I'm planning to do some Autotesting, Hill climbing and tarmac rallying in my '72 1300 beetle over here in England and i'm trying to work out what would be the best combination of tyres and suspension height to achieve maximum grip and stability.
So far i've lowered the front of the car 2" or so and installed some nice gas shock absorbers which have eliminated a lot of body roll.
Due to race regulations i can only run stock rims which are 4.5 all round on my beetle.
I'm aware that most people with lowered bugs run 'slam tyres' such as 145/65's up front but these are way too narrow for good grip!
I've looked into 175/55's as a possible solution but it would seem the profile is just too low and they look ridiculous.
What would be a suitable wider than stock tyre for my application that would fit on a 4.5 rim and clear the front wings with a 2-3" lowered front beam?
I plan to run the rear of the car lowered one outer spline with 185/65's does this sound about right or could i go wider without the ballooning effect?
If your rules allow for race tires then put the widest tires you can on the 4.5" rim. With a lower profile such as the 175/55 you suggested you should not have a problem with fender (wing) clearance. Don't worry about how it looks as this is for racing.
I think the 185/ 65 is too tall for the back. Take advantage of the lower profile tire for cornering and also to help acceleration. I doubt the tire guy can stretch anything wider than a 185 on a 4.5" rim with out problems.
Back in the day, I autocrossed my 1970 Bug lowered one outer spline in the rear and equally as low in front using a stock width adjustable beam. Tires were 165R15 front and rear on the stock wheels. Shocks were Koni red. No rubbing problems. Although, I had to shorten the rear bump stops to gain a little suspension travel.
