35th Anniversary Woes

TMorgan800
04-29-2006, 08:09 PM
Bought some 35th Anniversary wheels for my '94 Z. Got them from PACE, brand new in GMPP Boxes, not altered or knock-off.
Aparently, on the REAR of my car, the wheel HUB is about 2-5mm off from the inner diameter of the 35th wheel.
Front fits perfect, looks beautiful, back just dont fit on quite right.
I am going to have to machine the rear rims so they fit on the wheel hub.
WHAT THE HECK!?
Now my car looks stupid with 2 new wheels up front and 2 old ZR1's in the back. DOH!
Not happy with this unforseen mishap.

Anyone experience the same thing??

--Troy

gt_biker13
04-29-2006, 08:18 PM
From the FAQ on the top of the page:
WHY WON'T MY NEW WHEELS FIT OVER THE REAR HUBS ON MY 4TH GEN?

The 1993 to "late" 1996 4th Gen F-Bodies have a larger hub on the rear axle than on the front spindles. The rear axle hubs are about 0.03" larger in diameter than the front hubs. This problem was corrected in late 1996 model year or possibly in early 1997.

As a result, if you buy C4 or C5 wheels, or if you buy 1997 or newer F-Body wheels, they may not fit on the rear hubs of your 1993-1996 F-Body.

The solution is very simple. First, DO NOT FORCE THEM ON WITH THE LUGS! Very dangerous, and you may not be able to get them off. You need to lightly sand or grind (e.g. - Dremel) the inside diameter of the hub hole in the back of the wheel. Don't go nuts.... just remove enough metal so the wheel cleanly fits over the rear hubs, with no interference.

Think about doing this to all 4 wheels, so you can "rotate" the tires in the future.

This will not harm the wheels.... you are taking off the thickness of a sheet of paper. Just be sure you do a neat, smooth job. This will also NOT affect the centering of the wheels on the hubs. The 4th Gen wheels are "lug-centric" - they are centered by the conical lugs, not by the hubs.

TMorgan800
04-30-2006, 12:11 PM
Thank you SOOO much for the info. I am going to take them to a machine shop and have them professionally enlarged.
What a mess.

--Troy

TraceZ
05-07-2006, 09:57 PM
Thank you SOOO much for the info. I am going to take them to a machine shop and have them professionally enlarged.
What a mess.

--Troy

The hub is not a load bearing item. It is also not responsible for centering the rim. The lug nuts take care of both tasks.

It's ok to just use a dremel or die grinder to get them to fit. There is no reason to have them professionally machined.