I'm looking for the correct wheels.
I don't know if SS 1's were available for 68?

Preferably looking for SSII's that are 14x6 with no chrome bezels on the center slots in the wheel. They are 68 only.

Email me at oldspartsandcars@yahoo.com

 

Technically, SSIs were not available for the '68 model year. However, there were production problems with the SSII wheel and there were a number of A-body cars that came with SSI wheels because the SSII wasn't yet available. Production problems on the SSII were apparently resolved in late March 1968 and the SSII wheel started to be used in earnest. So, if your car was produced before April 1968, you could technically put SSI wheels on your car and be reasonably correct.

If you go for SSI wheels and want to be as "correct" as possible, try to find the SSIs that don't have the date stamped into the inside wheel rim. From my observations, the SSIs with the date stamped in them are all for '69 production cars.

Personally, I like the SSI better than the SSII (it's the chrome) so I put them on my '68 (I've also got another set of wheels/tires that reflect the car the way it came from the factory - with N95 wire wheel covers - eccchhh!). My brother and I argued about this all the time because he likes the SSIIs!

Randy C.

 

Another thing to remember - SSI wheels, for the most part, only fit cars with drum brakes. If you have disc brakes, you will need the SSII wheel.

There was a short period in 1969 (roughly early April to mid-July) that SSI wheels were produced for cars with disc brakes, but the rims look different and they are clearly marked as 1969 production.

Randy C.

 

I have a set of SSI's that I bought a few years back for a 71' cutlass "s" with drum brakes and they fit fine. I later put the same SSI's on a 72' 442 with disc brakes and they still fit fine.

I'm wondering if these SSI's are olds wheels or chebysnwith olds center caps, how do I tell the difference?

 

SSI wheels starting in the 1970 model year are 14X7 and designed to work on either drum or disc brake cars. I'm not really sure how to tell the difference between the Chevy and Olds specialty wheels of that era as I haven't worked much with '70 and newer Oldsmobiles. There could be differences or it might be as simple as changing the center cap.

SSII wheels from '68 or '69 will work for your application and they fit either drum or disc brake applications. The '69 wheels will have the stainless trim but all you have to do is remove the trim and use a silvery dull aluminum color to paint in the perimeter of the openings where the stainless trim was. But, if you want date-correct wheels for your car, you will have to look at the date stamping on the back side of the wheel, out on the rim. SSII wheels are coded "LS" and an "LS" should be stamped into the rim, with the date code in the same area.

SSI wheels (14X6, wheel code "LE") will work only on drum brakes. Olds made a 14X6 SSI wheel for disc brakes late in the '69 model year (wheel code "LY") but they are hard to come by. As I understand, the "LY" wheels were manufactured from about early April to mid-July 1969 and that's it.

Randy C.

 

I checked these are olds wheels for a 71-72