What Tires Should I Run On My Hot Rod?? - Hot Rodding 101

One of the most asked question on any internet forum, or Facebook group seems to involve tires. "What tires should I run on my Hot Rod" seems to be asked time and time again. The real answer is any type of tire, but if you are trying to emulate a certain time period in hot rodding history there are certain styles that were used at specific times. Matt uses a few of the projects in the shop to explain the different looks and styles that were common. This is not the definitive guideline of what tires you should run, but more of a discussion on the subject. Comment below with your favorite hot rod tire combo!!
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[@rogermiller8262]

Very informative video. Another topic to cover might be front axle, spring perch & spring options. Thanks Matt.

[@kenimhoff6475]

What a hot topic! I always said the right wheel and tire combo can make or break a cars looks. 😊

[@psullivan613]

Great information and excellent job on producing the video. The variety of shots and pictures made the video! Wheels & tires make the hot rod, trial and error is very expensive, the rejects take up a lot of space until you can sell them.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Thanks for watching!

[@bradzimmerman3171]

Nothing makes your hot rod ( anything)look lame as hubcaps, not even bumper stickers

[@AircooledMisfits]

Great timing, just bought some 7.50's for the rear and deciding on what to get for the front of my coupe. Thanks for the break down, very informative.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Thanks for watching!

[@ericargo9157]

Absolutely correct, tires can change the look dramatically. I went with an aggressive tread design for my 51 F1 truck. Power King Extra Traction 7.00x15 military type tires on 15x5.5 steelies. They have a deep tread and look sick. Great vid, Matt.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Those tires are killer on old trucks! Good choice! Thanks for watching!

[@josephcavatoni4463]

Super helpful video. I'm about to take my '31 Model A on a three day 1,000-mile cruise. I've got a heavy rake to the look (4.50-4.75 x 16) and this video helped me to confirm I need to swap out to a bigger front tire to make higher speed/longer runs safer. Thanks Iron Trap and Matt.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Good luck!

[@phillipbrenckle1930]

Community help 😎as always. Some of u utubers are a true complement to ur communities. 👍

[@IronTrapGarage]

Thanks for watching! It’s our pleasure!

[@simonevans343]

I like all your motors soo much. Not all channels have such a good group of cars. Keep up the good work . Happy new year.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Thanks for watching Simon!

[@68djfi]

Thank you for the tire information. Are you going to built a shop truck. You just got a model A truck and you picked up a blogger model TT truck. That would be very cool 😎 for your business. As always great job. Ralph

[@benevans902]

You forgot to mention the cleaning requirement of the wide white wall. One to two hours per tire per year to keep them bright white.

[@piewagn]

I don't know if Matt remembers the 7.50x16 "Power King" tires he helped me mount for my coupe....10 ply suckers, what a bear they were to get on! I've gotta say, they've performed flawlessly to this point! I've recently installed Shinko bias 4 ply 5.00x16 on the front for that classic "big and littles" look....they are MC tires, but are rated at 750 lbs weight each ( flatheads come in at 525lbs ) and 124mph. Being bias plies, they look great and have also performed flawlessly! Round and true....I haven't even balanced them yet and I get no vibration up to 65-70 mph....and even then it's not bad at all! Keep up the great work Matt!!

[@slowshop]

This was interesting and close to heart. I look at tires as meetings and take a picture it I like them. I run 7.00-17 in the back and 5.50-17 in the front on our Tudor. Rear is Firestone truck tire and front is Excelsior. Looks a bit different and ride quality is... ok. 😉

[@nweisbond]

Outstanding episode! Thanks to Matt and crew!

[@DuckReach432]

I loved the old photos you showed in this video. We get to see Hot Rod culture from the guys who invented it.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Thanks for watching!

[@TheDiamondback73]

I'm, also, thinking you should put some thoughts into building a "shop truck". Needs to have the shop logos on it. That would be great for those parts/lunch runs.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Stay tuned!

