Back to another Subaru I have. The wheels rub against the calipers in the
front. Hey, they fit, they're the right diameter, what gives?!

They're also rusty, so I am trying to replace them. In the course of
looking for used wheels for an '89 Suby GL hacthback (NOT the Brat-looking
hatch, the Loyale looking hatch) I have run across 5 sets of wheels! The
Brat-looking hatch has one that it shares with the Brat looking wagon, the
Loyale has another, the Legacy has another, and the GL hatch has another.

I think what happened was that someone didn't know the difference and put
a set of 2WD offset wheels (Yeah, it appears to make a difference) on an
AWD GL Hatch. These wheels are HARD to find; it looks like I can put Brat
8-spokes on it according to the Subaru parts book for 1989.

Aside from this, and finding the proper wheels, is there another way to
get the proper offset? I was thinking of wheel spacers; I only need 2-5mm
space (I think the difference is 48mm for the 2WD wheel and 50mm for the
AWD wheel). It has that wonky 4x140 bolt pattern.

Is there a safe way to 'shim' the wheels to get a few more mm of offset?

Hachiroku $B%O%A%m%/ wrote:

> Back to another Subaru I have. The wheels rub against the calipers in the
> front. Hey, they fit, they're the right diameter, what gives?!
>
> They're also rusty, so I am trying to replace them. In the course of
> looking for used wheels for an '89 Suby GL hacthback (NOT the Brat-looking
> hatch, the Loyale looking hatch) I have run across 5 sets of wheels! The
> Brat-looking hatch has one that it shares with the Brat looking wagon, the
> Loyale has another, the Legacy has another, and the GL hatch has another.
>
> I think what happened was that someone didn't know the difference and put
> a set of 2WD offset wheels (Yeah, it appears to make a difference) on an
> AWD GL Hatch. These wheels are HARD to find; it looks like I can put Brat
> 8-spokes on it according to the Subaru parts book for 1989.
>
> Aside from this, and finding the proper wheels, is there another way to
> get the proper offset? I was thinking of wheel spacers; I only need 2-5mm
> space (I think the difference is 48mm for the 2WD wheel and 50mm for the
> AWD wheel). It has that wonky 4x140 bolt pattern.
>
> Is there a safe way to 'shim' the wheels to get a few more mm of offset?
>
>

Like john said, using spacers could very well stress the wheel bearing
AND create an unsafe lug nut fitment. maybe other bad stuff too.

There MAY be some Peugeot wheels that will fit???

The guys over at www.ultimatesubaru.org seems to have a lot of
experience keeping older soobs on the road. You might find someone with
advice or even wheels for sale too.

Carl

--
to reply, change ( .not) to ( .net)

Even if the diameter, width, offset, etc. are the same, the shape of the wheel might need to be different to fit over a particular caliper. This was a common problem when american cars changed from drum brakes to disk brakes.

"Hachiroku $B%O%A%m%/(B" wrote:
>
> Back to another Subaru I have. The wheels rub against the calipers in the
> front. Hey, they fit, they're the right diameter, what gives?!
>
> They're also rusty, so I am trying to replace them. In the course of
> looking for used wheels for an '89 Suby GL hacthback (NOT the Brat-looking
> hatch, the Loyale looking hatch) I have run across 5 sets of wheels! The
> Brat-looking hatch has one that it shares with the Brat looking wagon, the
> Loyale has another, the Legacy has another, and the GL hatch has another.
>
> I think what happened was that someone didn't know the difference and put
> a set of 2WD offset wheels (Yeah, it appears to make a difference) on an
> AWD GL Hatch. These wheels are HARD to find; it looks like I can put Brat
> 8-spokes on it according to the Subaru parts book for 1989.
>
> Aside from this, and finding the proper wheels, is there another way to
> get the proper offset? I was thinking of wheel spacers; I only need 2-5mm
> space (I think the difference is 48mm for the 2WD wheel and 50mm for the
> AWD wheel). It has that wonky 4x140 bolt pattern.
>
> Is there a safe way to 'shim' the wheels to get a few more mm of offset?

