A couple of weeks ago I went to a car show and was looking at approx. 20 69 Camaros. As I was looking at each car I heard several people say that the wheels really set the cars apart. Everyone seemed to like the new wheels that everyone is using and overlook the nice cars with rally wheels. I have been thinking for some time about changing and now I'm really confused as to which wheel looks the best. 15", 16" or the 17"s. Could I get some opinions please. Help me make a decision. I was looking at either the popular torque thrust II's or Eagle 211's. Thanks

Ralleye wheels or SS wheels. Nothing else looks better on a 69 Camaro, period. :D :D :D :D :D

I was thinking about changing my 15" ralley wheels recently to 17" wheels, but I could not find anything that I liked better than the ralley wheels. I elected to stay with the 15" ralley wheels. The other thing that influenced my decision was that I like more tire sidewall showing than the 17" wheels with 40 profile tires have. Additionally, the 15" ralleys are timeless and should allways be in style.

When I was at a photo shoot for my yellow car there were 20-30 other first gen Camaros there. I was talking to the Super Chevy photographer and said "Man, there's sure a lot of nice Camaro's here". His first comment was "yeah, but they all have friggin' rally wheels!"

I personally like them, they fit the car. But the magazine guys hate them. Not sure if that even matters to you, just thought it was an interesting comment.

Jody

Why not have both???

a half hour and you tatally change the look of your car...

rallies for car shows by day

17" billets for cruise nights.

It's a no-brainer (if you got some extra bucks)

The hardest part is choosing the right wheel and sizes and getting the right stance.

JD

How about 18's? :D

I also think the Rally wheels looks great, I guess everyone thinks they are too common and the new wheels look nicer, at least that's the way people are talking. The ones I overheard talking were younger people and I must admit there were a lot of nice looking Cars at the show. It also seems that the ones with nice wheels were the ones who earned the awards. So what wheel sizes and makes look the best? Comments welcome.

What about 16 or 17 inch Rally Wheels. The only problem I know of is they do not make trim rings.

Originally posted by Joe Harrison:
What about 16 or 17 inch Rally Wheels. The only problem I know of is they do not make trim rings. Wheel Vintiques makes 16 & 17" Chrome (so you don't need the trim rings) Rallys.
I've used 2 sets of their "68 Series" so far - but none on a Camaro. They are available in lots of widths and offsets and in all the common bolt patterns.
They are available in Primer or Silver but the Chrome finish is excellent and the fact there are no trim rings reguired means they won't be stolen of come flying off on corners!
Here is their link - http://www.wheelvintiques.com/wheels/rallye.html

I've been giving serious thought to a set of these on my rag - something still classic but not quite stock.

John

OK I've heard from a lot of you with the Rally wheels but no one with 17" wheels have said anything about theirs, what about you guys with the 17" or 18"? Do you like what you have and why did you choose your wheels?

I think "Bootlefoot" has 16 or 17" TT-2's on his car now. I remember pic.s a while back and they looked graemlins/thumbsup.gif
Maybe he will chime in or you could check his web from his profile ( http://www.geocities.com/boodlefoof/ )
Try checking the galley section on the main page for photos of members cars with bigger bling-bling... (luckily I haven't stumbled on any cars with 'spinners' on this site! :rolleyes: )

OK, here ya go then... Tires are Eagle F1's, 16x7 w/225-50 front, 17x8 w/255-45 back, from 15x7 rallys w 215-65-15 firestone radials

Before: I could smoke the tires at will, with as little as 2000 rpm clucth dump. Now, if I dump it at 5k, I burn the cluth, not the tires.

Before: Steering feel was vague, response to wheel corrections was slow, tended to overcorrect and seesaw. A road I drive every day, bumpy 2 lane with sweeping left, before it got scary at 55... back end would come out if i let off the gas, front would understter if i gave it throttle.