[@christophercain8749]

Great timing! I'm trying to figure out what to run on my 63 galaxie "mold custom/ high school hotrod" type project.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Thanks for watching!

[@brianhayes7618]

Build a hot rod shop truck that would fit so well with the channel for us truck guys

[@chuckstith838]

He just got a 28/29 roadster pickup at Texas. That would be great

[@IronTrapGarage]

Stay tuned…

[@craigpennington1251]

Love Bias Ply tires. Not near as noisy as steel belteds. Handles gravel roads lots better/meaning the rocks don't tear up the tires as easy as radials. I've lived on gravels roads pretty much all my life & radial tires do not hold up. Like the tall sidewalls also for ride and absorption of bumps, potholes, & ground clearance. Plus once you bust a steel belt, you're basically done. The stell belt will never be as good again/the tire will wobble. You also need bigger tires if you have lots of HP & Torque I've found. P.S. The T Bucket @23:04 is one that is done Right. It's perfect.

[@deuceman32]

The roadster photo at 16:46 is breathtaking!

[@jhwk1970]

The more you know about something the more interesting it is. I just learned a lot. Thank you.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Thanks for watching!

[@gseyank100]

Loved seeing the pics in this video. One hit really close to home. Thanks for the info throughout the video.

[@672egalaxie6]

Outstanding video from beginning to end, and the still photos are great too!

[@IronTrapGarage]

Thanks for watching!

[@apexmetalrestoration2805]

Great video Matt. I’m building my 31 coupe in a 60’s-70’s style with a small block 302 from my first car. I was going to go with a 10 inch pie crust cheater slick. And a 5.5 tire in the front.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Sounds like a good combo for that style car!

[@ldnwholesale8552]

Very dangerous. When it rains those slicks are good for maybe 20mph. Checkout Roadkill videos on Mikes 55. And as they are a race tyre they have bugger all puncture resistance.

[@apexmetalrestoration2805]

@@ldnwholesale8552 thanks for the warning. Many folks have mentioned this issue. Luckily, I’m in Phoenix, Arizona. Not a ton of rain ! But I’ll definitely keep it in mind.

[@eddiezapien5713]

Excelsior 500-16 fronts and towel city pie crusts rears won my heart over on my roadster. 👏🏽👏🏽

[@murdoc6501]

I am running Rocket cheater slicks on the back of my '46 coupe. The Firestone slicks were too tall and I would have had to radius the fender openings to get them to fit, making the car look more of a drag style. The Rockets are more of the 1960's style and actually look better with my build (high school hot rod). Excellent video and very informative!

[@IronTrapGarage]

Yea I’ve heard that about the firestones before! They’re pretty dang big! Probably good for a big engine car but for a nostalgic car from the 50’s or early they’re a bit big I think.

[@simonlane1277]

Love to see the English '32 cabriolet (at 3:31 ). Belonged to George Foulger in the '60s. Then sold to the now late Dave Waring who took it with him when he emigrated to Tennessee

[@michaelguinn5736]

Morning Matt, another great video! We both have the same "big n little" taste...be safe, God Bless!!

[@rickjansen58]

the old school fotos added a lot. thanks

[@frankpeters1502]

Real time information. I'm running 185 s front 235 s rear nice hot rot style

[@HayAuto]

I had 500/525’s on the front of a 40 Ford. While it sat low and looked really good, it was sketchy on wet pavement. The wheels would lock up so easily under light braking. I thought it was a brake issue but after investigation and talking to some old timers it was because the contact patch of the tire was too small. 550’s ended up being a lot better for wet stopping. I have 600s on the front of a 39 Ford now and I have little problem with lock up on wet roads.

[@donaldcochrane3283]

Thetread. That you are referring to was calded hig miller like the back tire in one of yor cars

[@mattrzewnicki6343]

Awesome knowledge dump! Love these style videos! Thanks for the video Matt.

[@bobkroupa8445]

1940 Ford Coupe. Running a common combination on the stock 16 x 4.5 wheels. 6.50 x 16 on the front. 7.50 x 16 on the rear. Wide whites. Black stain paint. Bias look radials from Coker.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Good choice!

