Sorry guys, more big wheel advice needed....

[K9COP]

OK, so I've read and read and read, and read again, and asked, but have yet to get a definitive answer on 18/19" wheel specs/fitment... the wheel thread drifted of towards 15's, and didn't really help...

I'm thinking 18x8 (with 245/45/18's) on the front, and 19x10 (with 285/35/19's) on the rear. Now, I want modern wheels, so they will have a 20mm, 37mm or 40mm offset.

First question:

Can I 'absorb' the offset by using spacers (4.5 to 4.5 'adaptors') to 'correct' the offset back to zero? So long as the offset is corrected, and the back space 'goes back to' 4 3/4 front,. 5 1/2 rear, will I still be OK? 

Is backspace directly related to offset or can the two change independently? I thought I had that worked out, but it seems not.   

With this set up, assuming it fits, will I be able to lower the car slightly, to allow it to run just a little lower, for a more modern look?

Any help greatly appreciated please guys, 

Paul

[K9COP]

Sorry, subject car is an all standard '69 440.

Paul

[1970Moparmann]

I personally wouldn't put on any spacers.  This is just me though....

I have 17 x 8's up front, and 18 x 9.5 in back and think the stance and size is perfect.  There is a lot of meat with this set up.

One of the problems is going to be, like you said, offset.  I found there aren't a lot of "off the shelf" wheels that can fit our cars.  I went with the Boss brand because I didn't want to spend BIG BUCKS on wheels. 

19 x 10 is a really odd size....

I have 255 on the front and 285 on the back.

[K9COP]

Hi, thanks so much for replying. You're right, 19x9.5 would be more appropriate. Your set up looks awesome. i like the staggered front to rear look, but was just going to go for 19's on the back. I'm assuming your car is all standard suspension.

I looked up Boss wheels (which do you have?) and think they could work, there's a dealer right by me, so even better! Could you tell me the cost per wheel and your offset and/or back space figures please?

Thanks again for quick reply, beautiful car man.

Paul

[WHITE AND RED 69]

I agree with 1970Moparmann, stay away from wheel spacers.

A 19x10 will work fine, Mine has 18x10" with a 285/40 tire and still has plenty of room. I've seen a couple chargers with 19s out back and they look great. Check out Bill440rt's 69 build, he has 19s out back and 18s up front and looks killer. I believe his rear wheel has the same backspace as mine which is 5.5" or 0 offset.

The one thing I would change is dont do a 45 series on the front if you have a 35 series out back. The front will look way larger than the back.  

What wheels are you looking at?

[bill440rt]

I agree with 1970Moparmann, stay away from wheel spacers.

A 19x10 will work fine, Mine has 18x10" with a 285/40 tire and still has plenty of room. I've seen a couple chargers with 19s out back and they look great. Check out Bill440rt's 69 build, he has 19s out back and 18s up front and looks killer. I believe his rear wheel has the same backspace as mine which is 5.5" or 0 offset.

The one thing I would change is dont do a 45 series on the front if you have a 35 series out back. The front will look way larger than the back. 

What wheels are you looking at?

  Thx! 

I have an 18" front & 19" on the rear.
The fronts are 18 x 8's with a 4.5" backspace. Rears are 19 x 10 in the back with a 5.5" backspace. Tires are 245/40/18 for the fronts & 295/35/19 for the rear. They sit nice with lots of room for steering & suspension travel. I could have went even wider in the rear, but I am happy with the result.

Check out www.newstalgiawheel.com for wheel & tire packages. They have prices I found that were unbeatable in most cases. Plus a cool "wheel visualizer" that helps to see how different wheels look on your car.

[K9COP]

Thanks all...

I'm looking at 'any' modern looking 5 spoke wheels, with black spokes and polished rims, like these:



or these:



or even these:



You get the idea. Although the above vary, I'm looking for wheels that have a deep lip, and five solid thick black spokes. In the absence of spacers/adaptors, I'm really struggling... Your guys' cars look awesome, and although there seems to be a traditionalist trend on this forum, which is fine, I'm looking to move my car on a little, as some others here have... Mr Angry (first pic?)for example...