Now: Steering is tight, response immediate, no overcorrecting, no understeer ever, can make it oversteer with the throttle, but only when / how much I want it to. Same turn, 75 mph, comfy and secure, can ease or feed the throttle at will without any uncomfort.

THERE IS NO SUBSTITUE FOR MODERN RUBBER IF YOU DRIVE YOUR CAR CAUSE IT'S FUN!

And yes, I still have the rally's, half an hour will put em on if I want or need a stock look.

Originally posted by Camcojb:
When I was at a photo shoot for my yellow car there were 20-30 other first gen Camaros there. I was talking to the Super Chevy photographer and said "Man, there's sure a lot of nice Camaro's here". His first comment was "yeah, but they all have friggin' rally wheels!"
Ahh, Mr. Lee, clill's favorite best buddy friend in the whole wide world :D He's wrenching on Classic Truck Magazine now. He'll be at SEMA also.

I too originally had 15" rallys on my car. It was really hard to take the plunge into something different since I was set in my mind to stick wtih rallys. After driving on good, larger modern rubber (not BFG T/A, but a Comp T/A or better) I would now rather choose a rim to fit the tire choice.

Tire availability for 17's is much better than 16's. Before buying either make sure that the tire you want now, and perhaps in the future, is available. For example, 275/40/17's are likely the most popular tire around and can be found in just about every configuration that you might need. However, a 255/50/16 has very limited availability and styles. Finding a road course or autocross tire is tough.

"yeah, but they all have friggin' rally wheels!"
Well, I guess at a photo-op for first-gens, maybe so, but at local cruise nights, or just boppin' around on the Sunday drives, its rare to see the rallys. Lots of Cragars, here in L.A. anyway, and a few TTs and billett wheels. I like the chrome Cragars, gives the car a bit more attitude, and still looks period correct. And you can get 'em in lots of sizes.
I may, at some point, grab a set for my car, I think they'd look good, but I'll hang on to my rallys too.

He, He!!

I can just see right now that the photo guy's are gonna love my Pony "Bullitts"!!!

pdq67

Originally posted by Vintage 68:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by Joe Harrison:
Wheel Vintiques makes 16 & 17" Chrome (so you don't need the trim rings) Rallys.
I've used 2 sets of their "68 Series" so far - but none on a Camaro. They are available in lots of widths and offsets and in all the common bolt patterns.


I've been giving serious thought to a set of these on my rag - something still classic but not quite stock.

John </font>[/QUOTE]I have also been thinking about going to chrome rally wheels when I get the car finished next year. I originally had some chrome American Racing Wheels on the car when I bought it about five years ago. I was in high school and my young friends still think I am crazy for going to the "boring, old rally wheels". I think they set the car off.

Does anyone have a picture of the chrome rallys on a first gen Camaro?

My blue coupe with the original 14x6 rally rims

http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/12/web/240000-240999/240075_54_full.jpg

and with 17-inch Boyd's

http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/12/web/240000-240999/240075_58_full.jpg

IMO, its no contest. smile.gif

Right, no contest, especially without trim rings and center caps.......... :rolleyes:

........or chrome rocker molding, or bumpers or emblems.... tongue.gif
The Boyds do look nice though, I gotta admit. Still....IF I were to change, I'd probably still go with the Cragars. JMHO

There is a time and place for both. For the guys that have a 100% (or close) correct factory cars, there is no other option. They (I included) are the guys at the local car shows who watch people run to the chromed out engines with the aftermarket rims (no bashing intended) as the pure stock guys kick back and glare at their 69 RS headlamp washer pump and admire how difficult it was to get that part. The chrome wins at the local shows but there are many Camaro only shows where the factory cars get the attention they deserve.
To each his own, diversity makes the world go round. Wow, I think I'll write that one down!

I swapped out my rallye's for a set of 17 inch Into GT sports. 245's in front, and 275's in back. As far as handling is concerned, there is no contest. But I still go back and forth about what looks better. Keep both and swap em back and forth like I do depending on my mood.

