Front Wheel/Tires for Dune Buggy

[Rayers13]

Hello,

I am in need of some help/advice regarding the Wheel/tire combination on the Dune Buggy I purchased late last year.

I like the current Wheel setup on the Buggy, but the front wheels having motorcycle style tires on them seems like a poor choice for an all street setup. The current tires are
130/90-15 just for reference.

My question is am I able to put "car" tire onto these rims? or is it possible that the rims are to narrow to support such a Wheel. Is there any benefit/reason that motorcycle tires would have been used on the fronts?

I appreciate any help on the subject. Unfortunatley, some local shops near me were not able to shed any light on the subject. Pictures below are of the wheels/tires in question.

[Typ3nut]

[quote="Rayers13"]Hello,

I am in need of some help/advice regarding the Wheel/tire combination on the Dune Buggy I purchased late last year.

I like the current Wheel setup on the Buggy, but the front wheels having motorcycle style tires on them seems like a poor choice for an all street setup. The current tires are
130/90-15 just for reference.

My question is am I able to put "car" tire onto these rims? or is it possible that the rims are to narrow to support such a Wheel. Is there any benefit/reason that motorcycle tires would have been used on the fronts?

Hello Rayers13,
The wheels you have will not accept "Car" passenger tires. They were made for motorcycles and that means weight rating plays a factor.
The narrowest passenger tire application is on a 4" wide rim bead.
Contact a Buggy Shop ask what they suggest as those wheels are for Dune Buggies, meaning sand, less friction that rides on top of the surface. They can be street driven but their shape does not perform like a car tire on paved surfaces.

[NJ John]

135r15 or 145r15 will fit just fine. If anything those motorcycle tires are stretched to fit that rim.
_________________
1973 standard, yellow, lowered, 3” narrowed front, 1600 blo-thru turbo w/single dell 15.4@86, so far
11.41 et buggy. Long gone
Let’s go O’s! Let’s go O’s!
https://www.youtube.com/@AirSpooledGarage

[Stinky123]

What are you going to do with it?

Street only? I assume so, based on the size of those tires.

Those tires are way to small for the dirt.

[slalombuggy]

Those are just steel buggy wheels. They were made for car tires. I absolutely HATE 135s and 145s on the front of buggies. They don't turn and they don't stop.

While they do appear to be skinny. 4" maybe? Yiu ca still fut a decent tire on them. Currently I'm running 185/70/15s on 4 inch Centerlines

[NJ John]

All true, but they look cool while skidding past your turn.
_________________
1973 standard, yellow, lowered, 3” narrowed front, 1600 blo-thru turbo w/single dell 15.4@86, so far
11.41 et buggy. Long gone
Let’s go O’s! Let’s go O’s!
https://www.youtube.com/@AirSpooledGarage

[Rayers13]

Thanks for all the input guys!

I ended up finding some cheap 155/60r15 and just ordered them to see if they would fit or not.

I had them mounted and balanced today and they fit great ( If possible maybe my next set I would like to go little wider).

This buggy is gonna be street only, hence why I wanted to go with a more "car" style tire.

Thanks again for the recommendations!