Hi all,

Tom Condran's book absolutely forbids Ford wheels, with the 5 X 4.5 inch LPB wheels, saying that they do not center correctly. Is this the case with aftermarket wheels, or late model mustang wheels? I am getting set to do a disk brake swap, and go to LBP, but I want to know what wheels are good candidates.

Thanks,
Greg

Late model Mustang wheels have a slightly larger centering hole, so you can make a spacer ring to take up the gap. I run aftermarket 16X8 rims on my '64 Dart with some wheel spacers and centering ring spacers and long ARP studs.

Lou

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Home of Slant6-powered fun machines since 1988

Another note on ford wheels,if your looking to upgrade to 16 inch wheels on the cheap and chrome and glitz is not a high priority why not try wheels off of a late model crown vic.
The reason I brought this up is that a new crown vic fuzzmobile came into the shop today that had encountered a large deer and bent the wheel and more or less killed the right front corner of the car.Anyway,I scavenged the wheel and tire to try on my daughters Volare.I think the width is 7 or 7.5 inchs and the offset looks workable .Ill post back when I try it on the car.
HyperValiant

Hey Lou,
Did you make the center ring spacer yourself? I know the wheel spacers that bring the wheel out 1/4" are available, but I would like to know what you did to make your center register spacers. Thanks,
Rob

Actually, I really lucked out. Since I run spacers to shift the wheels outward, the Ford centering ring just fit my disc hub where it tapers down to a smaller diameter than the Mopar spec.

I made a mistake earlier. The Ford centering ring is SMALLER than Mopar's, but the rims I bought have a bigger hole and then a spacer ring to fit different manufacturers hub diameters.

One way to get around this would be to machine your disc hub smaller to fit the Ford spec. It is only a very small amount, and I bet it could be done on a brake turning lathe at a local machine shop.

Lou

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Home of Slant6-powered fun machines since 1988

Are there any Chrysler 6.5" wide 15" stock steel rims that will fit A body LBP and have the same center hole?
Bob D

I don't know about 6.5", but later model Diplomats and 5th aves have 15X7s with good backspacing (4.25"). They will fit BBP with the correct hole for any Mopar. I have a pair of these and they work great. A little heavy, but cheap. The fabled "cop" wheels are also 15X7 and are lighter, but are getting really scarce.

According to Mopar Action, you can also use 90s Jeep Cherokee rims, even the aluminum ones and they have a little more backspace (5"), which is usually a good thing.

Lou

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Home of Slant6-powered fun machines since 1988

A couple of years ago I was talking with Dave Elder at the Mopars With Big Daddy show.

He was using a 16 inch Ford wheel. He said they were the same as are used on cop cars. This was on either a 64 or 65 valiant that he had upgraded the rear on. He said the centering hole was to small and he used a grinder to make it larger.

He had the car there agian this year and it had the same wheels.

This was a couple of years ago so the details are fuzzy.

John Killin

David still has the 16" Crown Vic Cop wheels on his '64 Valiant. He has a website called valiantracing.com. Good guy, very helpful. I bought my Offenhauser 4 barrell manifold from him. He brings his Valiant to most of the North Georgia Mopar Club shows and cruises. He flat tows it. He's into the GrassRoots Motorsports $2003 and $2004 challenge. It looks like he even got his Dad Bill to enter a Barracuda in the $2004 challenge.

Rob

Hotrod magazine had an article about the GrassRoots Motorsports 2002 or 2003 that had a picture of Dave's Valiant. I don't remember what issue.

John

Actually Lou, I believe the 15X7 police rims are heavier than the regular steel rims. At least the ones I have weigh a ton....I read on another mopar board they weigh 25lbs or something like that. I know they are much heavier than the 15X5.5's that I used to have. As for the Ford CV rims, I always wanted to try those...

Don't many of the aftermarket wheels use the lugs to center the wheels? this would eliminate the need for a spacer with those wheels.

Rick

Mopar 15x6.5" steel rims can be found on late '70s early '80 vans, 15x7" (non cop) rims can be found on Cordoba's, 15x5.5 rims on early '70s 1/2ton PUs, 15x6" rims can be found on most B-bodies, 14x6" rims on F-bodies, 14x5.5 on late A-bodies. These are non Ralleye LBP rims.

Non Ralleye SBP mopar rims come in three sizes 13x4.5" ('60 - '67), 14x5"('67 - '72) and 14x5.5" ('67 - '72 340 Darts and Cudas only).

The interesting thing is that the dog dish hub caps will fits on any of these rims.

As long as you don't have the flat flanged lug nuts as used on 97-up Ford trucks, and the center hole on the wheel goes over your hub, you're OK. Ever notice how huge the center hole is in the old "white wagon" wheels??? Never much problem getting them centered up, either. That's because the taper on the lug nuts actually do the centering for you.
We were on the road once, and there was a problem with Dad's spare, so we went to a local JY where we were at, Dad went in and told the guy what we wanted. He did not have any tires on 15" Chrysler wheels in the rack, so I remember him gettin'out the fire wrench and cutting the center out of a Ford wheel, went on our 73 Fury wagon no problem, dad left it on there I think til he sold the car, some years later.

I have heard that late model Jeep wheels fit , but I Jeep is a Mopar.