[@g.o.b.2558]

Awesome information👍 Thank you👌

[@MrJeep75]

Like the 6.00x16/7.00x16 combo

[@edwardwerick2420]

My hotrod building began in the early 70's and consisted nearly entirely of post war era cars. The prewar cars were getting scarce and expensive. (At least too expensive for me) I recall vividly the first time I switched tires from bias-ply to radials. Namely BF Goodrich Radial T/As. The improvement in handling and ride quality was astounding! I have used radial tires exclusively ever since. I believe that some of the specialty tire manufacturers are selling radial tires that have a profile and tread design which mimic the older bias ply tires. I don't know how they perform as I am not that much wedded to the early hotrod "look" so I have never tried them but it sounds like a "best of both worlds" option. My best input is check tire pressure often and never run any tire under-inflated.

[@garycamara9955]

I use 15 or 16 x 8 rears and 15x4 fronts pirelli cinturatos on the front radial cheater slicks on the rear. Now at least but not in the day. I had firestone skinnys on the front and 850s on the back.

[@keithlalonde4308]

Hot rodding 101 series great content thanks

[@oldtown6240]

Great video, well produced containing pertinent information and advice.

[@BrunoWiebelt]

thx that was Very good help! cheers fron SWEDEN

[@THROTTLEPOWER]

Great vid!!! I like the black wall big and little.

[@garycamara9955]

In the 50s only the wide whites were available, unless you used blackwalls. Hot rods usually used blackwalls, at least around here in nor cal.

[@CapnBubbaa]

I ran 950x15 tires they were 30" tall and were wide enough for good bite with a 324 Olds, staggered 4x2 50 olds coupe, LaSalle 3 sped....

[@Rebel-Forces-Earth-007]

16" x 4 1/2" wheels all around. And 450/475 x 16 front and 750 x 16 rear tires from Coker. Classic early 50s rake for my 32 Ford roadster.

[@gregl1824]

Deciding on tires was the hardest part of my build. Because I have a '32 4 door sedan with no fenders, the skinny bias ply tires just didn't seem to suit the car properly so I had to go with a wider radial. I know 4 doors are not in your wheelhouse , but have you ever seen someone pull off the bias tires on a fenderless 4-door?

[@1BSARoadRocket]

I appreciate the tire talk. I like the rubber rake look of blackwall 5.50x16 ad 7.50x16 on the rear of an early ford and I like the nostalgic look of biasply tires. However I've looked at the cost of purchasing these old school tires and they are more than twice the cost of modern radial tires. The problems I'm encountering with most 16 inch radials is they are just two wide for an old Ford rim. I believe there are some reasonably priced radials around that are similar to a 5.50 or 6.00 x16 but the only thing I can find in a radial that is close to a 7.50x16 are trailer tires. If anybody has any suggestions for something close to a 7.50x17 in a reasonably priced over the counter radial I want to hear about it! I know running radials on an early Ford is kind of like running a GM alternator on a flathead in terms of not being period correct, but I'm trying for practicality so I have to draw the line somewhere.

[@ldnwholesale8552]

There is no 7 50 16 radial equivilant except for 4wd, light truck tyres. And NEVER fit them to 4" wide V8 wires. 5.5" rim mininum. 185x75x16LT are a genuine alternative to a 600x16 though best on 5-6" wide rims.

[@joeauricchio9908]

Also be mindful of your castor angle when changing your tire height

[@classactkirk]

Great video..it's the small things

[@kyleforeman4543]

Another great video,tks Matt and Mike

[@billmaulding4042]

Great info!

[@medicaided42]

would be nice if you did a video about the free T ive never seen it maybe fire it up n go for a ride ??

[@garycamara9955]

Dude, I was around in the 50s. We used blackwalls. The skinniest fronts we could find, 820s in the rear.

