stocki26

Hi again !

after doing some nice rides I tried to mount the wheelcovers.

They seemed to fit very good and were hard to put on their place.

So I thought all would be fine but after some miles I saw one is moving and bends the vent where I put air in the tire.

After taking it off and putting it on once again next miles, but 30 mls later I heard it falling off and rolling beside me, even overtaking me.

I tried to bend all "teeth" to same position before doing next testride, fell off again I also tried different wheelcovers (I got 5 of them) but always same losing them. So I put them into trunk not to lose one or get damaged by other cars when driving on them.

Is there any "trick" to mount them or prepare them to be fixed safe or is it a known weak spot ?

m371961

Interesting. Just curious, are you riding on radial tires or bias ply?

stocki26

new, well running tyres with 700 mls on them

no vibrations in steering wheel in any speed

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-TIRES-P2...4c3a22&vxp=mtr

m371961

I really have no experience with these wheel covers. The reason I asked about radials verses bias tires is I remember when radials were first introduced and became popular certain makes had problems losing wheel covers when switched to radial tires.
The fifties guys need to chime in on this one.

Tedd Thompson

I run radials on all my long trips and have no problems ever losing hubcaps, probably 30 thousand total miles. Are the wheels and hubcaps stock Oldsmobile? I know other wheels will bolt up but won't allow a hubcap to stay on( like my chrome reverse wheels) but you know it right a way because the cap never fits evenly all around the rim.....Tedd

popeye1978

Is a certain hubcap falling off no matter which of the 4 wheels it's on?

Are they only falling off a certain wheel(s)?

When a hubcap falls-off, is there any similarity in how the car is dynamically loading/unloading? ... I once lost a hubcap off the right-rear when making a left turn, is something similar occurring?

stocki26

I think the wheels and hubcaps are stock, but I will make pics later

until now I tested it 4 or 5 times with different hubcaps and just on front wheels, I am afraid of damaging back side where wheels are not free so hubcap cannot roll away.

lazy394

If your running radials are the wheel covers hitting the wall of the tyre?
A 225 ( 9 inch) tyre on a 6inch rim will by bulge significantly.
I noticed a lot of noise after fitting radials (225 B F Goodrich)and the wheel cover is being hit by the tyre as it bulges when you hit a bump.
I have replaced the clips and take a lot of care fitting the clips (testing each one to see if it will come off),but a tell tale bits of rubber tell me its still moving the cap.

twintracks

This happened to me as well, back in the '80s with the same car; '53 Olds Ninety Eight 4 door sedan.
Mine would also spin on the wheel, and bend over the valve stems.
I watched one come off, pass me, and then get destroyed by a car passing in the other direction.
Mine had badly worn kingpins, and I always blamed it on that, but maybe it was unrelated. It had Remington bias ply tires.
Maybe you can "glue" them on with some silicone.
There's got to be a solution out there. My solution was to keep buying hubcaps until I had 4 that would stay on, and a couple of spares in the trunk.

Jerry

stocki26

I dont think they get in touch with the tyre, nothing to see on front tires

I think they start moving because of big weight and "fast" driving the "teeth" cant hold as tight as they should

olds1_zps45ddd6d2.jpg

olds3_zpsd7701ebb.jpg

olds4_zps4923e58f.jpg

olds2_zpsa9a89f88.jpg

oldcutlass

I used run a electrical tape around over the teeth, go around it twice.

stocki26

and after that they didnt roll away any more ?

boese1978

Couldn't the tabs be carefully bent out a bit to make the grip tighter?

stocki26

I tried that and will try on if I dont find another way to fix them sure

I dont want to damage another car or hurt a person with that flying caps

The problem is, how much to bent them and which direction do they have to look at

popeye1978

Viewing the teeth in the close-up and then the wear on the wheel where I'd assume the hubcap teeth contact the wheel, I'm wondering if the teeth have ground-down over time ... the idea of electrical tape may work, maybe a few coats of paint on the wheel -- to build-up the "surface" to better-meet the teeth -- would also do it

twintracks

I would try bending each tab outward, and bend the teeth straight upward. Remember to try to keep a radius to the teeth, or only the outer teeth will be in contact. I think it would hard to bend them too far. Keep experimenting with one wheel cover, so you don't loose one in traffic.