Widest Rear Tires for a 1972 Chrysler Imperial: A Fitment Guide
What’s the Widest Rear Tire a 1972 Chrysler Imperial Will Take?
Short answer: a 255/60-15 drops right in with minimal fuss. A 275/60-15 is possible, but whether it clears depends on backspacing and those factory fender skirts.
The 1972 Imperial’s Wheel Baseline
The ’72 Imperial left the factory on 15-inch wheels wearing L84/15 bias-ply tires — roughly equivalent to a 235/75-15 in modern metric sizing. The factory wheel is 15×7 with a 5×5 bolt pattern (5x127mm) and approximately 4.5 inches of backspacing.
The 1972 Imperial is a full C-body, sharing its platform with the Chrysler Newport, New Yorker, and Plymouth Fury of the same era. That matters for fitment: a lot of wheel-and-tire data from those related models transfers directly to the Imperial’s rear end. The main exception is the fender skirts — a styling element that persisted on the Imperial longer than on most of its siblings, and one that meaningfully changes your clearance picture.
Why Backspacing Matters More Than Width
Width is the obvious number to chase. Backspacing is what actually determines whether anything clears.
Backspacing is the distance from the wheel’s mounting face to its rear lip. Too much and the tire contacts the inner fender or spring perch; too little and it pokes out past the quarter panel. For the ’72 Imperial rear, 4.0–4.5 inches of backspacing on a 15×8 wheel is the practical target. That combination gives you room for a 275/60-15 without kissing the spring perch or the underside of the skirt. Push past 4.75 inches of backspacing on a 275-wide tire and you risk contact at the top of the wheel well when the suspension loads up.
The Fender Skirt Problem
This catches a lot of first-time Imperial owners off guard. The full rear fender skirts Chrysler kept on the Imperial through 1973 close off a large section of the wheel opening. What looks like plenty of space from below gets considerably tighter once the skirt is in place and you account for suspension travel.
A 255/60-15 on a 15×8 with 4.25–4.5 inches of backspacing clears cleanly in most cases. A 275/60-15 is tight. Some owners make it work without modification; others end up rolling or lightly massaging the skirt lip. If you want to go that wide and keep the skirts intact, check clearance carefully before ordering a full set of tires.
What Actually Fits — A Quick Reference
- 255/60-15 on 15×8 (4.25–4.5 in. backspacing): clean fitment front and rear, no rubbing under normal conditions
- 275/60-15 on 15×8 (4.0–4.25 in. backspacing): viable rear-only fitment; tight near the skirt; verify clearance at full suspension compression before committing
- 295 and wider: not practical on stock suspension or body without significant modification
For those going with 17-inch wheels, a 275/50-17 on a 17×9 is a popular modern fitment on C-body Mopars. It fills the wheel well well and sidesteps some of the fitment gymnastics that come with pushing the limits on a 15-inch setup.
How to Check Clearance Before You Order
The cardboard method still works. Cut a piece to the approximate cross-section profile of your proposed tire, hold it in the rear wheel well at simulated full droop and full compression, and see what it contacts. Check against the skirt, inner fender, and spring perch. Takes five minutes and saves a return shipping headache.
Also worth confirming: your rear axle flange width. If you’re running a non-stock rear end or any wheel offset different from factory, the wheel can sit outboard and reduce the clearance your backspacing measurement predicted. Get the flange-to-flange measurement before finalizing any wheel purchase.