5th gen wheels on 4th gen???
Administrator
Joined: Nov 1998
Posts: 71,094
From: Hell was full so they sent me to NJ
I found this info on an auto review website:
Wheels/Tires
LS:
18 x 7.5-inch steel
P245/55R18 all-season
LT:
18 x 7.5-inch aluminum
P245/55R18 all-season
19 x 8-inch aluminum
P245/50R19 all-season
SS:
20 x 8-inch aluminum (front)
P245/45ZR20 summer (front)
20 x 9-inch aluminum (rear)
P275/40ZR20 summer (rear)
There is a post on the 5th Gen Wheels and Tires forum that indicates the bolt pattern is 5 x 120mm.
Wheels/Tires
LS:
18 x 7.5-inch steel
P245/55R18 all-season
LT:
18 x 7.5-inch aluminum
P245/55R18 all-season
19 x 8-inch aluminum
P245/50R19 all-season
SS:
20 x 8-inch aluminum (front)
P245/45ZR20 summer (front)
20 x 9-inch aluminum (rear)
P275/40ZR20 summer (rear)
There is a post on the 5th Gen Wheels and Tires forum that indicates the bolt pattern is 5 x 120mm.
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 1,430
From: western, Massachusetts
>so will the 120mm fit our 4th gen F bods? (not to sure about the 120mm compared to 5 x 4 3/4).
Administrator
Joined: Nov 1998
Posts: 71,094
From: Hell was full so they sent me to NJ
This is a long standing debate. People have but BMW (and other 120mm bolt circle) wheels on 4th Gens (120.65mm bolt circle), and some claim they have no problems with them. Others have mentioned broken studs and the lugs coming loose. Sort of up to you to decide if you want to take a chance.
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 1,430
From: western, Massachusetts
This is a long standing debate. People have but BMW (and other 120mm bolt circle) wheels on 4th Gens (120.65mm bolt circle), and some claim they have no problems with them. Others have mentioned broken studs and the lugs coming loose. Sort of up to you to decide if you want to take a chance.
Administrator
Joined: Nov 1998
Posts: 71,094
From: Hell was full so they sent me to NJ
The people who are installing the BMW wheels don't do anything. They just bolt them on. 0.65mm = 0.0256". Its a very small difference.
Bolting the wheels on will cause the studs to bend inward slightly, until the cone on the lug nut wears the hole off center. Or, the first lug nut will "center" the wheel incorrectly, and the other 4 studs will be bent to accomodate the wheel being slightly off center. The studs aren't designed for bending stress, they are designed for shear stress. Combine bending stress with shear stress and you may overstress the studs.
Bolting the wheels on will cause the studs to bend inward slightly, until the cone on the lug nut wears the hole off center. Or, the first lug nut will "center" the wheel incorrectly, and the other 4 studs will be bent to accomodate the wheel being slightly off center. The studs aren't designed for bending stress, they are designed for shear stress. Combine bending stress with shear stress and you may overstress the studs.
Registered User
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 570
From: NC
The people who are installing the BMW wheels don't do anything. They just bolt them on. 0.65mm = 0.0256". Its a very small difference.
Bolting the wheels on will cause the studs to bend inward slightly, until the cone on the lug nut wears the hole off center. Or, the first lug nut will "center" the wheel incorrectly, and the other 4 studs will be bent to accomodate the wheel being slightly off center. The studs aren't designed for bending stress, they are designed for shear stress. Combine bending stress with shear stress and you may overstress the studs.
Bolting the wheels on will cause the studs to bend inward slightly, until the cone on the lug nut wears the hole off center. Or, the first lug nut will "center" the wheel incorrectly, and the other 4 studs will be bent to accomodate the wheel being slightly off center. The studs aren't designed for bending stress, they are designed for shear stress. Combine bending stress with shear stress and you may overstress the studs.
In the olden days, people used to also redrill their axle hubs for different bolt circles... So in other words you ended up with 2 sets of bolt holes 'clocked' as far apart as possible, kinda like a unilug wheel but on the axle side isntead... Cheap and easy if you had the patience to be sure you got the bolt circle centered. Not sure you could do this with fronts but for rears it might work?
But seriously though, the safety issue aside, I'd like to see what the 19x8's would look like on a 4th gen...
Registered User
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 570
From: NC
I wonder if anyone has thought of making a drill-bit tipped lugnut yet, like a self-tapping screw?
In the olden days, people used to also redrill their axle hubs for different bolt circles... So in other words you ended up with 2 sets of bolt holes 'clocked' as far apart as possible, kinda like a unilug wheel but on the axle side isntead... Cheap and easy if you had the patience to be sure you got the bolt circle centered. Not sure you could do this with fronts but for rears it might work?
But seriously though, the safety issue aside, I'd like to see what the 19x8's would look like on a 4th gen...
In the olden days, people used to also redrill their axle hubs for different bolt circles... So in other words you ended up with 2 sets of bolt holes 'clocked' as far apart as possible, kinda like a unilug wheel but on the axle side isntead... Cheap and easy if you had the patience to be sure you got the bolt circle centered. Not sure you could do this with fronts but for rears it might work?
But seriously though, the safety issue aside, I'd like to see what the 19x8's would look like on a 4th gen...
Registered User
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 570
From: NC
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/93-94...Q5fAccessories
Registered User
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 160
From: pnw
I don't know about the 5th gen wheels, but I have heard the guys that use the bmw wheels on their f-bodies the right way use 'eccentric' lugnuts that swivel around a bit to center the wheel correctly...
Last edited by zero231; Aug 5, 2009 at 12:34 AM.