I have a question regarding SS11 & SS111 wheels which of course are the same wheel varying only in the color of finish (11 = argent silver while 111 = body color). I understand that 1973 rims are 14" while 1974s are 15" and both use bolt on caps.


My question is were SS11 rims ever offered on the Olds A body line in 1973 & also the same question for the X body Omega in 1973-74?


I have hundreds of pictures of 1973 Cutlass, Cutlass S and Cutlass Supremes but always with SS111 rims. Same deal with the Omega in that I have never seen SS11 rims on one.


Also why did Olds drop the SS1 rim after 1972? I think they would have looked great on either car line. Buick still offered their version of the SS1 on both their A & X body platforms.

 

My chart from year one shows from '66 - '75

SS I ending in '72

SS II going through '75

'70 began the 14 X 7 as opposed to the 14 X 6 in years prior

It also shows N67 SS III to begin in '73 but my '72 was born with them. My '72 was built in the 1st week of June so that may have something to do with that.

 

This has been covered here frequently. To recap:

All 1968-1974 SSII/III wheels used bolt-in centers
All 1975-1988 SSII/III wheels used snap-in centers

For 1968-69, only 14x6 were available, except for the 15x7 chrome rim versions used on the 1969 H/O.

For 1970-72, only 14x7 were available

For 1973-74, both 14x7 and 15x7 were available. Yes, 15x7 with bolt-in centers were offered for TWO years.

For 1975-up both 14x7 and 15x7 snap-in were available.

I'm not sure where this incorrect info about the bolt-in 15x7 wheels being 1974 only came from, but it has been repeated here many times in the recent past. These wheels are two-year-only wheels.

 

Your posts are appreciated but deal with details that are not addressing they main focus of my questions.



Can anyone tell me if SS11 rims were offered on the A & X body lines for 1973 & 1974 or was the SS111 the only rim? I am not concerned if they were 14" or 15" just the paint finish.


Also does anyone know why the SS1 rim was discontinued after 1972?


Thanks in advance.

 

The information you seek is readily available on line. The 1973 Dealer Specs Book is posted on Wildaboutcars.com and is duplicated here. In it, you will find that both RPO N66 (Super Stock II wheels in cast grey color) and RPO N67 (Super Stock III wheels in lower body color) were offered on the 1973 A-body line, however only RPO N67 (SSIII) was offered on the Omega line.

 

Thank You. You answered my question about SS11 & SS11 rims completely.


So....does anyone know why SS1 wheels were discontinued?

 

Simply a guess but perhaps the SSI wheels didn't generate the sales volume as the SSII SSII style wheels?

Henry

 

This is like asking "why did the A-bodies get ugly after the 1972 model year?" The answer is known only to GM stylists and marketing types. Possibly the SSI/Magnum 500 wheel didn't look particularly attractive with the colonnade styling?