So I bought a set of bullitt wheels off a coworker for 100 bucks to put on my 65 coupe. He had them from when he bought his 07 mustang brand new and he put aftermarket wheels on them and just had his stockers laying around. I put a set of 235/45R17 tires on them and bought 1 inch spacer/adapters. The wheels have a the 5.72" backspacing so with the 1" spacers it should have put them at 4.75" which from my research would have worked out. It would have been a tight fit but they should have fit. Well I put them on today and the backs fit beautifully but the front are my problem like usual. In the front it is hitting the upper control arm and the outer tie rod end. My only ideas are that I really need a 4.5" backspacing and should get some 1.25" spacers or maybe because I still have drum brakes in the front they are sticking in too much. I swear I read somewhere that one of the differences between drum and disc brakes on a 65 mustang is that the discs hub is a little wider and pushes the wheel slightly farther out. If anyone can give me some insight that would be awesome because I really want these wheels to fit because they look amazing on the car and I really don't want to put my rusty old fake cragars back on. I attached some images of how much the wheel is contacting the upper control arm and outer tie rod end.
So I think what happened was I miscalculated what spacers I really needed. I looked into the backspacing of the 07 bullitt wheels and it looks like they have a 6.25" backspacing instead of the 5.75" I thought they did. 99-04 wheels have the 5.75" backspacing which requires 1" spacers to make them fit correctly while the 05-07 wheels have the 6.25" backspacing requiring a 1.5" spacer. Does that sound right to anyone. I think I am gonna order some 1.5" spacers now but if someone can confirm this that would be great.
The 01-04 Bullitt wheels have a 30mm offset. The 05 and up wheels have a 45mm offset. You can run 1.5" spaces on all 4 wheels and it should fit. You'll need longer studs though.
I tried the 01's on mine with disc brakes and the fitment sucked. I also put spacers on. I could not have turned at all with them on. It sucked too because I really like the way it looked. I see others running them tho, interested to see what you find out
I ordered the kind of spacers that bolt to the hub and then have their own studs. I also did what you said Huntingky and added washers to them today. If I take off the clip on wheel weights and put on stick on ones then it should clear. It is going to be that tight but it should clear. Thanks for the help guys.
I ordered the kind of adapters that bolt to the hub and then have their own studs. I also did what you said Huntingky and added washers to them today. If I take off the clip on wheel weights and put on stick on ones then it should clear. It is going to be that tight but it should clear. Thanks for the help guys.
So I put on the 1.5" spacers and now the wheels fit great. I haven't drove it with them on it yet but they spin freely and it doesn't look like it will ever hit the upper control arm.
So I put on the 1.5"adapters and now the wheels fit great. I haven't drove it with them on it yet but they spin freely and it doesn't look like it will ever hit the upper control arm.
Here are a couple photos of the wheels on the car now. I will try to get a couple more tomorrow and show you how close they are to hitting the upper ball control arm.
It's been in the garage getting the headliner done. Give me about a week or two and I can get it outside when it's not raining and get some more photos.
With Adapters, I've probably heard 100-200 people in the last 10 years say that catastrophic failure is only a matter of time. That said, I have never heard of a classic that's had adapter failure. I dunno.
I run adapters on my 2017 Pickup because I wanted a wider stance
I've got a 69 mustang in the garage right now with adapters on it....
No issues with either
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