What size wheels fit this thing?

Okay... so I'm a real rookie at this whole kit car thing. I'm building a "California Speedster" kit from Street Beasts with suspension and engine from Healy Motor Works. With the flared fenders, I know it's critical to make sure I get a wheel/tire combo that really fills the well for that customized look. I've seen pictures of the same kit with the wrong wheels and it ruins the entire car. I have a five lug nut Porsche pattern (or so I'm told). Any suggestions from anyone out there? I'd really appreciate your advice.

Mike the Rookie from Rochester
mike@dixonschwabl.com

The wheel and tire combination depends on the wheel diameter , wheel offset, tire width and tire diameter. Also you need to consider is the width of the front axle. Is your front axle stock width or has it been shortened. Changing the tire diameter will also change you speedo accuracy and the final rear wheel drive ratio. What ride height are you trying to achieve with you project car? Sticking with a standard 15" X 8" wheel tends to limit you on custom wheel selections. You also are limited on the wheel offsets. Moving up in wheels to a 16" or 17" opens up the offset selection range though there is one catch. Now you are going to narrow down your side wall height. On my flare I selected four 17"x 8" wheel with a 5" offset. The front tires are 23.8" in diameter with a 9.1 width. The rear tires are 25" diameter and 9.9" wide. My biggest worry was going with too large of a diameter tire and the body bottoming out on the tire. That wouldn't be pretty. Take a few measurements of the rear offset on the wheels you have now to get an idea what you are going to need to achieve the look you want. Then start checking on the net tire manufacturer specs for the tire size availability. It took me about 4 weeks of research to find the right combo I was looking for. Good Luck.
Joe S

If indeed your bolt pattern is Porsche (5x130) then you also have another helpful option. For Porsches, very high quality wheel spacers are made up to 3" wide. These are not the crappy nasty poorly machined dangerous junkers that you can find, but good quality light with the larger ones affixed with high quality fasteners. Not cheap, but strong and safe. If you pick your diameter, you may be able to adjust your offset using those.

Check Pelican, Performance and any Porsche racing groups e.g. HRE etc. angela

Joe, where did you get those wheels and what are the bolt pattern?

Mike,

You wrote "the rookie from Rochester", which Rochester? I'm just outside of Rochester, NY and just finished a CMC but I have a Metalcraft frame. I don't know what that does to the offsets but if you're near, you can look at mine. I also have some experience with spacer/adapters. Angela is right about the crappy ones. That's what I'm using on my fronts. They were so bad I had them remachined and new studs pressed in. I also bought some very high quality ones from airbagit.com that I ended up not using.

GV , my wheels are Boyd C Smoothie II 's . The bolt pattern is a chevy 4 3/5". I bought a set of pre drill rotors from a guy in Kansas for $200 . Do a search on this site for the guys name and phone # if interested.

Thanks all! What a club - I can't believe the quick response. I'm sure I'll be posting many more questions in the future... thanks again!
Mike

Hi Michael,

I also have a "rare" Streetbeast Speedster. You got it right the correct wheel offset will make or break the look of even the best built flared Speedy.

I had trouble finding the right style wheel. The ones I settled on didn't have the right offset or hole pattern. They are an Audi pattern 110X5. I have buddy who is a skilled toolmaker with a shop full of precision machines. After about a week of measuring and remeasuring I designed some spacer/adapters.

I had read all the horror stories about wheel spacers so I tried to design out the problems. First I used the Porsche pattern (130X5) drums and discs. These came with a machined hub OD that was on center with the spindles (about 3" in diameter). We made the adapters with an ID about .005" bigger guarenteeing they would run true. I drilled out the drums and discs and installed 1/2"-20 studs. I then installed 1/2"-20 studs in the adapters on the 110X5 pattern. The fronts were made about 2-1/4" thick and the rears were 1-1/5" thick.

Next I wanted to reduce the cantalever load on the bearings. I did this by choosing a wheel width wide enough that the back face of the wheel is actualy in the same position as a stock wheel.


BTW: Ron your car looks great. Ever think of having the rollbar chromed?

Jerome

Michael, I also built a Street Beasts but a stock configuration body, glad to help with any build questions resolving the fit and fabrication issues you run into. Just email me direct. ~Alan

Thanks Jerome. I have considered it and also have considered having it powder coated with a powder that simulates chrome. The surface isn't great so it will take some work.

Alan, I've told Mike that you are a wealth of information and always willing to help.

Hey Jerome, I like your exterior rear view mirrors where did you get it?

I am thinking in one for my project but can't find a nice ones.

Any sugestions guys?

The mirrors are from parr automotive (www.parrautomotive.com). Do a search for the part number VISVF. Mine are the VISVF-2LED.

Beware! You will need to do a better job of placement than I did. I can't see $hit out of them.

Jerome

Mike, I chose Center Lines. Got them from a company called Pacific Customs; $160 or so each. They're a pattern called Wide Fives, and the front wheels have a 3-in, 3-out offset. The rears are 4-out, 3-in. They used to be common for race cars in the late 60s (so I'm told), and they're 15" in diameter.