So I discovered my lug nuts on my SSI 14” wheels are shot. They are way worn out and will need to be replaced.

So time for 15” as I want disks up front.
Now I have looked at Cragars and SSI replica wheels.
my current I believe are 14x7 front and 14x8 back and I want to keep the same stance.
i want to keep the same vintage look but do not really care if they are OEM look. I like the Cragar and the SSI wheels.
i know the new Cragars are not as nice as the vintage ones but i honestly do not care they still look better than torque thrust wheels (my son has these on his 09 mustang).
I almost bought a used a set of wheels, but my wife said just get them new….so!

Any thought on what back spacing for fronts vs rears? I will not put disk on the rear, just the front.


thanks!

 

Wondering what vehicle you are working on that has 14” wheels that won’t work with disc brakes. My 70 and 71 had 14” wheels and disc brakes.

 

I will have to replace them. The 14” on a ‘70 for disk brakes is not the issue.
As my 14” wheels lug nut holes are rounded out and o can move the wheel about 1/8-1/4 inch before I put the lug nuts on.
If I have to replace the wheels then I might as well go 15” since there is better tire options (even these are slowly going away).
I am building this car to me more than just a weekend cruiser.

 

OK, so it’s that the wheels need to be replaced and not that the lug nuts are damaged or 14” won’t work with front discs.

Where are you located? There may be someone near with 15” wheels.

 

I’m in Northern Virginia but at this point as I am doing more of a frame in restoration/ modification (light modifications on the interior and suspension steering etc) I will be looking for newer wheels as I have seen lots of junk wheels selling for way to much around here.

 

With the exception of the 1969 Hurst/Olds, every single 1967-1971 Olds A-body built with disc brakes left the factory with 14" wheels.

 

Why are the new Cragars not as good as the vintage wheels?

 

4.5" BS is a typical GM A-body clearance and you can actually go to a 17" wheel instead of 15" if you want more modern tire options than the usual few for 14-15" sizes.

I run 17x8 TTs (which I think are cool) with 4.5" BS on 245-50-R17 Falkens, along with a 1" spacer on the rears to give it a bit of a staggered visual but maintaining the ability to rotate all 4 tires as needed (and only needing one spare tire size on any corner).

Another good thing about the 17's (besides plenty of disc brake clearance) is the overall wheel assembly height almost identically matches the prior 15s I ran so there was no change in my speedometer accuracy.

 

The wheel studs do not center the wheel on the hub. The taper on the lug nuts centers the wheel on the hub or axle.

These are also "lug centric" wheels ?

The important factor is he wants "Zero offset" wheels. Back spacing changes with the wheel width.
There is a difference between tires that stick out past the body and tires that are wide. With wheels spacers, the OP should be aware that he may need longer wheel studs when using wheel spacers. You need a certain amount of lug nut thread engagement on the wheels studs for safety.

Its not the wheel that determines the overall diameter, its the TIRE diameter. The bigger wheel just reduces the sidewall height. You choose a tire size (diameter) that is comparable to maintain speedometer accuracy.

I have run 325/50-15 tires on the rear with "Zero offset" rims and no problems.

 

All thank you. Answer on the Cragar's, my research show that older ones were more rounded on the spokes vs flat on the newer ones. That is all.

Nothing wrong with 14" aside from the dwindling tire selection. As the lug nut holes are done on mine, If I am replacing them, then I might as well move to 15+ wheels. I like the looks of the 15" wheel and the larger sidewall vs the narrow sidewall and larger wheels.

For the wheel spacers, coming from the 4x4 world, I am not a fan of them, I would get wider wheels in this case and yes 0 offset would be right.

All of this helps and I will be looking at some wheel options.
Oh and I will keep the OEM wheels for some wall art.