--
Mike Walsh
West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S.A.

"Hachiroku ????" <Trueno@AE86.gts> wrote in message
news:TbF8j.18$qv1.15@trndny01...
> Back to another Subaru I have. The wheels rub against the calipers in the
> front. Hey, they fit, they're the right diameter, what gives?!
>
> They're also rusty, so I am trying to replace them. In the course of
> looking for used wheels for an '89 Suby GL hacthback (NOT the Brat-looking
> hatch, the Loyale looking hatch) I have run across 5 sets of wheels! The
> Brat-looking hatch has one that it shares with the Brat looking wagon, the
> Loyale has another, the Legacy has another, and the GL hatch has another.
>
> I think what happened was that someone didn't know the difference and put
> a set of 2WD offset wheels (Yeah, it appears to make a difference) on an
> AWD GL Hatch. These wheels are HARD to find; it looks like I can put Brat
> 8-spokes on it according to the Subaru parts book for 1989.
>
> Aside from this, and finding the proper wheels, is there another way to
> get the proper offset? I was thinking of wheel spacers; I only need 2-5mm
> space (I think the difference is 48mm for the 2WD wheel and 50mm for the
> AWD wheel). It has that wonky 4x140 bolt pattern.
>
> Is there a safe way to 'shim' the wheels to get a few more mm of offset?
>

Do not shim the wheels, as all sorts of problems, from balancing, wheel
bearing wear, handling, etc.

You can try looking up different replacement wheels for various Subaru
models at tirerack.com to see which ones have the same fit. They may also
have specs on offset, bolt pattern, etc.
--

Ray O
(correct punctuation to reply)

On Sat, 15 Dec 2007 00:27:31 GMT, Hachiroku ???? <Trueno@AE86.gts>
wrote:

>Back to another Subaru I have. The wheels rub against the calipers in the
>front. Hey, they fit, they're the right diameter, what gives?!
>
>They're also rusty, so I am trying to replace them. In the course of
>looking for used wheels for an '89 Suby GL hacthback (NOT the Brat-looking
>hatch, the Loyale looking hatch) I have run across 5 sets of wheels! The
>Brat-looking hatch has one that it shares with the Brat looking wagon, the
>Loyale has another, the Legacy has another, and the GL hatch has another.
>
>I think what happened was that someone didn't know the difference and put
>a set of 2WD offset wheels (Yeah, it appears to make a difference) on an
>AWD GL Hatch. These wheels are HARD to find; it looks like I can put Brat
>8-spokes on it according to the Subaru parts book for 1989.
>
>Aside from this, and finding the proper wheels, is there another way to
>get the proper offset? I was thinking of wheel spacers; I only need 2-5mm
>space (I think the difference is 48mm for the 2WD wheel and 50mm for the
>AWD wheel). It has that wonky 4x140 bolt pattern.
>
>Is there a safe way to 'shim' the wheels to get a few more mm of offset?

For only 5mm or 1/4" I wouldn't worry about upsetting the wheel
bearings that much with the offset change - that would come into play
if you grossly changed it so the loads were overhung an inch or two.

The thing to worry more about is shearing off wheel studs or not
having enough threads to properly engage the lug nuts, then they strip
the last few threads and come off - you might need to change to longer
studs to make sure there are enough threads.

If you can't find pre-made spacers, I'd have a machine shop (or a
specialty CNC abrasive water-jet cutting shop) cut them out of 1/4"
steel plate. (The plates can be sent out to be "Blanchard Ground"
flat and parallel if you really think it will make a difference, but
you need to go up in thickness to allow for the grinding.)