[@garycamara9955]

You can get early style rear cheater slicks, about 8" wide at the most.

[@terrancesweeney1870]

Very informative Matt. Thank you!

[@chuckb9867]

Great pictures irontrap garage the best

[@MrGixxer1300r]

I noticed that in the old pictures in your video none of the cars had the suspension bottomed out with no travel like your cars. I think that is because the cars in the pictures were daily drivers, and were driven more than just a mile or two every now and then.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Plenty of cars were lowered considerably. The car should have plenty of suspension travel if done right. Do whatever makes you happy.

[@lelandrogers1078]

One thing I ran into back then was that my speedometer was no longer accurate when I changed wheel size. Do you address that or just live with it? I guess a gps speedometer would solve the problem these days.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Just live with it. But I’m sure others will calibrate it. All a matter of how picky you are.

[@henryg683]

Matt where is a good place to buy some old style new tires wide whites?????..

[@bluedog373]

I prefer to deal in diameter. Wheels are in diameter. 7.50 x 16 is 31 inches tall. 6.00 x 16 is 28 inches tall. Thats what I run. Next time its 5.50 on the front. I like the 6.00 but they do tend to rub a bit on a full fendered tudoor.

[@ChoppersModelworks]

Great video as always. But does anyone know of a resource to match axle, spindle/hub, and wheels to get a safe and operable Kingpin angle and scrub radius combination? Wanting to run a Model A axle and probably 37-41 spindles and i'm curious what wheels might be best. Wanting to use the 19" model A wheels but just not sure if this would be too off the scrub radius center. Might be a deep subject but this could make an interesting video! Also, maybe the different types of spring perches available might be of interest.

[@PTE1957]

Can you still come across NON SKID tires that said non skid as tread? I thought it was so cool when I came across these tires.

[@alseidel5622]

Nice primer on tires/wheels. Speaking of which what wheels are you running on the Pagota City coupe? Streamlined??

[@IronTrapGarage]

35 ford wire wheels with repro Lyons wheel covers. Thanks for watching!

[@jimboyokel]

Do you guys typically run bias ply or bias look radials given the choice?

[@johnbehneman1546]

SHOPPING SUGGESTIONS: CORKER TIRES, SUMMIT RACING, SPEEDWAY MOTORS AND OTHERS.

[@RacingCrashesFunAndMore]

Such a cool video.

[@thomasst.martin3308]

Interesting. Thanks.

[@nzsaltflatsracer8054]

I bet Ronnie Roadster is eyeballing those 18" Halibrands you have there for his Bonneville roadster, he just spent an arm & a leg getting some custom stuff built.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Those are near and dear to my heart! Haha

[@nzsaltflatsracer8054]

@@IronTrapGarage So is the Ardun mate!

[@tomcummings655]

how about a discussion on the "east coast" vs "west coast" look?Back in the day you could almost tell where the car was from just from the rear ride height.You seem to prefer the east coast "dog peeing on a rock"look,maybe its in the water?LOL To us living west of the Mississippi both your coupes {to us] seem like the rear ends could be up about 2-3 inches for the best look.The seam where the rear fender mounted should be visible over the tire.I know everyone east will disagree.The severe channeling seems to be more of an east coast thing too-P.S. ,your cars look great!

[@IronTrapGarage]

I think it wasn’t as much “East versus west” when you start looking at photos from back in the day. Lots of channeled Unchopped cars in Cali too. I don’t worry too much about that and just build whatever I think is cool just like what they did back then too.

[@tomcummings655]

@@IronTrapGarage thats the most important thing-build the style YOU want-if you build to please other people,you'll never be happy!!keep up the great[informative] videos

[@dennissheridan1550]

Speaking of "Dad's Daily" me thinks you need to concentrate on getting it finished so he'll have some time to enjoy it. Us old dudes (I'm 78) have a bad habit of getting up in the morning and getting laid out in the evening. Although I plan on harassing my sweet wife of 53 yrs., kids and grandkids for quite a bit longer. 😆

[@IronTrapGarage]

We are working on it. Did you miss the last batch of videos? We do tons of work off camera in between videos. He isn’t back until May.. so we’re on schedule.

