CorvetteMikeB

Are there any problems I should know about wire spoke wheels? Thinking I might purchase a set someday. I know the Ford Thunderbird used them and so did the Jaguar of 1950's and 1960's used wire wheels as their standard wheel. So did many British cars and Italian cars of that time period used wire knock off wheels. Has anybody had any personal experience with wire wheels on their cars?

Nowhere Man

If you like the look use them. They look to be bitch to clean and polish though.

Ol Blue

Ironcross had Dayton Wires on his 62 but he hasn't been on the Forum for a long time. You might search for his posts to gain some insight.

Mark Lovejoy

We had wire wheels on a '57 T'Bird, they were a bitch to keep clean.

Further I would not use wire wheels on a high horsepower car.

Do Not pull a burnout with wire wheels! You will be buying new rear wire wheels after that event.

This is the voice of experience. I witnessed the unfortunate event. It wasn't pretty. The car was towed home.

Vetterodder

I had a MGA in high school with them. As others have mentioned, harder to keep clean than other wheels. The spokes also required retightening regularly (not difficult though).

63Corvette

I drove and almost bought a 63 FI Corvette with Borrani wire wheels. I decided to buy a brand new 67 427 instead. However, even these years later, I remember he sound of the wire wheels "moaning" in mild (street corner) turns. I feel sure the expensive Borrani wheels would have come apart if I had bought the 63 and driven it hard (as I did my 67 427). Racing Ferraris of that period used to regularly arrive back in the pits on their RIM for a tire change.
Oh and I also owned a Jaguar 3.4 Liter sedan with wire wheels for several years. These wheels used to break wires (with a "ping") each time I leaned on them in a turn. I planned on "restringing" one wheel every two months. Your results may vary...let us know how it works out for you

63Corvette

Me too................I like 'em

Mcrider

Cmon guys. Motorcycles have had spoked wheels since day one and nobody is bitching about how hard they are to clean and polish. I have them on my HD and you just have to have the right cleaning tools and know the tricks how to do it. As for rust or corrosion, never had a single problem on any of my bikes.

JohnZ

I had many 60's-70's 12-cylinder Ferraris with Borrani wire wheels - never had a problem with any of them other than having the discipline to keep them clean.

DSR

Those wheels look good. I've never seen it, but I think they would look nice on a C2.
Dave

CorvetteMikeB

Look great! Any problems with Rust? I read where some wire wheel brands are prone to rust.

tomy62

Oh my. Where to begin. Back in the day, most Brit cars were offered with steel disc wheels standard but probably 95% were ordered with wires because they look so nice and when new, they are pretty strong whether 48, 60 or 72 spoke. Those would have been English Dunlops whether painted or chrome. Dunlop’s were eventually made in India and are indeed prone to rust as are the painted wheels if not maintained properly. A drawback is they tend to be heavier than they look.
Some Borrani’s had aluminum rims and different spoke layouts/patterns which made them lighter and stronger considering rim width (and more expensive). I believe there still are a few companies rebuilding Borrani’s for about $250 each but that price has probably gone way up by now!
One thing you can easily see is the spoke pattern on a “Cobra wire” wheel. The small block Cobras ran a relatively short spoke close to the center that was very strong. Great looking wheel too!
Dayton Wheel has taken over the making and marketing a lot of wire wheels seen today. Many of the wheels seen these days have stainless spokes although early on they had issues with broken spokes.
Be aware that any knock off wheel has maintenance requirements. Spokes need to be kept tight. They need to be removed periodically and the splines greased to prevent corrosion. Be sure you can get wheels that do not require tubes. The older ones needed a wheel band and tube. Before you get a set, make your tire installer can mount and spin balance the wheel too.

oemtech

Had a set on my 82...

Bruce Jarrett

Wire wheels in motion. Dayton knock- offs, no maintenance and I would rather clean these than my 2017 GS with all the brake dust.

RatDog

Kerschmolar

‘78 has been running wire 70-spoke wheels for 30 yrs w/o problems. 15x7 front 235/60 tires; 15x10 rear 295/50 tires. 5/16 inch spacers.
Older corvette logo center caps not available anywhere. 0.86 diameter shank-seat lug nuts hard to find. Advise longer wheel studs to compensate for spacers (PIA in rear, unless you’re rebuilding the trailing arms.
Using 80V leaf blower to dry after cleaning.
Advise larger diameter, lighter weight rims with lower profile tires, if you are changing what you’ve got.

15x12

mark6669

I have wires on my jaguar not that much work to keep them clean. The only street cars I have seen with failures were Ferrari Daytona's back in the 70's but they came with Mags from the factory. Wires were dealer installed.
Mark

facelvega

I have Wirewheels (Borrani) on my Jaguar E-Type because it is the original wheel.
On my C1 I have installed wire wheels as well but for fast driving I would not suggest them because from my experience this wheel is made for good looking and not for "power-use" I covered alle the wheels with a Nano-coating and so it is very easy to clean them just with clear water.

GTOguy

My experience with wire wheels has been: expensive; hard to keep clean, so they rust easily; they tend to go out of true; they weigh a ton, adding unsprung weight to the car; many people do not know how to work with the knock off hub properly, so body damage; they are not as strong as modern alloy or steel wheels; they tend to leak air; and lastly, they pretty much look wrong on any American car made after 1955.

67 COUP

I have them on my 67. I drive the car twice a week I

usually take the wheel off once a month for cleaning