Will these rims fit?
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 2,187
Likes: 7
From: Chetwynd B.C.
Will these rims fit?
I'm checking out a set of tires/rims on the for sale site and need to know if these rims will fit my '68 coupe. I have stock suspension and the parking brake cable has NOT been moved.
The tires and wheels are:
17x8 MB Wheels Old School wrapped in Kumho Ecsta SPT 245/45's up front and 255/50's out back.
Back space is 4.5; Offset is 0
I like these rims
(so does the Wife -- actually she likes the car they're on
) I think the fronts will leave a little more of the wheel well showing but the backs should be okay. The tire width will be narrower on the front so clearance with steering shouldn't be a problem. My biggest concern is clearance from the brakes and the parking brake cable on the back. I can always re-locate the cable if necessary.
Here's a pic of the rims.
Any and all help/opinions/input will be considered.
shmoky
The tires and wheels are:
17x8 MB Wheels Old School wrapped in Kumho Ecsta SPT 245/45's up front and 255/50's out back.
Back space is 4.5; Offset is 0
I like these rims
(so does the Wife -- actually she likes the car they're on) I think the fronts will leave a little more of the wheel well showing but the backs should be okay. The tire width will be narrower on the front so clearance with steering shouldn't be a problem. My biggest concern is clearance from the brakes and the parking brake cable on the back. I can always re-locate the cable if necessary. Here's a pic of the rims.
Any and all help/opinions/input will be considered.
shmoky
Last edited by shmoky; Nov 18, 2010 at 05:08 PM.
Race Director
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 17,676
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From: Who says "Nothing is impossible" ? I've been doing nothing for years.
The rims are really nice 
Backs are correct size but the fronts are a little small. Why are they being sold ? Seems they look pretty cool on the Vette they are on right now.
245 / 50 / 17 would have been perfect for the fronts, maybe you could buy them and if the fronts really bothered you the way they look then you could get the tire I mentioned, that is of course if they make it in same brand as the rears
What happens with smaller tires or tires too small on the front is they don't fill the wheel well and they also automatically lower the front end of your Vette, so if you want the tires to fill the wheelwell better you lower it more and it starts to get too low and you start hitting things.
Don't get me wrong here, it is a nice set of wheels and tires for an excellent price just trying to help from my own person experience.
My '80 has the lower air dam on it that makes it even worse to lower. In the pic below I had 265 / 50 /15's which are about the same diameter as the ones you are looking to buy.
But I ended up raising the front a little bit more because it was too low and the front spoiler / air dam would hit during normal driving if there was a dip in the road. Now yours doesn't have the lower air dam like mine so you should be OK if you want to lower it.
Backs are correct size but the fronts are a little small. Why are they being sold ? Seems they look pretty cool on the Vette they are on right now.
245 / 50 / 17 would have been perfect for the fronts, maybe you could buy them and if the fronts really bothered you the way they look then you could get the tire I mentioned, that is of course if they make it in same brand as the rears
What happens with smaller tires or tires too small on the front is they don't fill the wheel well and they also automatically lower the front end of your Vette, so if you want the tires to fill the wheelwell better you lower it more and it starts to get too low and you start hitting things.
Don't get me wrong here, it is a nice set of wheels and tires for an excellent price just trying to help from my own person experience.
My '80 has the lower air dam on it that makes it even worse to lower. In the pic below I had 265 / 50 /15's which are about the same diameter as the ones you are looking to buy.
But I ended up raising the front a little bit more because it was too low and the front spoiler / air dam would hit during normal driving if there was a dip in the road. Now yours doesn't have the lower air dam like mine so you should be OK if you want to lower it.
Last edited by MotorHead; Nov 18, 2010 at 05:52 PM.
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 2,187
Likes: 7
From: Chetwynd B.C.
A bump for the weekend crew
and a some more info. Got this from 'the other site':
'69-'82 Vette
15x8 rim
4.0 BS
-0.5" offset
I believe the '68 models came with 15x7 rims with 3.75 BS.
I am running the '69 15x8 rims and 255/60/15 tires and the tires barely miss the parking brake bracket. Maybe 1/4 inch of clearance. Will the 4.5" back space on the rims I'm looking at cause a problem with the extra .5" of back space? (I don't really want to use spacers)
shmoky
and a some more info. Got this from 'the other site': '69-'82 Vette
15x8 rim
4.0 BS
-0.5" offset
I believe the '68 models came with 15x7 rims with 3.75 BS.
I am running the '69 15x8 rims and 255/60/15 tires and the tires barely miss the parking brake bracket. Maybe 1/4 inch of clearance. Will the 4.5" back space on the rims I'm looking at cause a problem with the extra .5" of back space? (I don't really want to use spacers)
shmoky
Pro
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 622
Likes: 23
From: MA
I have 4 Cragar SS 610 Thrust style rims I had on my TA.
They are 17" x 9", 5 X 4.75 bolt pattern, 0 MM offset & have 275/40/17's.
Will they fit, or will they stick out of the fender wells on my 82?
I haven't gone through pulling a wheel yet, figured I saw this thread & ask since I've only had the car since Thursday & am still checkng everything out mechanically.
If the answer is no, what would be the max rim width, offset & size one could go with?
They are 17" x 9", 5 X 4.75 bolt pattern, 0 MM offset & have 275/40/17's.
Will they fit, or will they stick out of the fender wells on my 82?
I haven't gone through pulling a wheel yet, figured I saw this thread & ask since I've only had the car since Thursday & am still checkng everything out mechanically.
If the answer is no, what would be the max rim width, offset & size one could go with?