Greg, how do the 275's fit in the back? And what backspacing do you have on your wheels?

I think it's all a matter of personal preference. I like the original look of a Rally Wheel but I also like the look of a 17" TT2.

I wouldn't go with an 18" rim unless you don't mind fixing bent rims. They look nice but there isn't enough sidewall to drive them on the street. At least around here there isn't. I Luv NY.

I was thinking of going with the TT II's or even the American Eagle 211's. I will keep the Rally wheels but just don't want to look like every other Camaro around. There are three cars just like mine here so I thought I would change the looks. I can't decide on the size of wheel yet but thinking 245/40 or 45 on the front and 275/ 40 or 45 on the back. I have 245/60/15 on the rally wheel front and 255/60/15 on the rear now.

The 275's with a 5.5 inch backspacing fit fine with my current stock mono-leaf suspension set-up. I'm about to install a Hotchkis drop spring in the rear. I don't have any way to post pics of my car but here is the link to the wheels that I have. This car is the reason I went with these wheels. They look killer if you ask me.
http://introwheels.com/gallery/album01/SS_Camaro

Are your tires 45's or 40's? Those wheels look nice.

GregD, where did you find those wheels? I was looking for a distributor for Intro before I got my coddingtons

I am running 245/45/17 in front 275/40/17 in the back. I got the wheels through HVYDEEZ via a group purchase on the pro-touring site.

for more info on that car:
http://www.ExtremeG.net

Check these out very cool. Expensive but very cool.

SS Wheels 17 inch (http://www.newstalgiawheel.com/listproducts.asp?cat=10114)

Personally, I like the ralleys. But if you want something different, I would go with the Cragers for a period correct look. They are almost the same as the TT 2's but have more of a classic look. Do whatever you think will look the best. Search the internet and you'll find a camaro with the rims you want so you can see what it will look like.

I really like the TT II's and the Crager. I'm thinking of 17" wheels but really want to search out tire sizes etc. before I invest so much money. I can't decide if I want 255's or 275's in the rear. I like the 45 series over the 40's but I can't find any 275/45/17 tires. What do you think, 255/45/17 or 275/40/17 for the rear of a 69.

The total sidewall thickness between the 255/45 and 275/40 is almost the same

275 sidewall 4.3" dia 25.7"
255 sidewall 4.5" dia 26"

As you can see the 275 will be just a hair smaller but probably not noticeable. So it all depends on if your fender is rolled to handle the 275 or not.

Betqween the 275 and 255 size tire, which is the better to fill the wheel well with and which is the most popular size?

Black69, its 50/50 on this forum, half the guys run 275/40, half run 255/45. It all depends on if your fender lips are rolled in and if you can put up with a little rubbing possibly if your rear suspension is lowered or loose and have passengers in the rear and are going in or out of a driveway at an angle for example. If your fenders are not rolled I don't recommend the 275 because you are probably going to eat them up at times and worst case damage your quarter panels.
The diameter is only .3" difference between the tires, this means a .15" difference per side of the rim between these tires for 'filling up the fender', thats just a little over 1/8th of an inch, so the eye could not tell the difference between these two tires filling the fender up.

Also you can save a little going 255/45 because it allows you to run the less expensive Kumho ECSTA 711 High Performance tires which are only $80/each, if you want to go 275/40 you must upgrade to the Kumho ECSTA Supra 712 which are $113/each

If you want to drag you obviously want the most rubber you can on the road, if this car is more for daily driving or cruising on weekends and you could care less about your quarter mile time then the 255 is going to be a great solution both on your car and your wallet.

