'Bochawa72

I am in the market for new tires. Not much in the 15" size between all season and full on drags. I'm contemplating going up to 17" or 18" wheels but don't want to get anything really heavy. I want to autocross or maybe do some track days when I get back to the states. What are you guys using for wheels and tires and how heavy are they compared to the stock rally wheels?

69autoXr

It's been a while since I've weighed a stock rallye. What are they, about 40 lbs? Anything you get in aluminum will be significantly lighter. My 17x11's are about 22lbs each, similar to a CCW of the same size (so I'm told, I've never owned any CCW's).

What's your budget? What organiztion and what class do you intend to run? What tires do you want to run?

DaveL82

I have CCW's on mine (18 by 12 and 17 by 10) with flares. They were not cheap however excellent wheels and CCW worked with me on getting the right rim size so I could maintain the correct tire diameter (C 3 times are taller than most modern tires). CCW could give you weights and from want I recall they now have 1 piece wheels which might be a better option.

Jason Staley

I'm running 17 x 8 since I don't have flares or offset trailing arms yet. They are nicely made wheels out of a small shop in CA that makes them to your specifications. Took only a week for me to get mine and I live in IN. I'm currently running 245/45/17 Toyo R1R's for tires. Sorry I'm not sure about weight of the wheels any more (I bought them over 10 yrs ago), but I do recall the combination was not any heavier than the originals. The wheels were lighter, but the tires were a bit heavier if I recall correctly. They are manufactured from a cast center section welded to a spun outer rim (full 360 fillet weld on back side).

http://psvintagewheels.com/products.html

vettehardt

I've stepped up to the stock 84-87 16x9.5 wheels on my 73 and 76. I have to run a 3" adapter to accommodate the larger offset of the wheels, but even with the weight of that added, they were still lighter than the steel wheels we were running. However, tire selection for the 16" wheels are getting pretty scarce also. I would now like to step up to a 17x8.5 c5 wagon wheel. Unless I remove the parking brake bracket on my 76, i can't fit the 17x9.5 like I want to. I've removed the bracket from my 73, but only ran the 17x9.5 wheels once. I never got any pictures of them on the car before the motor let go. Need to get it back running.

73 with C4 16x9.5 wheels


76 with 16x9.5 C4 wheels



1976 with 17.8.5 up front. Borrowed from another guy.

c4cruiser

If the 3" adapters allow the 84-87 OEM wheel to fit with no interference, then the 17" ZR-1 style wheel with the early C4 wheel offset of 38mm will also fit. These wheels are available from the AFS Wheels ebay site or check with OE Wheels.

The 17x9.5" wheel size will allow a much wider selection of tires including Hoosier A6's, R6's, and Kumho V710's. You can easily use a 275/40-17 tire and they will be very close to the diameter and width of the 255/50-16 tire.

vettehardt

I've tried both the ZR1 style wheel and the saw blades. Both hit the parking brake bracket in the rear and the steering linkage in the front. First autcross run on the sawblades and the steering linkage turned the inside of the wheel like a lathe. I can run a small spacer in addition to the adapter to clear the steering, but it still doesn't help in the rear.

The 17X9.5 ZR1 style wheel and the saw blades both have a 54mm offset. The ZR1 17X11 has an offset of 36mm while the GS has 54mm.

Offset doesn't give a full story on how far in the wheel will go. Backspacing gives us a better picture. Backspacing takes into account the offset but also the wheel with. BS equals the wheel with divided by 2 plus the offset. The 84-87 16X9.5 has a bs of 6.25 while the 17X9.5 has a bs of 6.87. That is a difference of 0.62" that puts the wheel further in towards the frame. The 17X8.5 only has a bs of 6.45 which I guess was enough to clear the steering on the front of the car. I haven't tried them on the rear yet.

Locke

If you want to keep the parking brake, the cable bracket can be moved to the top of the trailing arm. I did it on my first '69 a long time ago. Just use a piece of 1/4" flat stock and make a new bracket.
I'm not fond of the spacers to mount C4 or later wheels on the car but they do work. I ran them once autocrossing my 'new' '69.
Without flairs, they are going to stick out past the wheel openings.
If you are want to stay with something like 17" x 8.5" wheels to stay inside the wheelwells, then there alot of manufacturers who have a wheel for you.
CCW are on the top of my list but may be expensive. With their customer service, you'll get the best offset for your car.
Summitt Racing has several wheels that will work in the 17" x 8 to 17" x 10" range.
Check the backspacing on what you have, if it's the right distance from the trailing arm, and don't go any shallower that that.

Here's a nice looking wheel in sizes that would allow the newer tires:
http://www.billetspecialties.com/rac...streetlite/17/


Locke