back spacing

[G_Body_Enthusiast]

im looking at replacing my stock POS steel wheels with some after market wheels.

what back spacing should i look for? the sizes im considering are 15 x 7-8" or 16x8. im considering some cragar soft 8 steel wheels, for about 40-45 bucks a wheel its better than paying 100 plus though the trade off is a heavier wheel but it cant be much worse than the ones i have now.

 

[megaladon6]

should be 3.75in BS

 

[G_Body_Enthusiast]

im looking at these cragar soft 8 wheels and they only seem to come in a 4" back spacing.

guess i need to find another wheel to use.

 

[andrewmp6]

beg steal or borrow a wheelrite its about 100 bucks to buy tho.But it will let you test out any rim and tire size you can think of even the back spacing.

 

[MonteMan1987]

with a 15x8 rim i would go with a 3.5" backspace, leaves you with plently of room for 275's, Im running a weld prostar 15x8 with 3.5"bs and a mickey thompson 28x11.5 fits perfect.

 

[bigdan]

on a g body ,you can go for 4.5" backspacing without any rubbing issue.

 

[85 Cutlass Brougham]

I run 16x8's with a 4 in backspacing, and I have no rubbing in the rear running 245 50 16's (soon to be 255's). The front is a different matter though. They fit, but I had to do some mods to make it so they do not rub.

 

[bigdan]

are they rubbing inside or outside .....if inside, with 4.0" b/s ill have lots of problems with 4.5" b/s

Dan

 

[G_Body_Enthusiast]

im looking for a wheel and tire set up thats the same on front and back for tire rotation purposes, its not exactly a race car so i dont need really fat tires in the back and stuff.

with a 4" BS where would they rub on the front end? only reason im looking at steel wheels is because they're fairly cheap. i could go with something like an outlaw II from AR (im not into polished or chrome wheels) but it would cost more over all for me.

now according to rims-n-tires.com the AR steel wheel will fit but i checked their (AR's) site and they all have a 4" back space. in fact they only show one wheel for a 5x 4.75" bolt pattern in 15 inch diameter and it has a 4" back space. its also under the direct fit for an 85 olds cutlass, since they dont have grand prix under pontiac.

it seems a 15 x 7 wheel might be a better choice but this means running a more narrow tire but allows me to run a 3.75 back space. im not so sure 1/4" makes that much of a difference but this is an automotive application talking about.

at least it beats a 14 inch stock wheel which is what? 5.5" wide?

my pickiness in wheel style is limiting my choices in wheels but i'm not a fan of the chrome and shiny stuff.

 

[81_2dr_bu]

i am goning with a 15 x 7 4" b/s on the front dont know how it will work out dont know what tire size yet either . have you considered buying used wheels off craigslist etc one wheel i like is a chevelle wheel with the trim rings and center covers like the early vette style i think the chevelle wheels might be 15 X 7 i know the vette is 8 wide