I'm saving some $, "sssshh" wife doesn't know. I'd love to have a set of 17" American Racing Hopster wheels in my 68. Back spacing is gonna be crucial, when ordering time comes, so I'll be reading a lot of past threads, just to end up asking which is the best back spacing for the front & for a multileaf rear. graemlins/clonk.gif I'm thinking 'bout 7" fronts and 8" rears. graemlins/thumbsup.gif

Front : 17x7 with (4.25) backspace
Rear : 17x8 with (4.75) backspace

Whole set you could probably get for about $800-$875 shipped from BigJayDogWheels - Jason 319-493-1104.


Tires:
Kumho ECSTA 711 225/45HR17 - $73 at Tirerack
Kumho ECSTA 711 255/45HR17 - $80 at Tirerack

You would have to run the 225 up front, the 235 recommends a 7.5" minimum size rim. You could consider a 7.5" up front with 4.5" backspacing so that you can get the 235!

Brian, do you have an E-mail addres for Big Jay Dog Wheels. I tried to send one earlier but have not heard anything for two weeks. May have written it down wrong. Thanks for any help.

biggjdoggwheels@hotmail.com
But you might just call Jason instead and have the details of what you are looking for ready so he can look them up and give you a firm quote. He has been pretty responsive to my emails though. Big seller on Ebay

Originally posted by kz1000ltd:
Ralleye wheels or SS wheels. Nothing else looks better on a 69 Camaro, period. :D :D :D :D :D At first I wanted to go Cragers (nostalgic look) but now that I put the Rallys on they are staying! graemlins/thumbsup.gif

Stock look for Camaro shows:
http://pic2.picturetrail.com/VOL35/451234/641699/9294924.jpg

For everyday cruise-ins:
http://pic2.picturetrail.com/VOL35/451234/641699/59028584.jpg

DWCamaro69, what size tires do you have on your car with the 17" wheels. It really looks nice.

Black69, Fronts: 17X7 w/4.0 backspace and 235/45-17 Rear: 17X8 w/4.75 backspace and 255/45-17. I chose this combo because they are standard backspace (no custom ordering) and I didn't want to take the chance of rubbing with the 9.5" wide rears with the 275/40's.

DWCamaro69, what brand tires are you running in front, all I've looked at do not recommend the 235/45r17 on a 7" rim, they want a 7.5" minimum width rim.

Bridgestone 7.5" min
Continental 7.5" min
Dunlop 7.5-8" minimum
Goodyear 7.5" min
Kumho 7.5" min
Michelin 7.5" min
Pirelli 7.5" min
Yoko 7.5" min

I'm not saying it can't be done, but no tire manuf that I can find will recommend it.

My car was at the photo shoot Jody and Carl have refered to. It showed up in 15" rallys and but at Kevin's request we put some 18" Budniks on one side for pictures. It was like night and day, even the purists were oooh'n and saying what a difference. It wasn't the size as much as the bling of the highly polished wheels. I'll find a couple pic's to show what I mean tonight. Some paint colors are complemented with rallys and some are not. IMO there is an eligance brought out in my white car that as nice as it is was missing with rallys. The 18's were too much for my taste and I ended up with 17's...

Brian, I didn't even consider that 235/45 would be to large for a 7" wide rim. I know lots of people running them. My tire shop said it was fine. I am running BFG KDWS's.

Obviously it fits, I would just be concerned about the tire staying on the rim. There obviously is a reason why none of these manufacturers recommend a 235/45r17 on a 7" rim, namely in that the width of the tire doesn't allow the bead to sit perfectly on the rim, which I would think could cause a blowout if your car was to get sideways or taking a turn at a high rate of speed. Others should probably consider going to a 7.5" rim to prevent any possible separation issues.

