Hello all, So I picked up these wheels and tires from a newish camaro (see attached pics) hoping to install them on my mustang II spindles/hubs with no issues. However, I immediately discovered that the wheels only have a 1" deep bore hole. The MII spindle "snout" is about two inches tall from the mounting surface -therefore there is a 1" space left over when the hub snout bottoms out in the rim bore. (Please correct my terminology on these pieces as I am a bit of a noob when it comes to these parts).
I see three options:
1.Use a 1" wheel spacer if wheel clearances are acceptable.
2.Get an entirely new spindle with the more modern type of bearing & hub (i.e. "snoutless"/shaftless/integrated... ) I could consider this but looks like a lot of money and I am not sure if the spindle would be compatible with the A-arms (No limit Engineering).
We all started somewhere... your terminology along with photos works just fine.
I'm not a fan of wheel spacers unless absolutely necessary, and the situation would have to be pretty dire to justify 'necessary' on a steer axle. Along with that, have you mocked up the fender to see what kind of clearance you might have to the body work at full lock with the suspension compressed? You may not have the room to physically allow a spacer to work.
Your second option of a replacement spindle/wheel hub bearing assembly sounds like the best option if you're absolutely set on those wheels. But that suspension was designed to work as an assembly. Any deviation could cause undesired performance issues. Take a minute to research bump steer and death wobble. Both occur when the suspension, as designed, is significantly modified outside the original parameters.
Third option is to get wheels with a center that fit the already engineered and installed suspension. You still have the option to bore out that wheel center to make the wheel fit the spindle, but you may lose that center cap. Sometimes the way you need to go is not the way you want to go. Something definitely has to change.Wheels are the easiest way to change the personality of a vehicle, and it's something that thousands of people have done already. I think I'd move those wheels along and locate another set.
Thanks for the reply and info Hink! I too was concerned about maintaining the suspension geometry. However I was thinking that if wilwood or other reputable company made an “integrated bearing” type spindle for the m2, that would be acceptable. I don’t know if that creature exists though? (See photo). I also don’t know if that one or one like it is indeed for the M2 though. After having said all of that, I don’t think my desire to use those particular wheels is greater than the potential cost involved in using them. I AM an expert at overthinking things and indecision so this may take a while to process. Any other thoughts/comments are welcome in the mean time! Thanks!
One more thing, If I do go looking for different wheels, is there a particular specification/ description for a wheel that is compatible with the M2 spindle? Thanks
For a wheel replacement, you just need to find a lug pattern that matches, hub bore size large enough to fit your existing brake rotor, and wheel offset and backspacing to make sure everything clears during steering and suspension cycling. Steel wheels are popular due to the geometry and brake clearance available.
The hubs you show above are for a C10 truck, and are a different lug pattern. So... worse than what you currently have.
A bit of research located the Corvette spindle upgrade for Mustang II from Classic Performance Products. I have no experience with this company or any of their products. The article suggests this may be worth a call to the company.
Thanks for the link. I will definitely dig into that. I need to do a little more wheel research also to see if I can find some that will accommodate the long M2 hub protrusion and yet have the look I am after
A machine shop with a BIG lathe can bore those wheel centers to be a slip fit over the hub deep enough to bolt it on, and then maybe fabricate some type of center cap to hide the spindle dust cover. The labor charge to do that might approach the cost of a different wheel, however. You would certainly haver a "one of a kind" set of wheels, though! Jerry
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Hotrod, Thanks for the reply. I did contemplate this, but since the bore hole is quite a bit bigger than the center cap, the resulting look would be less than desirable in my opinion. I think I am going to move these wheels along and search for others that will work better. Take care Mark
Update: I went ahead and ordered the CPP M2 spindles designed for the corvette hubs. The product will not be on their website until August the reps said, but it is available now (with delayed shipping) I guess Covid makes people want to work on their hot rods... I will post pics if you guys are interested in this product. Thanks Mark
