Bias Ply Tire Handling on Pre War Car

[Joao46]

Hello folks!

Im trying to decide whether to go for ultimate beauty or best driving experience on my 1931 Chrysler Imperial.

 

Are there people in this site with pre war cars who have gone from bias tires to the one radial tire Coker offers?

 

How much different did their car drive?

[edinmass]

Don’t go radial. Unless I am mistaken you have a snap ring wheel. It’s not a good idea. I could list a bunch of reasons why but I don’t wanna repeat myself for the 50th time. Put a nice set of fire stones on it. I can’t remember the car but it’s a club sedan isn’t it? Post another photo please. Go Blackwall if the car looks good with them.  White walls are nothing but a pain in the ass. I’m sure others will chime in.

[TTR]

Unless you plan to also modify/modernize the suspension, steering, wheels, etc, the “best(!?) driving experience” will likely be achieved with the type of tires the car was originally designed for.

 

Additionally, a lot will depend on what kind of and how much driving you’re planning to do and on what type of roads/streets, etc, etc, … 

If you’re planning to drive short, local trips to C & Cs, car shows or on/off a trailer, accumulating perhaps couple of hundred miles a year, any tire will do.

 

Beauty, even “ultimate”, is in the eye of the beholder, e.g. what you or someone else may perceive beautiful, me or others might consider ugly.

 

Edited December 28, 2023 by TTR (see edit history)

[JACK M]

I have often wondered if radials would be a mistake on wood spoked wheels.

[Joao46]

Thanks for the responses.

 

Yes it is an Imperial CG closed model. 
 

I was planning on taking it to Last Chance Garage to replace the tires as I don’t know how old they are but may be pretty old as they do not have that DOT date code . 
But the guy who runs Last chance told me bias tires if not cracked should be ok as bias tire bands are not steel and do not rust. 

[TTR]

10 minutes ago, Joao46 said:

I was planning on taking it to Last Chance Garage to replace the tires as I don’t know how old they are but may be pretty old as they do not have that DOT date code . 
But the guy who runs Last chance told me bias tires if not cracked should be ok as bias tire bands are not steel and do not rust. 

You may want to consider taking the car to someone who offers better and more sensible advise.

[Marty Roth]

Comparison:

 

I replaced with Coker Bias ply on my 1937 Buick 80C Roadmaster Phaeton (convertible sedan)-

I replaced with Coker Bias-Look Radial American Classic on my 1941 Cadillac Series 62 Convertible Coupe (cabriolet)

Both are mounted on the car's original rims.

I replaced with Coker Bias-Look Radial American Classic on my 1954 Cadillac Series 62 Convertible Coupe 

They are mounted on the Coker/Wheel Vintique aftermarket version of my original spoke rims, sealed for tubeless tires.

 

We tour all cars extensively, many thousands of miles.

I do not notice a significant difference in ride or handling on the earlier cars, but the 1954 may have a very slight edge in higher speed cornering when needed.

Both  seem to deliver a good driving experience.

 

I continue to have tire balancing problems with the Radials, seemingly requiring much more balance weights, and still not satisfactory, but then I'm very critical of vibration.

The Bias-Ply on the Buick do go down the road at all speeds, as smooth as anyone could imagine, even at Interstate speeds when required, although I prefer not to overdo it.

 

The radials on the '41 Caddy are relatively new and show almost no wear after thousands of miles, but when they age out, 

I'll replace them, probably going back to real Bias Ply with the correct size whitewalls, as this car was delivered, and as I toured it for its first 26,xxx miles of my ownership.

 

The tires on my 1930 Packard Touring with wire spoke wheels are older, maybe a bit stiff, but with no serious wear or cracking.

I would absolutely not install radials on this car!

Edited December 27, 2023 by Marty Roth
additional note (see edit history)

[TTR]

2 hours ago, Marty Roth said:

Comparison:

 

I replaced with Coker Bias ply on my 1937 Buick 80C Roadmaster Phaeton (convertible sedan)-

I replaced with Coker Bias-Look Radial American Classic on my 1941 Cadillac Series 62 Convertible Coupe (cabriolet)

Both are mounted on the car's original rims.

I replaced with Coker Bias-Look Radial American Classic on my 1954 Cadillac Series 62 Convertible Coupe 

They are mounted on the Coker/Wheel Vintique aftermarket version of my original spoke rims, sealed for tubeless tires.

 

We tour all cars extensively, many thousands of miles.

I do not notice a significant difference in ride or handling on the earlier cars, but the 1954 may have a very slight edge in higher speed cornering when needed.

Both  seem to deliver a good driving experience.

 

I continue to have tire balancing problems with the Radials, seemingly requiring much more balance weights, and still not satisfactory, but then I'm very critical of vibration.

The Bias-Ply on the Buick do go down the road at all speeds, as smooth as anyone could imagine, even at Interstate speeds when required, although I prefer not to overdo it.

 

The radials on the '41 Caddy are relatively new and show almost no wear after thousands of miles, but when they age out, 

I'll replace them, probably going back to real Bias Ply with the correct size whitewalls, as this car was delivered, and as I toured it for its first 26,xxx miles of my ownership.

 

The tires on my 1930 Packard Touring with wire spoke wheels are older, maybe a bit stiff, but with no serious wear or cracking.

I would absolutely not install radials on this car!

Very sensible suggestions, but if I'm not mistaken, all except 1930 Packard have independent front suspension & more modern(?) type wheels so not really comparable to 1931 Chrysler.

I too have driven countless miles in dozens of (or more ?) pre- & postwar vintage cars which originally came with bias-ply tires (still common in American cars in the 1960s) converted to Radial, i.e. steel belted, tires and some benefitted noticeably, but not all.

The few solid axle & (close to) stock suspension/steering late-1920s/early-1930 cars I've driven with Radials (most on steel wheels) didn't benefit, but rather suffered from the conversion. 

Edited December 27, 2023 by TTR (see edit history)

[Gary56]

Can I put radial tires on wagon wheels if I use inter tube?

[TTR]

On 7/4/2024 at 8:49 PM, Gary56 said:

Can I put radial tires on wagon wheels if I use inter tube?

I imagine it would depend on the type of wheels (Steel ? Wooden ? etc) and the kind of wagon (Horse drawn ? Motorized ? Radio Flyer ?) they belong to and what you intend to use all of them for ?

[Larry Schramm]

On 7/4/2024 at 11:49 PM, Gary56 said:

Can I put radial tires on wagon wheels if I use inter tube?

 

Let's get to the basics.  What year & make of car are you talking about?