Here's what a 275/40/17 Nitto 555RII autocross/track tire looks like on a 17" x 9.5" Vintage Wheel Works rim.

http://img3.exs.cx/img3/2049/17side2.jpg

Here's three shots, the 1st is 15" rallys 235-60's all the way around.

http://www.camaros.net/pnwcc/DjD/wheels/rallys.jpg

...then 17" 235-45's (front) and 255-45's (rear)
http://www.camaros.net/pnwcc/DjD/wheels/17inch.jpg

...and 18" and who knows what rubber bands Cris had on them...
http://www.camaros.net/pnwcc/DjD/wheels/18inch.jpg

is the car a #'s matching? if not who cares! go for what you like, remember who is driving that beast! you are and you are paying for it. So have fun and go with your gut...J

what wheels do you have?

I have 15" rally's and looking for a change. I think I may try the 17" TT II's with Fuzion tires.

DJD, what size rims are on the car with the 17" wheels in your pictures? I think it looks the best.

Anyone have a close up rear view pic, of a 68 or 67 with 17" X 8" wheels with 255/45HR17? I'd like to see how it looks from behind.(The car) :D

I'd like to see an 8" and a 9 1/2" if any one has them also (from the back).

Originally posted by Black69:
I'd like to see an 8" and a 9 1/2" if any one has them also (from the back). In answer to your question that is what I'm running on my car (mid pic). 17x8 4.75bs w-235/45's and 17x9.5 5.5 bs w-255/45's

owrench, i gottem, will try to get a pic up this weekend if you promise not to laugh at my primerd spoiler (it's on the list!)

And to the comment "only rallye's or Cragars look right..." I couldn't agree more. I think it's time for us SS lovers to unite and lead a revival of the true nostalgia '60's Hot Rod look... Chrome Super Sports Foverever!!
http://home.comcast.net/~jimragtop/6501-web.jpg

Originally posted by JimM:
I think it's time for us SS lovers to unite and lead a revival of the true nostalgia '60's Hot Rod look... Chrome Super Sports Foverever!!
You gonna jack the back up and and run L-60's in the rear and skinnys in the front too? That's what Cragers in the 60's was all about. ;) I can show you a neeto paint trick you do with lace when you shoot your stripes if you want to really make it a time machine... graemlins/beers.gif

I'd forgot the paint trick using lace, thanks for the memory, boy does time fly.

lol dennis! A touch of nostalgia goes a long way... I remember that lace trick.... I bet some Z stripes would look totally "groovy" like that!

If I had the resources to own many classics you can bet you would find some state of art stuff as well as some very nostalgic stuff going on in my garage. Remember blow dots? ;) just kidding guy!! graemlins/beers.gif Since I don't have the resources, I'm trying to cover the bases with what I have. graemlins/beers.gif

Originally posted by DjD:
I can show you a neeto paint trick you do with lace when you shoot your stripes if you want to really make it a time machine... graemlins/beers.gif Excuse my ignorance, but is there a pic of that paint trick? :D I'm curious, maybe it was famous down here too, just with a different name...

I hope Denis doesn't mind, this is from Keven Suydam's web site http://corvettes-musclecars.com/


&gt;&gt;Cut and paste the whole thing into your browser&lt;&lt;

http://corvettes-musclecars.com/Collections/Other/1969 Cougar 428 Cobra Jet 'Dyno Don Super Cat'/Lace.jpg

:rolleyes: Nope, never seen before. Thanks for the link. graemlins/thumbsup.gif

Ilike mine with 17" wheels and it handles much better than the 14" that were on it.
http://www.msnusers.com/Jerrys67rsss/Documents/Pictures/DSCF0165.JPG
http://www.msnusers.com/Jerrys67rsss/Documents/Pictures/DSCF0158.JPG

[ 10-10-2004, 07:49 AM: Message edited by: DjD ]

sherr20 - Your pic's don't display and each one caused a popup for installing miscrosoft pasport.net. I removed the image (img) tags and left them as links but when you click on them they require a login and password to microsoft pasport.net that didn't want to go away...

No probs Dennis.....dont know why it has done that, I used the same technique as all past image posts. Ill look and see how I did it.

