I drove 2 Shays, realizing they were not for me. --  so he knows how the regular tire size feels. Why is some of this in PURPLE?

The current tires on #1458 are 6.00/6.50 X 18. The tires on Shays are 5.25/5.50 X 18. The wider tires with different tread and the weight and stability of the Phaeton make driving a pleasure.

Thanks for sharing , David.

 See also car #1488 (one of the cars in the picture rotation on the Annex home page) for another example of Shay wheels on a Glassic.)

The new to me rims are Eagle Alloy rims (series 203 according to Eagle's website) - They were after-market wheels that the seller said came off a 1988 Thunderbird. The tire sizes were rear P265/50R 15 and front P215/65R 15

These tires were noticeably wider than the originals, and helped with the traction when starting up.  The rear tires DO stick out from the fenders about an inch and a half, and are wider than the front tires. The size from the front would likely look better also on the back.   Pictures of the rim can be seen in the album 

In January, 2009, the new owner of car 1254, John, reported the following:

Well, here we are two weeks later and I finally got spare tire rims that matched the wheels on (car 1254).  Didn't go as smooth as I thought it would.  These particular wheels come in 7" wide rims and bigger only and the stock rims are 5" wide.  So after we did all the math and conversions we had to go from 205/75R14 to 205/65R15. 

According to the calculator at the tire dealer that was a perfect match.  Well as it turns out after I got them home the sidewall would not fit into the fender slots, and the spare tire holding rod on the car was now 2 inches too long.

  We ended up cutting off 1.5 inches and tapping the rod with 1" extra threads to accommodate the set back of the rims and also had to let the air out of the tires to get them into the fender slots.  At this point we decided that if we fill up the tires with air we might split the fender so we only put in 4 pounds of pressure **.  Just enough that they are Hard to the feel. 

This worked out and all looks good.  The right size to put on would be 195/65R15, but then the circumference is 4 inches shorter and those fancy white covers would no longer fit.  However if someone else decides to upgrade to oversized wheels and they do not have the covers, that would the size to get.

 

By the way,  this is not cheap.  $315 for 2 wheels and 165 for the 2 tires mounted and balanced for a total of

$480  Just for show I also bought wheel adapters from 4 lug to 5 lug since this rim is no longer available in 4 lug pattern and that was another $115.  So tell me we don't love our cars.  Anyhow I have included several pics to share   these also are  in the album 

** Annexmaster: -- An aerosol can of "spare-tire-in-a-can" can be carried to fill the spare should you need it in an emergency.

Tire Size Calculator

This website provided some great help in comparing tire sizes -- it even reports what will happen to your speedometer calibration when changing tires.   http://www.1010tires.com/tiresizecalculator.asp

 I have been told that the BEST way to buy rims is to TRY them out ON your car before buying them - that way you can be sure that they clear.

An Article about wheel swapping - Replicars

The info below appeared on the MustangII website. Since it is often "down" and the link does not work, I reproduced it here on the Annex.  I can't  verify the accuracy of this info. I made a few spelling "adjustments" along the way.

Wider Wheels and Tires 101, 5 lug conversions too by Rob Weeks  

X-WebTV-Signature: 1  

 (WebTV) Date: Mon, 7 Sep 1998 13:14:51 -0500 Reply-To: The Ford Mustang II message exchange  

Sender: The Ford Mustang II message exchange  

From: Robert Weeks II Subject: Wider Wheels & Tires 101 5 lug conversions too( VERY LONG) To: STANGII@DCC11972.SLIP.DIGEX.NET  

I have noticed a great deal of interest in larger wheel and tire size upgrades lately. Since I have been doing this Upgrading myself and professionally for over 10 years maybe I can help. I just hope I don't get attacked again. :-P  

Ok, stock MII wheels are 13 X 5.5 with a 10mm offset. the tire size most of use use or have is 195/70 13. The bolt pattern is 4(nunmber of lugs) on a 4.25 (bolt circle spacing measured from the diagonal from stud center to stud center.) Any 4 X4.25 wheel will physically bolt on the hub or axle but fit is another totally different issue Examples will follow, but, Volvo, Audi, Mercedes, BMW, European Ford, and several other companies over the years have used this bolt pattern. Look at a Helms Salvage yard cross-reference some time and you will see an entire book on nothing but factory wheels.  

Any of the late model (79-93) 4 lug mustang wheels will physically bolt up no problem.  

But the late wheels use a 20mm offset which is double that of the MII at 10mm. This means that the mounting pad is further toward the outside of the wheel or in another way, the wheel sits further inside the wheel well and will hit the fender liners and the frame and suspension components.  

There is a cure. H&R Springs makes a kit that adapts and spaces the wheel out for clearance and will not hurt the car or come loose. These adapters bolt to your hub as if they were the actual rim with recessed fasteners. Then you bolt your wheel to the adapter as if the adapter were the actual hub because the adapter IS now a part of the hub. They are available in the proper width for the MII using the late wheel and they run $149.95 a set plus shipping.  

NEVER use the slip on spacers for ANYTHING. (except a paper weight) I used them for a year and had to re-torque wheels each week. Also if you are applying any real power you will snap wheel studs like candy toys.  

Note that the adapter/spacers are only necessary for the front the rear is fine.  

