Wheel Options and Modern Rubber for 5x4 sbp

[fastdodge]

Hi All,

I've been lurking on this site for years. Now that I've been making some updates to my Duster, it's time to come out of the shadows

I've long planned to move to a larger wheel to open up access to more modern rubber, however with a small bolt pattern, it's slim pickings.

I spoke with Dennis at Boyd Coddington Wheels (owned by Performance Tire Plus) today about what they offer. Their Junkyard Dog wheels are:
o drilled to order (2-3 day lead time) including 5 x 4"
o in stock in both 17 x 7" and 17 x 8"
o they offer many tire brands
o free mount & balance when ordering wheels & tires
o free shipping
o indicated 2-3 weeks until receipt from CA to the Northeast

I asked where they're made: Asia
I asked if they've had any failures: not to his knowledge
Approx weight: 25 lbs ea.

Has anybody run BC Wheels? If so, how've they held up? Any issues? Pics?

I'm thinking of running:
Front 215/45R17
Rear 245/40R17

Which likely won't throw off my speedo or effective gear ratio

What do y'all think?

Any & all wisdom welcome!

 

[RustyRatRod]

I think rubber bands look ridiculous on old cars. And before you shoot the messenger, you said this:

"Any & all wisdom welcome"

 

[fastdodge]

Wheel List to help others in the market:
o 17 x 7 bs 4 & 17 x 8 bs 4.5 Boyd Coddington Junkyard Dogs above
o 15 x 8 bs 4-5/8 Wheel Vintiques 61-Series Chrysler Rallyes, Jegs shows in stock
o 15 x 7 bs 4-1/4 Wheel Vintiques 61-Series Chrysler Rallyes, Summit Racing shows in stock
o 15 x 7 bs 3-3/4 U.S. Mags Indy U101 Polished Wheels, Summit shows in stock
o 15 x 6 bs 3-3/4 Wheel Vintiques 63 Series Chrysler Black Wheels, Summit shows in stock
o 15 x 6, 15 x 7, 15 x 8 from US Wheel Rallye style, Summit shows drop ships
o For Sale forum here
o Moparts for sale forum

There are also Cragars on Summit's website, however it's not clear if those use their multi-mount adapters.

As I'm looking to increase diameter, I'm not listing 14" wheels. They are out there

Tire Sizes to consider for above wheels:
Front 215/45R17
Rear 245/40R17
About 3/4" shorter, with a 3.55 gear, effectively a 3.66. Will indicate ~58 at 60mph

Front 225/50R17
Rear 245/45R17
A whisker taller. Front may require mods to not rub full lock.

Front 205/50R15
Rear 225/45R15 similar to running a 3.91 gear, indicating 60 is ~54mph
Or 245/40R15 indicating 60 is ~53mph, similar to a 3.99 gear
Around 2-1/2" shorter.

Searching by tire size will give multiple options. I'm partial to the BFGoodrich g-Force Rival + and Falken Azenis RT660+

Not much closer to stock height for 15s.

Some other resources I've found helpful:
Tire Size Comparison
Tire Size Change Effective Gear Ratio

Had this for a long time, too:

 

[33IMP]

Team III/ET wheel will do 5 on 4 on SOME of their wheels. But be prepared to bend over, they are NOT cheap!
There are a couple pics here of the 5 on 4 17"wheels on an A-body Cuda, but I have no idea how to find them.
I'd buy the Boyd's 17s, in gray.

 

[33IMP]

I've got nitto g2 on 17"rims on the rear of my 55. 255 50 17s. 27 inches tall, DONT look like rubber bands.

Also: 5 on 100mm are very close... but NOT close enough in my opinion. I understand some have gotten away with using them on 5 on 4.....but I wont.

 

[fastdodge]

I think rubber bands look ridiculous on old cars. And before you shoot the messenger, you said this:

"Any & all wisdom welcome"

Hmm, is an opinion "wisdom" ?? lol

FYI, you can see from the tire size comparo link above from stock 14 tires to the preferred 17s, sidewall height decreases from about 5-3/4" to ~4".

If you haven't driven with 200-340 treadwear tires, I highly recommend, it really changes the handling dynamics!

As a restomod, I've made a number of choices not everybody likes but that's what makes it my car

 

[fastdodge]

Team III/ET wheel will do 5 on 4 on SOME of their wheels. But be prepared to bend over, they are NOT cheap!
There are a couple pics here of the 5 on 4 17"wheels on an A-body Cuda, but I have no idea how to find them.
I'd buy the Boyd's 17s, in gray.

Certainly leaning that way. My last BFGs started cracking with plenty of tread left. Even with occasional burnouts. Might as well use all the tread I pay for!

I've got nitto g2 on 17"rims on the rear of my 55. 255 50 17s. 27 inches tall, DONT look like rubber bands.

Also: 5 on 100mm are very close... but NOT close enough in my opinion. I understand some have gotten away with using them on 5 on 4.....but I wont.

I've got a 5 x 100mm wheel in the garage and agree. If all the lugs can't properly seat, I don't trust it to rip around an autocross course or hit triple digits at the dragstrip.

