delta88_frankfurt

Hi everybody.

Can someone clear up some B-body details for me please?

I have a 1966 Delta 88 on drum brakes and I got it with extremely ugly 15x7 after market wheels. As I researched, it should be on 14x6 wheels and on 8.55 alternatively on 8.25 tires.

These wheels are mostly available with a 5x4 3/4 lug circle.

But my bolt pattern is 5x5!

Do I have the wrong brake drums on my car?

Are there OEM steel wheels for hub or center caps in 14x6 w. 5x5?

Do I have a 15x7 steel rims, originally?

I am confused.

aliensatemybuick

Your car has the correct (5X5) pattern as from the factory. It is true that rim selection is limited with those. Not sure it can be changed either without major fabrication, if at all (I guess anything is possible if time, talent and MONEY are not at issue).

The car would have originally come with steel rims, 14 inch generally, and I THINK 6 (or 6.5?) inch width. 15 inch police car rims were available from the factory, but would mean you couldn't use factory full / wire wheel hubcaps. Same is true with some 15" truck rims that interchange.

If you want factory appearance, you need to find as you said 14 inch rims with 5x5 centers. They are getting harder to find these days. Someone else may be able to offer interchange info (pontiacs and buicks of the era?).

delta88_frankfurt

Thans for you quick answer.
Well, as usual I stumble into the hard to get stuff.

Your answer satisfyingly matches with everything
I could investigate from the internet and online shop offerings, so far.

Thanks! Gonna search for 14x6 5x5 wheels now...

joe_padavano

No, it isn't.

The 5x5 pattern was used on MILLIONS of GM full size cars, half ton pickups, and Astro vans. ALL 1977-1996 GM B-body wagons, all 1977-1996 RWD B-body sedans with HD brakes (police, taxi), all 1977-1984 C-body cars, all 1985-1996 D-body cars (Fleetwoods), all Astro minivans, and most 1988-1991 half ton pickups used this pattern. Stock and aftermarket wheels are easy and inexpensive to find.

I will admit that 14" wheels with the 5x5 bolt circle are probably hard to find these days. They were pretty common in the 1960s.

aliensatemybuick

Excuse me, I suspected the OP wanted a factory appearance, and geared my answer towards him finding something that would achieve that. But it is true that in my haste, I forgot to add "in 14 inch" to that one sentence.

aliensatemybuick

I was searching Ebay out of curiosity to find a set of rims that would fit and allow factory caps, none stood out to me. Saw a few singles and pairs, but not everyone specifies width, figured a full set would be best assuming you wanted them all the same.

Octania

I have several parts cars with 14" wheels and 5x5" pattern.

delta88_frankfurt

I simply search for the OEM set for my car: 1966 Delta 88, 425" 2 Barrel w. AC.
Should be a black 14x6, 5x5 steel rim for hubcaps.
I am not sure if there are several backspaces/offsets.
Probably not since this combination of size and pattern is seldom anyway.

If you have something matching in good condition I'd be interested.

André

delta88_frankfurt

Yes so did I.:-)
They ARE hard to get, compared to the 5x4 3/4 options.

delta88_frankfurt

You were perfectly right and coherent. I meant the occurrence of 5x5 on 14" rims. Not the general existence of 5x5 in that era.

copper128

As an (expensive) last resort, I have a feeling that if you contacted Wheel Vintiques directly, they would be able to make you up a special order set of their Series 62 OE-style wheels in 14x6 with 5x5 bolt pattern. Their catalog only shows 15" wheels with the 5x5 b.c., but I doubt it would be a problem to put a 5x5 center in a 14" hoop.
They just wouldn't sell enough of them to make it worthwhile offering them as a stock item.

aliensatemybuick

Another possibility, which would allow you to use the more widely available 15 inch rims would be to buy a set of 15 inch late 60s/early 70s Chevy wire wheel hubcaps and switch the center caps. I have never seen this done, but I recall someone mentioning it some years back.

Here's a pair of the Chevy 15" caps:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/67-68-69-70-...#ht_517wt_1129

As you can see, other than the centers, they are quite similar to the Olds wire wheel caps used in 66:



Benefit of this approach is you will have 15 inch wheels, which in my opinion look a lot better on the big cars anyway (14 inch wheels in those big wheel wheels look quite "dinky"). The result would be remarkably stock looking, I think. I would definatley ask the seller of ANY such hubaps to verify the size before buying.