Date: Sat, 1 Aug 2009 18:17:59 -0700
Reply-To: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Subject: Re: 15" steel rims?
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Hi Don,
I sat on a set of 5 near new Michelin Agilles 205/65 R 15 C tires, that are
just 'Demon good' tires on a vanagon.
they should be, they cost 150 bucks each new these days.
BUT ......I did not want to do any adapters or anything bogus, I wanted
'real' 15 inch vanagon wheels.
And I didn't want to go the GoWesty allowy wheels route either, due to the
price mainly.
So I got the Van Cafe 15 inch steelies.
and they are REAL vanagon 15 inch steel wheels, and no I have no criticisms
about them at all. Quality seems way up there.
You do have to use 'cone face' lugs nuts or wheel bolts with them, which
they'll give you with the wheels.
The only slight not perfect thing is ......
the front wheel bolts are 17mm hex size, so you need two sizes of lug
wrench. I use a 14 inch stock spare, so I carry the stock lug nuts and bolts
for those.
I don't think there are any 'really right' steel 15 inch wheels that fit
vanagons. I'm just getting into Eurovans, and their 15 inch steel wheel will
work in the rear nicely.
However ......in the front .............the small hole in the middle of the
wheel won't fit over the hub there ( 2WD we're talking here ) and ......I
personally would not machine out the middle hole in a steel wheel. There's a
nice solid 'lip' sort of there............that adds strength to the bolt
area of the wheel.
I, like you, value ruggedness, and 'hammer it back well enough to work' for
back country general use . I call them 'cop car wheels'..........
cause that's what you see on cop cars, 15 inch steel black wheels with
usually H or even V rated high performance tires on them.
they will not accept a small metal hubcap.
but they'll take any 15 inch regular plastic hub cap - either from Fred
Meyer or whatever disocunt store, or ...........eurovan hubcaps fit and look
perfect on them. I like the plane shiny black look myself.
But those are the ones you want.
I have checked out Passat steel wheels...........nope, not close enough, not
right enough.
I bouht 12 of those van cafe south africa steel 15's . I like them.
Bit heavy, and quite durable I'm sure.
btw............there's not a lot of selection in 15 inch tires that are LT
or C load rating. There are probably, or might be, more choices in 16 inch,
and some people are using high performance car tires on vanagons with 16
inch wheels I think.
I prefer 'the real deal'.........like I expect you would, which means an LT
or C load rating, or ........I don't like these as much, D load rating in
the right size 15 inch for a vanagon.
the 205/65 R 15 C is nigh perfect.
the van handles infenitely better too............with 14's and LT's
.............very boat-like compared to those michelins in that size, on
15's.
oh ...........there was a deal a while back at tire rack .............forget
if they were 15 or 16, but steel aftermarket wheels for winter tires to fit
a mercedes ....forget that model right now ...........but a bolt-on
...........made in spain I think, not for vangons really, and the ball seat
face is different than what vanagons use.
And I saw a set of those wheels in person ( they were way cheap
...........might even have been 18 bucks each .......way way cheap in any
case ) .....
I saw a set.
Nope .........not really up to 'real' vanagon spec. Kinda light weight.
Glad I didn't get any.
( oh ........here's a demon good 15 inch tire ........
don't know if they are available anymore, but I found a pair of used
Hakepalita, winter non-stud tires, 205/65 R 25 C .......D laod rating. Man
......
those are very stable good tires. The michelins in front, on my 85
Adventurewagon, and the Haki's in the rear .........that van tracked
straight as an arrow. When you put 'more' on the rear, relative to the front
...........stiffer tire, wider tire or wheel..........it reduces the
'boat-like handling' affect that stock same-size front and rear tire 2WD
vanagons can have. Significant factor and you as a racer would know that
quite well. )
that's what I think !
Scott
www.turbovans.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Don Hanson" <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Saturday, August 01, 2009 5:40 PM
Subject: 15" steel rims?
> It's about time to start thinking 'new tires' again for my 84. It'd be
> the right time to swap to some 15" rims, both for a little increased
> ground
> clearance and for the additional tire options available in 15". I am not
> interested in alloy wheels, not for a vehicle I take off road or onto
> really
> crappy roads...I have bent and broken alloy wheels and been left with no
> spare in dicey situations..so it's steel for me. I have, on two
> occasions,
> 'hammered-out' bent steel rims, got them back into shape well enough
> to continue on some remote Mexico and desert trips..
> The only sure source I see, upon 'cursorial lookage' is Van Cafe and they
> are 'out of stock' and also a hundred bucks each (I didn't even consider
> the freight cost..)...a bit much for plain steel wheels on my budget. Has
> anyone ever found any other steel wheels in 15" size that will work on a
> 2wd
> Vanagon without machine work or extra long studs.. Or does anyone have
> any
> "steelies" left from an "upgrade" FS within a few hundred miles of PDX
> (Portland, Or.)?...
> I guess I could start with the Samba..Knowing what other vehicles might
> have similar offsets to the Vanagons 14" stocker rims might be a good
> help,
> then I could also scour the junkyards, etc..
> Thanks, Don Hanson
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