"What wheels fit?" The ultimate wheel post.

[Christopher Schimke]

[shagginwagon83]

What about these? 1998-2001 M-Class

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Brandon
"Jo Ann" - '83.5 Westfalia EJ22e w/Peloquin
Instagram @joannthevan

[Christopher Schimke]

Brandon, those are 16x8 ET62. They can work okay on a Syncro, but they don't work well at all on the front of a 2wd. There is a 16x6.5 version of that wheel, but they are nearly impossible to find in the US. Even people that say that they have them in the US don't. They are always 16x8.
_________________
"Sometimes you have to build a box to think outside of." - Bruce (not Springsteen)

*Custom wheel hardware for Audi/VW, Porsche and Mercedes wheels - Urethane Suspension Bushings*
T3Technique.com or contact me at [email protected]

[shagginwagon83]

Thanks Chris!! I have been on the hunt for CLK's for my 2WD and those popped up for $100 for a set. Maybe another day!
_________________
Brandon
"Jo Ann" - '83.5 Westfalia EJ22e w/Peloquin
Instagram @joannthevan

[macjack]

So I'm looking for a set of winter wheels for my syncro westy with Van Cafe big brakes up front. I currently have Passat wheels, 15x7 et 37. No fitment issues with the passat wheels, though I did have the centers bored out back when I put them on my 1980 aircooled westy. Maybe I still benefit from the machining?. . .

I am looking at some Momo wheels 16x7 et 45 and Sparco Terra wheels 16x7 ET 35, and BBS 16x 6.5 et 42.

momos

sparcos on another Samba member's van.

and the BBS

I am concerned about the Momos being too much offset? Also, the sparcos have a weight load rating of 1488, which is under what I see for my heaviest rear axle (probably 1380 at heaviest) in winter, though in summer, I am probably a little heavier.
Any issues with any of these?
Also I see that the sparcos use a conical nut. Not sure what the passat wheels use?
Lastly, I am hoping to be on the road in a week, so whatever I do can't involve too much ordering of things. I do have a 2 sets of 10mm spacers, and all center bores are over 67mm. And I really don't care too much about centercaps. I dont have centercaps on my wheels now, and have no problem with that.
thanks in advance!
_________________
87 TDI Syncro Westy
81 Westy (sold)
80 Rabbit Wolfsburg (rolled)
Bike as primary transportation

[Christopher Schimke]

Macjack, All of those wheel will bolt in place and all will use conical seat lugs (the Passat wheels should have small ball seat lugs. If they have large ball or conical, the wrong lugs are being used). The MOMO wheels will be a very tight fit and, depending on what size tire you run, may cause tire clearance issues. The Sparco and BBS wheels will give you the same inner rim lip to suspension clearance, but the centerline of the BBS wheels will be further inboard which reduces your tire to suspension clearance. You should still have barely enough clearance to run the BBS wheels though. The BBS wheels will be the strongest of the three.

If you choose to run spacers, you will also need to change all 20 of the wheel studs.
_________________
"Sometimes you have to build a box to think outside of." - Bruce (not Springsteen)

*Custom wheel hardware for Audi/VW, Porsche and Mercedes wheels - Urethane Suspension Bushings*
T3Technique.com or contact me at [email protected]

[macjack]

Thanks, Chris. Great info.
I was thinking that the BBS might have center bore issues? Possibly not? Seller had them on a new beetle.
I had a machine shop in Boulder machine my wheels 12 years ago, but they have since closed and so I don’t have easy access to a shop that could do it, and am short on time, so really want to bolt on easily. What’s the shipping for a set of conical lugs and how quickly can you get them out to 80304?
Is your sense that the Sparcos would be strong enough, or is that hard to say? I know that the sparcos are bolt on, and I like the look. They are also 2hours less driving to get them, which makes some difference when I am in trip prep mode. But I want this to be something that I can have full confidence in and keep for years.
Thanks again.
_________________
87 TDI Syncro Westy
81 Westy (sold)
80 Rabbit Wolfsburg (rolled)
Bike as primary transportation

[Christopher Schimke]

If the BBS wheels are a factory VW or Audi wheel, then yes, the centers would need to be machined or you would have to modify the lips on the front hubs. If the wheels are from a Mercedes or were sold in the aftermarket, then the bores should be large enough. You could always have the seller measure them for you before making the trip.

