Tires: 17 R 400 tire size equivalent, diameter wheels, vintage tires

Question
Hello Barry,

I own a rare Citroën HY truck, 1969 mounted on Michelin X 17 R 400 tires. Although these tires are available in limited quantities from Europe, at "unlimited prices", I would like to find a modern equivalent, if possible. Do you have any idea what would be the closest North American tire size?

Best regards

Jean

Answer
Jean,

You have a real problem and one that can not be solved without replacing the wheels.

The size you mentioned is tall and narrow (which can be somewhat compensated for) and on a large diameter wheel (and this is the problem area.  Modern radial tires have been getting wider over time, and with larger diameter wheels.  The net effect is that in a 17" you are only going to find wide tires.

But I did look at Coker Tire's web site:

http://www.cokertire.com/store/customer/home.php

They have a 4.50-17 which just might work.  Give them a call as they are familiar with vintage tires and their quirks.
 
Hope this helps.

*********************************************************************
October, 2010

After I had answered this question - which was in November of 2004 - I stumbled on the fact that this tire has metric rim sizing and not the standard inch rim sizing - which makes my original answer incorrect.

BTW, rim diameters needs to be exact - rims do not tolerate any deviation.  So a 15" tire only fits on 15" rims, and 15" rims only take 15" tires.  In this case, a 400 mm rim is what is called for by this tire size - and even though 400mm is about 15 3/4", it is NOT 16".  In other words, a 16" will NOT work and may result in an explosion!  Potential personal injury or worse!  

Unfortunately, there isn't anything readily available in a 17R400.  This means that either something has to be especially made or the rim will need to be replaced or modified.