DDK - Die Deutschen Klassiker

Think LT can see the point

as I've said before , over 20 years of ragging my 2.4S on yorkshire dales roads etc with various manuf tyres but always 195/65... some have felt like shite on the car & others brilliant ..... I have also driven mates cars with the original spec 185/70 tyres ( bought from yourself Dougal ) .

Their cars might look better to purist, but they do not handle or grip any better than my Continentals that I've now had a couple of sets of .

In spain earlier this year , I was in my 964 running Michelin PS4's , Gary was following me in his car with almost 1/2 the horsepower, but with the continental 195/65 ... He would not have been any quicker or enjoyed the car any more running a full set of 185/70 modern reproduction tyres.

there are probably plenty of classic & vintage cars where period profile tyres do make a difference, but with a lot of our early ( lwb) Porsches that isn't really the case ...... bear in mind our suspension is pretty much teh same & interchangeable all the way through to 1989 and those later 911's ran the more modern profile tyres

Everyone can make their own choices, but what you shouldn't do Dougal is tell the of us who have driven these cars for many years, that we are wrong .. we are not

Been running 195/65 on my swb for years and they've been absolutely fine, despite Dougal's genius technical illustration attempt to convince us otherwise .

We will all have differing opinions and of course budgets.

I for one welcome Dougal's input.

Yes Longstone are a valuable contributor to DDK and have been for many years - they take a banner advert package and hope keep there forum running

and 2..... what is a forum if devoid of discussion and tyres is always a hot topic!

Indeed.
When hillclimbing my 911 for 13 years I had several tyres, all very different, all as modern as they came, Avon CR 28 Sport ( very nice, traction AA rated), Toyos (horrible) a few other then simply the best, Kumho VR 70 soft.
Kumhos we’re very new, fantastic on road and hill, dry or wet, lasted 3000 miles max so went through several sets and also on my hot Impreza.
The Kumhos were then banned for modified production classes so I used real Avon slicks on the hills.

I like my CN36s.

Here you go
https://www.blackcircles.com/brands/con ... e=39435457

£95 fitted or £77 each and see if someone can fit and balance cheaper?

Here you go
https://www.blackcircles.com/brands/con ... e=39435457

£95 fitted or £77 each and see if someone can fit and balance cheaper?

Or ASDA £73 and get fitted elsewhere

Which with your budget leaves you £68 to get the 4 fitted and balanced

https://www.asdatyres.co.uk/continental ... mcontact-6

matteo68 wrote: ↑Wed Nov 19, 2025 7:12 pm I like my CN36s.

Cheers matteo68.

that is what everyone who actually fits a CN36 says. It is only ever disputed on price or by people who have driven on old tyres.

Dougal Cawley wrote: ↑Mon Jun 08, 2026 3:36 pm

matteo68 wrote: ↑Wed Nov 19, 2025 7:12 pm I like my CN36s.

Cheers matteo68.

that is what everyone who actually fits a CN36 says. It is only ever disputed on price or by people who have driven on old tyres.

Interesting thread and while it pains me a little, I agree with Dougal. If you are not price sensitive, try the CN36 and I doubt you will look back. It really is a fabulous tyre for fast road use - grip, ride, poise and predictability are really well suited to these cars. I’ve tried several different tyres (modern and classic profiles) over more than 60k miles and I prefer these to anything else I have tried. I do wish they were cheaper though!

As a more affordable option, I thought the Vredestein Classic was decent.

I'm having to think about tyres.

Mine are immaculate Michelin 196/65r15's with knobbly bits still on the sidewall. I thought I'd check the manufacture year - and they're 2008! They're 18 years old!

I get the argument about 185/70's (and I'd love a set), but I can get replacement Michelin Primacy 4's from Costco for £85 a corner fitted. That's 40% the price of Cinturato CN36 185/70's - and that's important if you only drive a few hundred miles a year... Imagine looking at an immaculate full set of £150-£250 tyres and thinking "they've got to go in the bin due to age".

That is the dilemma for many, and me.
I am sure Dougle is correct with his choice and opinion.Great tyres.
However, I do 1200 miles a year in my 911 73T ex hillclimb car and just use it for nice road trips and National Trust visits etc, just a nice old 911.
The Continentals on the car now A rated for low noise, wet weather grip etc are really nice fat balloon tyres and work really well at 40 % of the cost.
I’m happy and appreciate Dougles’ input.
If you can justify the cost go to his direction.

... yes .... but ....even if a few hundred miles a year (over 10 years ... that's a few thousand ...) it's the one and only part of the car that is connected to the road ....

I've had the car for 38 years, seriously hillclimbed it for 13 on a wide range of tyres, Kumho V70 Soft being the best for grip, poor in heavy rain (shallow tread depth).

All that is behind me with the car, just easy weekend driving where dealing with wet grip the top of the list. It just does not need high performance tyres.

It still has the hillclimb mods inc the 3.2 engine and 995Kg, 7" Cookie Cutters etc. It will be competing this weekend (for fun). It is reasonably quick, but...

Most of the runs I do in the car are as fast as doing it in my wife's Skoda Citigo. I do about 1400 miles a year now.

Just removed a 10 year old set of Dunlop Blu Sports, about 2/3's worn in that time, new, £72 each. They worked fine.
Now, if I wanted the very best (for me) then it would be back to the Kumho, road life about 3000 miles and then bald.

But you just can't drive to the max of their grip on the roads around me, so the £250 each or so cost is wasted.

I guess 'Horses for Courses' comes to mind, and each to their own.

If it is a competition car, modified, all bets are off. It will have had modifications done that change the way the tyre is presented to the road and then you will get more grip out of a modern tyre.

when Porsche moved to 195/65R15 they had dramatically modified the geometry - yes a 'stiffer anti roll bar' is a drmatic change to the geometry. It is directly designed at diminishes the roll in the car, for exactly the reason of keeping the footprint of the tyre flat on the road.

Even without the anti roll bar fitting wider footprint modern tyres will improve straight line stopping distances, and diminish straightline wheel spin.

Even if you have the stiffer anti roll bar the CN36 will give more progressive handling, and a nicer ride, inherantly built into the carcass:

• Rounded shoulders give a more progressive breakaway point. meaning that zone between complete grip and complete loss of grip is a wider more predictable zone.

• A more rounded side wall absorbs the shocks of the road better than a flat side wall, not just giving a nicer ride, but protecting the car as well

This idea that 195/65R15 is more planted i just don't beleive, unless you are matching that with a wider wheel. what size wheels are you fitting?

When you are talking about driving one of your cars in standard set up i really don't think it is fair to tell people it is nicer to do it on a 195/65R15 modern tyre than it is to drive on a proper period, extremely high quality correct size tyre, such as the CN36.

Be honest:

• the steering is heavier

• the handling is less progressive

• without wide rims the grip benefits, specially in the corners are limited

• without geometry adjustments, (predominently stiffening) the grip, predominently in the corners, will not be improved

People are saying they like driving on a 195/65R15 Continentals. I am not disputing that they like it. What i am saying is that on a standard car, the ride will be nicer and the handling will be nicer.

If you really do just pootle round, and are no longer pressing on then and you drive it around because you like the look noise and feel of the car then you could fit the 165R15 as they did on the first 911.

https://www.longstonetyres.co.uk/classi ... e/911.html