[@dennissheridan1550]

@@IronTrapGarage Roger, copy last transmission.

[@silverpairaducks]

Is smokey a class of tire?

[@rogervillela8241]

Motorcycle tires in front double sided whitewalls is my choice

[@garycamara9955]

Pie crusts were only on rear tires.

[@WillyMcCoy50]

Modern motorcycle fat white wall tires (15's) would look great. Cool/simple tread design, white on both sides and no one is doing it.

[@jessebianchi2631]

and would wear out after a few trips around the block. then too, m/c tires are designed for a completely different type of stress. look up a video called Paper Bag Princess.

[@tomprobst7212]

What are the tire sizes on the schroll coupe?

[@IronTrapGarage]

8.20-15 rear and 5.60-15 front

[@tomprobst7212]

@@IronTrapGarage gotcha. Thank you. It looks just right on the coupe. I would like to have a similar setup for mine but I have 16" wheels

[@radtek2]

My first car cost 15 bucks! I picked berry's for a month to pay for it. Now it had decent BW tires ...well they weren't onion skins yet! At the time WW walls were the thing then so another run through the Berry Fields got enough $$ to get some falsies or Porta Walls put on. As a dirt poor 14 year old hot rodder and a lot of other poor souls did in back in those days. Late 50's

[@daveluno5217]

Big n littles all the way!

[@michaelandcarolblackburn103]

Awesome

[@tradrodsandcustoms]

Bring back the sweetheart!!

[@johnbehneman1546]

ROD AND CUSTOM 101

[@VintageLifeCars]

Good vid, but I think a lot of people would benefit from being taught how how tyre sizes work and how you can tell the approximate diameter just from the marked size. A lot of people don't realise that "7.50" means seven and a half inches.

[@IronTrapGarage]

I think that is a general tire education that we were assuming people could research or learn from some simple googling. Tried to keep the video fairly focused.

[@dennisschickling2249]

Great information. 👍 #STAYSAFE #PHILLYPHILLY 🇺🇸

[@ldnwholesale8552]

Errr, As were 3.78 with 18" tyres. [and sometimes bigger. V8s were 4.11 with max 600x16s. [or smaller] All of our Oz ones were 16" So the As were taller geared with stronger ring and pin. 600s are the biggest that should be on V8 wires as they are so narrow. Though as someone who sells tyres crossplies are prewar. And generally crap. And yes I know they were still being sold on new cars up until the 70s Problem is getting radials for the prehistoric skinny wires. The rims are simply not up too it. Later model all steel rims which you can buy new in wider sizes means radials are safe and no tubes needed. And said rims are far cheaper and lighter than those stupid wires. 60s bias belt Wankmaster GTs [Badday and Firerock] are simply dangerous on those Muscle Cars. How many people did they kill?? Bloody near got me as a passenger. Use a radial that is suited to your rims. Meaning no fat and skinny. Skinny are usually underload and speed rating and putting a 9" tyre on a 6" rim is both dangerous and illegal.

[@garycamara9955]

They actually made a cheater slick with skulls for a tread design.

[@johnbehneman1546]

GREAT VIDEO MAT!! WHITEWALL TIRES ARE VERY EXPENSIVE. PLEASE DO YOUR HOMEWORK FIRST. THERE IS NO RIGHT ORWRONG. BUY WHAT YOU LIKE.

[@citic101]

great video .... I am trying to work out what tyres have been used on a video on You tube if you have time can you have a look and tell me please .... YOU Tube 1947 Dodge tack gr auto gallery , thanks so much.... " goodridge ... Good year

[@sherlockholmes5912]

I am not so interested as to "Look" as i am am into handling characteristics. Why is it these videos focus on aesthetics?

[@IronTrapGarage]

You probably want radial tires then..

[@68djfi]

Sorry fat fingers Bigger truck