As for the Sparcos, I can't really tell you what to do there, but Sparco wheels are made by OZ which is among the best wheel manufacturers in the world.
_________________
"Sometimes you have to build a box to think outside of." - Bruce (not Springsteen)

*Custom wheel hardware for Audi/VW, Porsche and Mercedes wheels - Urethane Suspension Bushings*
T3Technique.com or contact me at [email protected]

[Pacafalia]

Will these fit on my 1989 2WD Westfalia? Late Model SLK

7JX16 ET 34.

What about grease cap? Will I need to buy deep custom center caps? [/img]

[Alaskaberrys]

Anyone have techniques for refinishing cast aluminum wheels?

I’ve got a set of these nice, but discontinued, Autec 7.5 16” wheels on my imported doka.

And one has some pretty good corrosion taking hold...

I’ve found good “how to’s” on removing the finish and sanding to a polish, but I’d like to keep the matte look. I’m trying to judge the level of complexity of the project; weights off and rebalancing after? (seems to be a lot of them); tires off? - would be a tad problematic for me as I can only do one at a time with no alternate wheel sets at this point); Matte finish? Not sure what too cost would produce that look?

Or wait till I have alternate wheels and send off to the shop? Alternate wheels is in the plan as I like to switch to studs in winter with our abundant rain/ice issues, prob get a set of generic wheels for that, but not till next winter - too many other chores first

Figured Samba members have done this before.

Mark
_________________
'91 Westfalia, Bordeaux Red Pearl 2.1L 2wd Auto
'91 T3 Syncro Doka, Escorial Green 1.9L TD AAZ “Gremian” (to provoke, irritate, exasperate, vex...)

[Christopher Schimke]

Refinishing wheels can be done in several ways, but thinking of it just like refinishing the body is a good way to go if you are going to do it yourself. You don't have to remove the tires and you don't have to have them rebalanced if you don't remove the existing wheel weights. If there are only wheel weights on the inside, I would leave them alone. If there are weights on the outside, I would remove the weights and have them rebalanced. It all depends on how far you want to take the restoration, but since the inner barrels of wheels always end up looking grungy, I would be inclined to mask off the inner barrels and only refinish the wheel faces.

It can be done by hand, but having an air or electric DA (dual action) sander will speed up the work. Start by cleaning the wheel thoroughly. I would start with wheel cleaner, then finish up by cleaning them with soap/water using a gray Scotchbrite pad. This will do two things. No only will the soap/water clean off any organic material that wheel cleaners often miss, it also scrubs the wheel with a mild abrasive which will give you your final "tooth" for your paint job. In other words, you are cleaning and scuffing the wheel at the same time so there is no need to go back afterward to sand the crevices of the wheel to give the paint something the lock onto.

After the wheel is clean, you will want to feather back the peeling areas to 180 grit finish until the area is pulled back to clean, uncorroded metal and is feathered nice and smooth. This will help you identify just how big the corroded area is. If the corrosion is not pitted too deeply, you may get away with just sanding the corroded metal away. If it has deep pits, you may need to get a little more aggressive with something like sandblasting to get down to clean metal. You need to remove all of the corrosion before refinishing the wheels or it will just come back.

If the corroded area is pitted, you will need to use a small amount of light filler material to fill the pits prior to priming. I like Evercoat's Metal Glaze for stuff like this. It's really thin and very easy to sand. Sad that back to a 220 grit finish.

Once all of that is done, check your feathered area to make sure you haven't made a mess of it with all of the other work. Touch it up if necessary, then move on to the filler primer stage. For jobs like this where it's being done at home without access to full blown professional products that are mixed and sprayed through a spray gun, UPOL's High#5 high build primer works really well. It comes in an aerosol can and if you follow the directions, it works really, really well.

Unless there is damage all over the wheel, you only need to prime the area that you repaired, making sure that the primer overlaps the feathered area by at least an inch. Follow the directions on the can, apply multiple coats, and let it dry completely before moving on to the next steps.

Once the primer is dry, apply a thin coat of guide coat so that you can see the imperfections as you sand. I would start by lightly sanding the entire surface of the primered area with 220 grit dry (no wet sanding yet). This will reveal all of the imperfections including sand scratches left over from the previous repair work, pin holes that may be in your filler work, pits in the metal, uneven edges where you feathered back the original finish, etc. Given what I can see of the damage on your wheels, I would use a soft foam pad wrapped inside the sandpaper. This help even out your finger pressure so you don't end up sanding grooves into the surface of the primer.

