Edit: OOPS! Chowser spotted a typo that I made. It's a 1994 940. I mistakenly typed the year as 1984.

We have an old Volvo that we keep for backup, if either my wife's primary car or mine is out of service, for maintenance. It's a 1984 1994 sedan, a 940.

The car is generally used for way less than 1,000 miles / year.

The tires that are on it have plenty of tread, but they have been there for many years, Florida heat, and I'm not sure that I trust them, especially at interstate highway speeds.

I'm looking to replace them with a new set of low-cost tires. Low cost, because they will likely be discarded for age, way before they wear out due to road use.

I am getting conflicting information on the size:

• Tire Rack website says 185/60-R15
  
  
• Discount Tire website says 195/65-R15

Which source should I trust? Or, if these two sizes will both do the job, which size should I pick, and why?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: V-Tail,

Go out and look on the sticker in the driver’s door jamb. It should have the size the car came with from the factory printed on it.

Look on the door jamb label (if present and undamaged) for the tire size.

The tires might be interchangeable. If I remember correctly, the first number represents the OD of the tire, the second number represents the width, and the 15 is the rim diameter. Go for cheap, in your case!

PowerSurge and egregore have the correct response of course, but the car is at another location right now and I was hoping to order the tires today.

Then I’d go with the 195/65-15’s. The wider 60’s would probably fit, but there’s always the chance on the front they might rub when the wheels are turned to lock.

Compare your WHEEL specifications with the tires below to see how they fit.

Personally, I'd go with the wider tire, even though it's only 1cm more width, and 5% more sidewall. More contact patch, slightly more compliant ride.

Or, you could put 22s on that bad boy and go full hooptie.

Cheap new tires are probably about as reliable as old name brand tires, unless the older tires are dry rotted.

I'd go with whats cheaper if you're never going to drive it.

These two are quite a bit different in size.
Wider is better for traction.
Taller will reduce performance (torque).
Be sure if taller that everything clears.

quote:

Originally posted by heavyd:

Cheap new tires are probably about as reliable as old name brand tires, unless the older tires are dry rotted.

Dry rot is what I'm concerned about, with the age, in the Florida sun. Current tires are around ten years old. The car sits outside. Mucho ultra-violet.

I'd go to Walmart and buy 195/65/15 Cooper Evolution Tour all season for $52 each.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/COO...5-91T-Tire/335040576

quote:

Originally posted by ArtieS:
Personally, I'd go with the wider tire, even though it's only 1cm more width, and 5% more sidewall. More contact patch, slightly more compliant ride.

I'm with Artie

Did they have a 940 in 1984? I thought the 900 series started in the 90s.

All I can find for 1984 is 740.

Volvo 740 Tire Sizes
1984

GLE
185/70R14

Turbo
195/60R15

IMO both tires that have been suggested are technically NOT correct for your Volvo.

Unfortunately tires that were perfectly functional back in the mid 80's have gone out of fashion so you are left choosing what will fit and is available and those are what were considered "low Profile" tires in 1984. Most sedans of that ere would have had 70 or 75 series profile tires mounted from the factory, the 60 and 65 series tires came standard on cars like the Z28 Camaro's, Corvettes, Porsche's, and high performance BMW models. IN the late 80's the 50 series tires started to show up and IIRC the Z51 Corvette was the first production car to feature 50 series tires from the factory.

Note, the tire numbering system is Width in mm followed by the Profile Ratio and then the wheel diameter. The Profile ratio is the ratio of the Sidewall Height to the Tread Width. A 60 series tire will have a sidewall height that is 60% of the width of the tread, a 20 series tire will have a sidewall height that is 20% of the tread width (and look like a bandaid wrapped around a wheel)

Back in 1974 most sedans would be running a 70 series tire and my hunch is that the tag on your Volvo will probably be something like 195/70 x 15. This is a tire size that is limited in availability and likely hard to find. 195/70 x 15 has 5.374 inch sidewall height. So your original rolling diameter was in the range of 25.75 inches if this is the size your car came with.

This means that you pretty much have an open field as far as tire selection is concerned so don't worry about the rolling diameter just get what you can find and offers the best balance between all weather traction and cost. Back in 1984 we didn't have anti lock brakes or traction control systems so changing the rolling diameter just meant the engine would be turning either faster or slower at a given speed. Note, it will mean that your speedometer calibration will be off. IF you have a portable GPS such as a Garmin Nuvi use the GPS based speed indicator to determine your true speed at certain indicated speeds (30. 45, 60, 75). If you want to see what impact that would actually is to take your Original diameter and divide that by the New rolling diameter. That will give you a multiplier that you can use to determine the new engine rpm's for say 60 mph. Basically, go smaller in rolling diameter and your engine will rev higher.

Final note, and this one concerns SAFETY. You may be able to find tires in your original diameter if you look at Trailer Tires. Trying to use Trailer Tires as passenger tires on a car is NOT safe and may actually be a violation of Federal Law. The reason it's unsafe is that trailer tires were designed to just Roll, they were NOT designed to be a drive tire and if used in that application will probably produce a blowout at some point. In addition trailer tires are constructed out of UV resistant compounds and with a very low rate of wear. As a result the traction of a trailer tire is quite poor in a direct comparison to passenger car tires. I will also note that the majority of trailer tires today are still Bias Ply tires, so the basic construction method dates back to the 1950's. So, DO NOT even think about substituting trailer tires even if they are less than half the cost.

quote:

Originally posted by Chowser:

Did they have a 940 in 1984? I thought the 900 series started in the 90s.

All I can find for 1984 is 740.

Volvo 740 Tire Sizes
1984

GLE
185/70R14

Turbo
195/60R15

A typo on my part.

It is a 1994, not 1984. Yes, it is a 940.

According to my guide the base model takes 185/65-15. The T or turbo model takes 195/65-15 or 205/55-16. You should be able to buy 40K American made tires for around $75 or less mounted, balanced and new valve stems.

all that info should be on the tire as well...

tire rack provides the tires only.

discount provides everything, mount, balance, flat repairs, rotation, re-balance for the life of the tires.