After reading several posts I'm confused about the size of a rear tire on a 17" wheel for the rear on a 69. Some say you need to roll the wheel well and others say a 275 tire will fit. Can someone give me a little info on that. Which size, a 255 or 275 looks better on the rear? I would like to try some 17" but I'm really not sure which tire looks and fits the best and would like some info before i decide to purchase. Thanks Dave

Dave - there are many things here from drum or disc brakes to factory tolerences and brand of tire. I had a friends 12 bolt under my car and the 275's I had fit except for some body flex caused rubbing on the inside. Some 1/4" spacers solved the inside rub but I felt I needed to trim the outer lip on the fender, especially knowing I was putting disc's back there soon. Put my own 12 bolt back in (it's from a '67) and I was definitely going to have to trim of roll the fender lip. I opted for 255/45's in place of 275/40's and don't have any rubbing or worries of tire damage no matter how loaded down my car is. I think I'll be ok with the disks when I get them finished too. Another thing to remember is this is on my ragtop. A coupe won't flex as much going through driveways at an angle which you have to do sometimes to avoid scraping...

As for sizes every brand is slightly different but my Nitto 555's in 255/45's are less than 1/2" taller at 25.95" and the section with is just about 1" less than the 275/40's 10.08" vrs 11.02". For me it is the fact that I can load up my car and go and don't have any rubbing and I didn't have to roll or trim the fender lip. Now if I never had anyone ride along and never filled the trunk and back seat with suit cases, ice chests, camera bag and tools, I may have never noticed a problem with the 275's...

I know it will never happen (economics I guess) but I wish you could buy any brand of tire in any series in 10mm increments. That sure would make it easier to max out your wheel well with your tire of choice. Same goes for wheel backspace to.

I keep going to Tirerack.com and looking at specifications on the tires to see what size they are and what rims they go on. The more I look at the different tires, the more confused I get as to which tire I really want.

Originally posted by DjD:
I can show you a neeto paint trick you do with lace when you shoot your stripes if you want to really make it a time machine... graemlins/beers.gif Speaking of lace, this is what it looked like on my 68. A friend did it in 1969 with spray paint and it lasted at least 11 years.

http://gvtc.com/~rlaa/Images/my68in1974.jpg

My Fathers 67 RS/SS. Pic taken in 1970. Tuck rolled and pleated interior, Stencil paint job. L-60's with skinnies. Was a World of Wheels class winner several times. It was "In" back then.
I'm still looking for this car if anyone recognizes it. Last seen in Silver Spring, Md.
http://www.angelfire.com/md2/68camaro/dads67.jpg

He, He!!

L-60's.....

They look alot like mine except for my Fenton slotted mags...

Suckers are BIG donuts!!

pdq67

WOW! Did my wife slip a "tab" in my Wheaties this morning or is that car really wild!

There's a lot of high-class work in that paint job.

back to Black (s question) the 255 will fit if the wheel offset is close to right (4.5 backspace on an 8" rim) The 275's are much tighter. They'll usually fit, but you gotta do your homework well, and what works on one car may not on another. If you want em, pull both back tires, jackstands under the axle at ride height, striaghtedge on the mounting flange, and find out for real how much room you got and where it is. Be sure to account for suspension compression, one side at a time as well as both together...

My $.02 worth...I like them all. If I had a resto. '69, I think the 18" TT II's look good. I'm after nostalgia, though. I have 14x6 rwl T/A's and rallys on my '67 now. That will be changing soon, though. Going with 14x6 Cragar S/S wheels with redlines...but then, what would you expect from an old fart?! :D

Kevin

Well Kevin, I'm an old fart too and I have 15 x 6 on the front and 15 x 8 on the rear with rwl T/A's. I'm really thinking about going with 17" TT II's just for fun. (Of course I'll keep the others for when I want to go back original).

This car is outta sight, man! Groovy! graemlins/thumbsup.gif

http://www.angelfire.com/md2/68camaro/dads67.jpg