--<< Bruce >>--

On Sat, 15 Dec 2007 09:02:01 -0800, Bruce L. Bergman wrote:

> If you can't find pre-made spacers, I'd have a machine shop (or a
> specialty CNC abrasive water-jet cutting shop) cut them out of 1/4" steel
> plate. (The plates can be sent out to be "Blanchard Ground" flat and
> parallel if you really think it will make a difference, but you need to go
> up in thickness to allow for the grinding.)


But is this going to cost more than $50?

On Sat, 15 Dec 2007 10:49:15 -0600, Ray O wrote:

>> Is there a safe way to 'shim' the wheels to get a few more mm of offset?
>>
>>
> Do not shim the wheels, as all sorts of problems, from balancing, wheel
> bearing wear, handling, etc.
>
> You can try looking up different replacement wheels for various Subaru
> models at tirerack.com to see which ones have the same fit. They may also
> have specs on offset, bolt pattern, etc.

These are those weird Suby wheels with the 4x140 bolt pattern. They
stopped this configuration in '90-92 and they're hard to find!

There is a method of 'adapting' a 5x100 hub onto the car, but it's going
to cost 2x what the car cost! (and 3x what it's worth!)

Maybe if it looked like *THIS* I'd do it!

http://rides.webshots.com/photo/2355...67339125XvxVly

"Hachiroku ????" <Trueno@AE86.gts> wrote in message
news:R0U8j.667$7I.377@trndny09...
> On Sat, 15 Dec 2007 10:49:15 -0600, Ray O wrote:
>
>>> Is there a safe way to 'shim' the wheels to get a few more mm of offset?
>>>
>>>
>> Do not shim the wheels, as all sorts of problems, from balancing, wheel
>> bearing wear, handling, etc.
>>
>> You can try looking up different replacement wheels for various Subaru
>> models at tirerack.com to see which ones have the same fit. They may
>> also
>> have specs on offset, bolt pattern, etc.
>
> These are those weird Suby wheels with the 4x140 bolt pattern. They
> stopped this configuration in '90-92 and they're hard to find!
>
> There is a method of 'adapting' a 5x100 hub onto the car, but it's going
> to cost 2x what the car cost! (and 3x what it's worth!)
>
> Maybe if it looked like *THIS* I'd do it!
>
> http://rides.webshots.com/photo/2355...67339125XvxVly
>
Yup, that ride appears to be in good condition! All sorts of stuff came up
when I googled "Subaru wheel spacers" but most of it is over $150. Of
course, you can get a pneumatic die grinder to go with your new compressor
and grind the caliper - just kidding!
--

Ray O
(correct punctuation to reply)

Hachiroku ãƒ�ãƒ�ãƒ*ク wrote:

> On Sat, 15 Dec 2007 09:02:01 -0800, Bruce L. Bergman wrote:
>
>
>> If you can't find pre-made spacers, I'd have a machine shop (or a
>>specialty CNC abrasive water-jet cutting shop) cut them out of 1/4" steel
>>plate. (The plates can be sent out to be "Blanchard Ground" flat and
>>parallel if you really think it will make a difference, but you need to go
>>up in thickness to allow for the grinding.)
>
>
>
> But is this going to cost more than $50?
>
Hi,
Zero $ for something like that, LOL! My son-in-law owns s big CNC shop!
Looking at OP id. 86 in Japanese, does it mean his car is 1986 model?
I never owned a car/truck more than 10 years old. Shouldn't car that old
be sent to junk yard? Let the economy roll. Or why not just get a new
set of proper rims anf forget about it. It's kinda safety issue.

Tony Hwang wrote:

> Hi,
> Zero $ for something like that, LOL! My son-in-law owns s big CNC shop!
> Looking at OP id. 86 in Japanese, does it mean his car is 1986 model?
> I never owned a car/truck more than 10 years old. Shouldn't car that old
> be sent to junk yard?

I'm just gonna assume that that was meant in a joking manner... my car
is an '88, my pickup is a '93, and my second car is a '55! Save the
environment, drive an old car!

nate


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