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175/70r13 tires on an 86' R4 GTL

dogbone12

Enthusiast
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8
Location
Morocco
Does anyone know if this is at all possible. I have a brand new set of tires that are bigger than stock (135/80 r13) but since I'm not planning on loading the car much (the back seat is actually out now) wondering if I could use these tires instead of the manufacturers recommended size.????
 
The problem lies mainly in the rear tyre to suspension arm mounting radial clearance. Check this one first.

You should also expect worse handling-these cars are lightweight and built with narrow tyres in mind.
 
The problem lies mainly in the rear tyre to suspension arm mounting radial clearance. Check this one first.

You should also expect worse handling-these cars are lightweight and built with narrow tyres in mind.
The best I can find here in Cyprus is a 145 x 13 so I will have to go with them
 
Hi Dogbone,
175/70R13 means that the tyre is 175mm wide. 70 is the tyre profile from the top of the rim to the beginning of the tread. It is not a measurement. It means that it is 70% of the width of the tyre, which in this case would be 122,5mm
135/80 means that the side profile is 108mm
145/80 have a side profile of 116mm
As Angel says, you're getting very close to the suspension bracket on the back wheels.
Your speedometer reading will also be incorrect with larger diameter tyres
 
My old GTL had 175/65/13s and they would rub occasionally on the rear although only if there was any load in the rear or under more enthusiastic cornering ;) Does affect the speedo reading slightly but then they aren't that accurate to start with.
 
Hello dogbone12,
It's perfectly possible, without rubbing of the tires, and if they rub with the edge of the rear fenders, you can literally (but carefully) pull the rear fenders with your own hands to gain a little clearance.
On the inside there's no rubbing either. In my older R4 cars, I even had 185/60 in the back, en they only needed a little hand pulling of the fenders, and both cars featured lowered suspensions.

The problem would be the front tires, BUT only in a lowered fashion like mine below, or if you'll go off-road and expect lots of suspension travel up front... Mine below are 175/70R13 (same width but slightly taller @ 70% of width) and they did in fact rub ONLY in the front and ONLY when turning and hitting a pothole at the same time, since the tire would travel a lot more and would hit the edge of the front fender, pulling it down. For this reason I switched those in the front to 165/70R13.

Renault 4 GTL Master (1985).jpg

The wheels in the picture above are OEM, with the following dimensions: 13x4J (inches), 3x130mm PCD, -30mm Offset. The recommended wheel tire by the manufacturer is the original 155/80R13, but it doesn't mean you can't get away with something wider. You'll also find below a description (in Spanish) from COFRE, the OEM manufacturer in Colombia, although sadly... they don't make them any longer.

COFRE rims (Colombia OEM).JPG
COFRE rim (Colombia OEM).JPG
 
thanks for the great replies, I will start by fitting the back tires and by the looks of it I have no doubt that it will be fine for my use
 
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