VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - GENERAL Radios, Tools, Accessories Radials for 1957 Chev

Looking for information on how do radial tires perform on the 1957 Chev. Are there any negatives associated with that change over.

Thanks,
cabr40

I run the WWW radials and they work great and I have never had a problem with them. I like the way the car drives with them a lot more than the bi-ply I had before. IMHO

I have a set of mounted radials and a set of mounted bias ply tires for my '57.Thr front suspension and steering is in good condition and the car has power Steering.The radials eleminate some of the wander caused by uneven road surfaces,etc. but that is not much of a problem with the bias.The radials make more noise on some road surfaces and the ride is harder at city speeds.If I were to buy a set of new tires I would stay with the bias as I think they look better on the car.The radials are 205-75-14's
With the stock rims and radials many have a problem with the wheel covers (not small hub caps) either rotating on the rim or just plain falling off.This is due to the rim flexing as the 1957 wheels are made from much thinner metal than modern rims.
I might add if your present car has a loose front end/steering gear the radials will help cover-up the sloopy steering problem.
On another car I have that has manual steering the radials make steering (for parking) more difficult.

Anybody who's been on this site for more than about five minutes should know it doesn't make sense to disagree with Chev Gene.

However........

I've had Coker wide white radials on my 54 Sport Coupe for about 10 years and never had a problem. Not even the "common" ones that Gene mentions.

My 'new' 56 convertible that I purchased a few months ago also has radials. Like the 54, it also has (the original) full size wheel covers. No problems with them or any other problems.

Both are P205-70-15's.

And the "ride" on the radials is OH SO SWEET compared to the original type bias ply tires!!!



Bill.

I sure hope that no one ever hesitates to disagree with me.On many things I state my opinions and they are not always in agreement with the "norm".......

I have radials on every one of our car that uses drop center rims, The only ones I have had problems with the rims flexing and popping the wheel covers have been the original rims with the spring clips to mount the original small hubcaps. I replaced the original wheels with more modern rims from the late 60s up. I was unaware that the rims on the 57 were that flimsey since they often were for 14 inch tires. The reason I used the later model wheels we wanted to run 15 inch tires. I have the same rims and tires on my open car hauling trailer (215-15) that makes it nice having 10 tires and wheels that will interchange.

Gene tells the same story that I tell. Drove my '55 with new radials to Colorado and experienced two of the full hubcaps rotating on the rim. One - the left front - was about to pull the valve stem out when I noticed it - morning of day two...I put it back on but watched is closely And finally took it off until arriving at the meet. The other one didn't move that much. I too noticed the harsher ride on city streets, but it's not a downside for me. After I had the radials on, I had the 51 year old bushings and had the ball joints replaced. One thing that improved the driving, I did before the '96 meet in Rapid City. I replace the original 4 leaf springs with new 5 leaf ones and replaced the shocks at the same time. Great results!

With the bias ply it took a while for the tires to warm up....thump...thump...thump...thump...for miles...

Thank ya all for your comments on the radials for the 57. I shall feel more comfortable with my 205/75/14 decision now.

RonVan

Just note that they are slightly smaller than your original 7.50 X 14 so the speedometer will read a little fast......let us know how you like them.

You noted the hub cap rotates due to rim flexing. Are the radials not as rigid as bias?

The radials place more outward force on the rims causing them to flex..If the rims are rusted and further weakened they can even crack where the tire bead meets the rim.The later cars had much heaiver metal used in the wheels.The 1957 wheels are marginal when new and if any metal is lost due to rust they can be dangerous.The wheel, if not rusted is probably safe but can flex, causing wheel cover problems.
If you would compare the weight of a new 1957 wheel to say a 1975 Nova wheel the difference is very noticable.The new wheels weigh about twice as much.

My '58 has Diamondback wide white radials and manual un- power-assisted steering. I can vouch for many of the same symptoms on the later year as well. I've had one hubcap outrun me several times - always the same wheel regardless of which hubcap I put on it.

The difficulty steering never bothered me much but my wife struggled steering the Sherman tank around town. After I had carpal tunnel surgery I was more sympathetic to her.

-Pat.