Also of interest is the tire sizes you will want. using a stock MII 195/70 13 you will want either a 205/50 16 for an exact replacement with no gearing or speedo changes. Or you can go as large on front at 225/50 16 (stock Late Mustang) and 235/50 16 in the rear. Of course the larger tires will speedo and gearing recalibration.  

For all those reading this, the same applies for 17" wheels too. If you need conversions from 13 ro 14,15,16,17,18, 19, or even 20" wheels i can give you the correct tire sizes. The only thing to remember is that the size that is correct may only be offered by one or 2 companies so choices will be limited.  

Now as for the other question of 5 lug conversions. The most popular in the street rod scene s the Granada 5 lug 11" rotor swap. Using an aftermarket disc brake mounting bracket, either late mustang 4 cyl calipers or GM Monte Carlo Calipers and the aforementioned rotors you can gain several benefits. One, a 40% increase in brake surface area. Two, 5 lug front tire/wheel combo choices, three, easier parts replacement due to more common car donor parts. Three, the aftermarket offers these rotors CHEAP and in any 5 lug pattern you want so if a '99 'vette wheel is the look you want just order your rotors in GM 5 lug and go. Drawbacks, well in most cases this is a blessing for newer wheels, but the Granada conversion moves the mounting surface for the wheel out 3/4" to the outside. SO, you actually gain in offset which allows you more contemporary wheel style choices. and by using the H&R adapter kit we can do almost anything and any wheel you want.  

The rear for 5 lug can be accomplished several ways. Re-drilling the axles and drums is the basic solution. have a machine shop weld p the 4 lug pattern and go to the 5 lug pattern of choice. Next is the bone yard approach. Any 64-66 Mustang is the same drum to drum and perch to perch measured axle as a MII. Meaning that the axles will directly replace for length and fit. find a 5 lug 64-66 Mustang or 63-67 falcon, or newer Versailles and get the axles, brake backing plates, drums and shoes and you are done. NOW note if you do the bone yard approach to make good notes of what you have because n the future you will order brake parts for the donor car not the MII. Lastly is the rear end swap. the Versailles's disc brake 9" is the rear is first choice, bolt in convenience, drear disc stopping power and easy Emergency brake adaptation. understand though that the 9" is heavy, and inefficient. Also, the 9" really only offers about a 25% increase in overall power handling capacity over a well built 8" so I only recommend going to the 9" in extreme cases and still would weight using an 8.8" from a newer Mustang first.  

lastly, Understand the affects of using taller tires. they decrease effective gear ration and really mess ith speedo calibration to a point where getting the speedo close is all you will get. Especially in those dd tire sizes. A combination of drive gear changes for the speedo can help but there are limited combinations to cure the speedo inaccuracies.  

If anyone has specific fit questions ask away. I have a full database of factory and aftermarket wheel info and can get about any dimension I need to help decide if a wheel will work and with what mods.  

hope this helps clear some of the mystery away on getting real meat under your MII.  

Rob Weeks 1978 Monroe Handler 1978 King Cobra 1975 V-8 Coupe  

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X-WebTV-Signature: 1  

 (WebTV) Date: Mon, 7 Sep 1998 19:12:41 -0500 Reply-To: The Ford Mustang II message exchange  

Sender: The Ford Mustang II message exchange  

From: Robert Weeks II Subject: Re: Wider Wheels & Tires 101 5 lug conversions too (VERY LONG) To: STANGII@DCC11972.SLIP.DIGEX.NET  

Gregg all wheels available for the MII, steel, styled steel, mag and lacey were advertised as 13" x 5.5" and the tire decals on the door for my 75(styled steel) and my KC (Lacey) indicate tire pressures and loads for fitments measuring 13 X 5.5  

Now in reality one can measure any such wheel and get widths as low as 4.75" and as high as 6".  

The industry standard for wheel width is from inside each bead (lip) from left to right. So the outer lip that you see when the tire is mounted is not calculated in the width measure.  

I went out just now to double check, as I have a complete set of each style of MII wheels hoarded away for the future. Steel to lacey they all measure 5.5 in width.  

Also the National Tire Dealers Association provides a year by year synopsis of the makes and models available sizes and options. The newest one I have is 1979 and it shows all types measuring 5.5" wide.  

Go figure. I ways want to include the lip too since the foot print of the tire is measured installed and is almost always equal to the outer lip area it would make sense. but, alas we logical people don't count. :-)  

Yet another quandary of the Mechanized world.  

Rob Weeks 1978 Monroe Handler 1978 King Cobra 1975 V-8 Coupe  

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 X-WebTV-Signature: 1  

 (WebTV) Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1998 00:48:40 -0500 Reply-To: The Ford Mustang II message exchange  

Sender: The Ford Mustang II message exchange  

From: Robert Weeks II Subject: Re: Wider Wheels & Tires 101 5 lug conversions too (VERY LONG) To: STANGII@DCC11972.SLIP.DIGEX.NET  

the 8" 5 lug axles are identical. I have a '66 rear end in the blue car and used the 75 axles to retain 4 lug.  

if you got a set of 5 lug 9" axles, yes the flange and bearings are both larger. But the 9" rears are getting so hard to find the 8" 5 lug rears are plentiful and cheap therefore more likely to be stumbled upon  

Rob Weeks 1978 Monroe Handler 1978 King Cobra 1975 V-8 Coupe