 

[bobruthkry]

Your car your choice but I also do not like the looks of the 17" wheels with the thin wall tires. I have 15" on my Dart and quite happy with the looks and feel. That's my opinion . There are quite a few pic's of with 17" wheels and hardly no sidewall if that's what you like. It seems the older folk like myself prefer smaller wheels and nice sidewalls and the younger crowd prefer larger wheels and less sidewall. My opinion but bottom get what looks best to you

 

[Mattax]

As far as the speedometer goes, you will be changing the gear.

In addition to picking tire width that gets good support, keep track of the load rating. Compare that to the standard factory tire load rating. Also watch out for pseudo-street tires. These are the super high performance cheaters for autocross etc but are not recommended for use below 50*F. Heck there are R comps that can be run safely at temps colder freezing. So that's really only for folks in the warm climates or dedicated use wheels.

Short sidewalls can be an advantage for handling on a fairly smooth track.
Taller sidewalls are generally better for protecting the wheels and cars on rough streets (which is the majority around here!) and non paved roads.

 

[fastdodge]

Your car your choice but I also do not like the looks of the 17" wheels with the thin wall tires. I have 15" on my Dart and quite happy with the looks and feel. That's my opinion . There are quite a few pic's of with 17" wheels and hardly no sidewall if that's what you like. It seems the older folk like myself prefer smaller wheels and nice sidewalls and the younger crowd prefer larger wheels and less sidewall. My opinion but bottom get what looks best to you

I hear ya Bob! My Dart still has its factory 13" painted steelies for what it's worth. Unfortunately the stickier tires available for the 15s are even smaller diameter than on the 17s, so the sidewall is actually similar, for example:

 

[66Dartdriver]

Have you considered just converting to big bolt pattern? Your options become endless not to mention bigger brakes (4 wheel discs) for your bigger wheels.

 

[fastdodge]

As far as the speedometer goes, you will be changing the gear.

In addition to picking tire width that gets good support, keep track of the load rating. Compare that to the standard factory tire load rating. Also watch out for pseudo-street tires. These are the super high performance cheaters for autocross etc but are not recommended for use below 50*F. Heck there are R comps that can be run safely at temps colder freezing. So that's really only for folks in the warm climates or dedicated use wheels.

Short sidewalls can be an advantage for handling on a fairly smooth track.
Taller sidewalls are generally better for protecting the wheels and cars on rough streets (which is the majority around here!) and non paved roads.

Thanks Mattax, good points!

I won't worry about changing the speedo gear with 17s

I remember heading to a SCCA event not long after the Azenis RT615s were released. They were a little "exciting" near freezing temps. Back then, I was competing in a Neon, so for my stock class, I would swap wheels with Hoosier or Kumho R compounds at the event.

Not nearly as busy as my Aunt's Charger 500 with bias plies on grooved payment..in the rain...

Based on your avatar, I clearly need to look for your threads

 

[fastdodge]

Have you considered just converting to big bolt pattern? Your options become endless not to mention bigger brakes (4 wheel discs) for your bigger wheels.

Hi 66Dd, I have and before my Uncle emptied his garage to move, the parts were probably on hand to do it.

My 8-3/4" sure grip works really well (launches straight and hooks up great), so I've been reluctant to pull it out. The fluid's been clean when I've changed it as well.

Pretty happy with the K-H single pots on the front and I rebuilt the rears (always clean then antiseize thy self adjusters & pivot points!), so even from triple digits the brakes have been solid. My car oddly came with a manual master cylinder, so the brake feel is exceptional, tho they do take a strong leg.

 

[33IMP]

I hear ya Bob! My Dart still has its factory 13" painted steelies for what it's worth. Unfortunately the stickier tires available for the 15s are even smaller diameter than on the 17s, so the sidewall is actually similar, for example:
View attachment 1716522553

Are you talking sticky tires for autocross, or dragstrip? If street strip, there TONS of tall sticky street strip tires.
I'd have to do a bit of research in my paper summit catalog for sticky autocross tires, but I gotta believe there are some out there.
Ya know, you can use drag radials on a road course, too,. Just pump em up nice and hard, and get some stickies for the front.
My 55, in pics. There are definitely some taller 17s out there. Trick is finding some that don't LOOK like suv tires.

 

[fastdodge]

Are you talking sticky tires for autocross, or dragstrip? If street strip, there TONS of tall sticky street strip tires.
I'd have to do a bit of research in my paper summit catalog for sticky autocross tires, but I gotta believe there are some out there.
Ya know, you can use drag radials on a road course, too,. Just pump em up nice and hard, and get some stickies for the front.
My 55, in pics. There are definitely some taller 17s out there. Trick is finding some that don't LOOK like suv tires.

View attachment 1716522609

View attachment 1716522610

Wow, lookin good! Did a quick search of your threads for a full car pic, but no dice.

The 17" tires I'm looking at are 24.7" with 4" of sidewall. Will work for me.

Personally, I've had better luck drag racing on 200 treadwear autox tires, then the other way round.

They tend to be pretty square. For instance, a 245/40R17 BFG g-Force Rival + shows 8.4" tread width on an 8.5" wide wheel.