I have a 69 sport wagn that I want to put weld draglites on. 15x8 rear and 15x7 front. rears only come in 4.5 or 5.5 backspacing. Fronts only come in 3.5 and 4.5 backspacing. Which should I go with? 235 60 15 front and 255 60 15 rear. a 5 bs rear and 4 bs front would be better I think but they don't make em. Thanks Peteo No:
What wheels/BS/tires do you have on right now. Measure how much room you have from the inside of the rear tire to the inner fenderwell and also how much space to the outer wheelwell. The rear wheelwell on the '69's will be the closest fit. That will give you an idea on how to proceed. Just some generalization: Typical 15x7 Buick Rally wheel has 4.25 BS and they fit nicely on just about any Buick A-Body. That means that a 15x7 with 4.5 BS will sit only .25" closer to the inner fenderwell if the tires are the same so that shouldn't be a problem. A 15x8 wheel with 4.75 BS would have the exact center hub positon(side to side) as the 7" Buick Rally. Therefore your 15x8 w/4.5 BS would sit toward the outside .25" more and the 5.5 BS one would sit toward the inside .75". The way the '69 outer fenderwells are I'd probably go with the 5.5 BS. You can always use a small wheel spacer on the if it gets too close on the inside. The 4.5 BS would probably fit with your tires but you may get closse to sidewall rub on the outer wheelwell. I'm sure somebody on here has direct experience with this setup and will chime in. One thing just in case you wanted a deeper "looking" dish on the rear wheel it won't with the 5.5 BS. The front and rear wheels will look identical from the outside. If you want a deeper "looking" wheel then go with the 4.5 BS. If you do a seach with Google you can find all kind of tire/wheel comparators.
You dont need the 15x8's for 255/60/15 ... they'll fit fine on the 15x7's. I can think of no reason to go 15x8 with that tire size. ... a few weekends ago, just for giggles (and because I need new tires) I put BigRed's stock 15x7's with 275/60/15's on my Sporty. They fit ... but jussssst barely. That bump-out in the middle of the wheel well is the killer. BTW - the 275's larger diameter gave it a bit of a rake (which I like) and also gives it a bit of a steamroller bada$$ look. I plan on running the 275's on it. Years ago I played alot with wheel fitment on BigRed and found that 15x8 with 5.125" and 275's was ideal. 5 might work as well as 5.25 but I think 5.5 and a fat tire like 275's may see them rubbing either the exhaust or the shock If you like, I'll try and get some pics of the wagon with the 275's on it. EDIT - in the pic below, Im running stock 15x7's with I believe 255's. I'll check tonight
thanks Mike and Alan, I also thought 15x7 would be ok with 255's. I'm running stock 14x6 on the wagon now (3 7/8 bs I think) with 225 75 14 and have about 1.75 inches of clearance on either side of the tire. Fronts, haven't measured them yet. The only reason I want the weld draglites is because of the set up steve reynolds is running with adapters and dog dish hubcaps. Search "my rendition of dog dish hubcaps" sorry don't know how to drag a pic from there. You'd think a company like weld wheels might offer a few more options with backspacing. If you can find pics that would be great Alan. Thanks again Pete
Hey Alan, do you have any issues with exhaust smell. No matter which window I open I get some odor. All windows closed with fan on is ok. Repaced every rubber seal on the back with new ones and still no luck. Thinking of putting a wing on the back but don't want the entire roof rack to try to help with the smell. Even sealed the tailgate access panel. Might try soap and water next with my shop vac presurizing the inside and looking for bubbles.
Thanks for the advice so far in this thread, I will add my own as I am deciding on my favorite 17x8 Rear, and 17x7 front for my 1969 Sport Wagon. As far as the exhaust goes...I have to think about that. I have had three of these, and it has never been a problem. Could you have leaky exhaust NOT coming from the tailpipe(s)?
