar height/width/sidewall characteristics?

2.) I noticed that the slicks are screwed through the rims. Can you still run street tires on these rims since there are now holes from the screws, or am I looking at purchasing rims as well? If tubes are an option for street tires, I guess that is a question as well.

Take a look at the Mickey Thompson wide rear tires as well as Hoover Tires.

Summit carries both and they have an on-line site.

Even with tread, the wide tires will slip around a bit in the wet, but it's not bad.

You shouldn't have any problems with air leakage due to holes in the side of the rims.
The air seal on a tubeless tire is on the bead.

Since you've got screws in the rim now and the car is going to have a drag racing theme, put the screws back in with the street tires.

Thanks C9 - I was hoping for that answer on the screws!

On my Mirada I have BF Goodrich 295/15/50, and they were about 11 inches wide, but do not know about the diameter.

Jack

The Hoosier street radials are hard to beat on the street. Don't get the drag radials as they are too soft. They have a much more open tread and work much better when it is wet. Still any really big wide tire like this can be a handfull when it is wet. Just be carefull.

I don't know about the screws. The street radials may or may not seal. They only run about 20-25 psi maybe if everything is clean and free of burrs they will seal. I'd hate to try fix-a-flat but it's a possibility. You are not really supposed to run tubes in these but I would try it as a last resort.

My Hoosiers don't leak on 14" Convo Pros but I don't have screws either. As it turns out the Goodrich TA leak a bit on the front however. Not much but they take topping off every couple weeks.

good luck

BF goodrich drag radials i never leave home with out them have used them all i have had the best luck with the bf s you could rescrew them they may leak abit should not be that bad put a dab of sealer on the screws before you run them in you do not need tubes

Thanks everyone...

if you have to run the screws in. just use some bead sealer on the screws