Thanks guys... more info always much appreciated....

Mav

[WHITE AND RED 69]

If you are looking for a modern look check out Forgeline wheels. They are very pricey but they do all kinds of different finishes and are top quality. Just about every rim has options for different finishes. And they will build any size to order so no need for spacers.  

http://www.forgeline.com/index.php

[bill440rt]

They look VERY similar to Fikse wheels, which are VERY pricey as well.
Nice wheels. 

[K9COP]

I hear ya guys. Now, I'm not known JUST for being cheap, but a grand a corner is a bit excessive in my world. The likes of Forgeline and Rushforth make awesome wheels, but I can't help thinking $4000 would go further elsewhere in the car, when I can buy a staggered set of 18/19" wheels, for $499 shipped. BUT, I still have to deal with the offset issue, and I understand the quality/cost ratio etc..  but mine is a driver, and I don't want to be fussing about four grands worth of wheels every time I use it..


If I use a 'bolt on' spacer, i.e. one that bolts to the hub in place of the wheel, and has wheel studs captive in it, to then bolt the wheel to, would that actually correct the offset issue?. I mean using a 37mm 'spacer/converter' with a 37mm offset wheel...

Any number of sellers can supply wheels in the 5 x 114.3 PCD, as it is common to so many import cars. If I'm correct in understanding that offset versus back spacing is a set calculation, I can buy a set up according to the measurements given by the guys on here. Sweet.  

Please keep the comments coming, i want to get this right first time. Anyone know the cost of Boss wheels?

Mav

[BrianShaughnessy]

I saw this suggested on moparts and I can't help but think that anybody that's talking about shelling out big $$$ for wheels that are not designed to be mopar specific should probably invest in this gizmo first.   http://www.summitracing.com/parts/php-01201   

Otherwise,   on a classic mopar,  the best advice I can give is to get as close to 0 offset as possible. 

[K9COP]

Ok, so now I'm really confused  . If you guys'  10' wide rear wheels have a 5 1/2 inch back spacing, doesn't that mean they have a 1/2" positive offset? If the mating face of the wheel is 5 1/2" from the back side of the wheel, that will be 1/2" further 'street wards' than the wheel centre line, won't it?

I thought the idea was for the (effective) wheel/hub interface to be on the centre line of the wheels. Have I got this wrong? Just when I thought I had a handle on it.... 

CS

[pro451bee]

A 10" wide wheel is really 11" on the outside ,rim to rim,so 5.5 is '0' off-set. Comprede amigo?

[bill440rt]

A 10" wide wheel is really 11" on the outside ,rim to rim,so 5.5 is '0' off-set. Comprede amigo?

Rim width is measured from inside lip to inside lip, the tire bead mating surface. Not from outside to outside.

[K9COP]

OK, Ok, gotcha.    Thanks guys. So that makes the wheel selection easier. So lastly (probably  ) can someone confirm that if I persist (against advice) with using spacers, that if I 'absorb' the offset , say 37mm, with a 37mm spacer, my new wheels will become effectively '0' offset?

Hope so, as I have my eye on some wheels (TSW 'Stowes') and want to get them ordered.!

Thanks again guys,

CS

[K9COP]

Update on the wheels tyre package:

I chose Stern ST5's, 18x8 in front, 19x9.5 rear. 255/40/18's and 295/35/19's. Front lowered with torsion bar bolts, and rear with lowering blocks 2"

Here she is:





rear is a little lower since these pics....

CS

[Rolling_Thunder]

Forgeline wheels are nice...     but I got a quote of $4,840 + tax for a set...     plus tires       ----      Ummm    I'll take secret option 3 - when I find it

[Just 6T9 CHGR]

Stance looks great! 

[K9COP]

Thank you, I'll get an update pic on here asap. One more question, is it just me, or do the front wheels on a Charger ALWAYS look bigger in diameter than the rears. My car had 14's all round when I bought it, fronts looked way bigger. Now has 18's on the front and 19's on the rear, and the fronts STILL look bigger to me! Maybe more I can blame on the petrol fumes.....

CS