From this point, you can see all of the areas that need attention and you can remove them by sanding them out with sandpaper. If you have some really deep scratches or pits, I would suggest continuing with the 220 grit paper until those areas are at least 90% gone. If you still have plenty of primer left for sanding, I would reguidecoat the area and switch to 800 grit wet or dry paper and start the wetsanding process (up until now, everything was done using dry paper).

If it looks like the primer is getting thin or you have broken through anywhere, you will need to lay down more layers of filler primer before continuing. Once the new primer is dry, give it a squirt of guidecoat and a quick scuff with 320 grit paper. This will, again, reveal any imperfections left to deal with. If you need to sand out any deep areas that remain, including the orange peeled surface that filler primer sometimes has, do it with the 320 grit dry paper before switching to the 800 wet.

Whenever you wet sand, it helps to soak the paper for a while before using it. This softens the paper so it the edges don't dig into the soft primer as easily. I like to use a soft sanding pad on the larger, flatter surfaces, but it's perfectly okay to use your fingers for the tighter areas down inside the spokes and the lug holes. Don't hesitate to rip the sandpaper into smaller pieces. This makes it much more flexible and easier to use, especially in the tight areas.

If you have done everything correctly up to this point, you should have a wheel that is super smooth and ready for paint. Just make sure that the entire surface to be painted is scuffed to a dull finish with either a gray Scotchbrite pad or 800 grit wet sandpaper.

Just quick note - You could sand the primer and existing wheel paint all the way up to a paintable surface finish using dry sandpaper, but it's a little trickier to get a perfect finish that is acceptable for a metallic silver paint job compared to wet sanding. Wet sanding for your final surface finish gives you a cleaner, finer scratch profile that does not affect the metallics as much. Light metallics like silver will show off every single imperfection on the surface of the wheel so you need you finish work to be really, really nice to ensure a nice paint job.

At this point, the wheel should be ready to paint. Clean it with wax and grease remover a couple of times before painting. Use a tack cloth to remove any fuzz or lint and go over the wheel a couple of times right before you start spraying. A good tack cloth is covered in bee's wax, so you want to use a light touch on the wheel. If you press hard onto the wheel, you can transfer the wax right onto the wheel which will cause issues with your paint job.

For the final paint, you will get a much better looking, more durable finish from a professional paint system sprayed from a spray gun. You would also have a much greater choice of colors and any good painter can create a clearcoat that is the exact amount of gloss that you prefer. If you are stuck with aerosol cans, your color choice is a little more limited and you will be stuck with limited options for the amount of gloss the wheels end up with. I would do some experimenting and a smooth piece of scrap with various brands of paint until you come up with what you like. I would recommend staying with one brand of paint for both the color and clear coats. This will ensure compatibility. Not that you can't mix brands, but it can be risky. Plastikote offers a few colors of wheel paint and they also have a satin clear in their "trunk" line of paints. That may be an option for you.

Good luck!
_________________
"Sometimes you have to build a box to think outside of." - Bruce (not Springsteen)

*Custom wheel hardware for Audi/VW, Porsche and Mercedes wheels - Urethane Suspension Bushings*
T3Technique.com or contact me at [email protected]

[macjack]

So I am still looking at wheels for my syncro.
I found some nice Mercedes wheels, good size, etc. 16 diameter, 36 offset. Reportedly from a 2005 E320. Unsure of width.

I notice that Chris often says that longer wheel studs will be needed for Mercedes wheels. Is that because mercedes wheels are thicker at the wheel holes?
I have a drill bit to open the studholes if needed, but will I need longer studs? I have longer studs alredy installed in the back, but standard in the front.
Looking to put 225 65 16 snow tires on.
Thanks in advance!
_________________
87 TDI Syncro Westy
81 Westy (sold)
80 Rabbit Wolfsburg (rolled)
Bike as primary transportation

[Christopher Schimke]

Macjack, the studs front and rear on a Syncro need to be 35-40mm longer than stock in order to run those particular Mercedes wheels without spacers. This equates to 60-65mm for the front and 50-55mm for the rear.
_________________
"Sometimes you have to build a box to think outside of." - Bruce (not Springsteen)

*Custom wheel hardware for Audi/VW, Porsche and Mercedes wheels - Urethane Suspension Bushings*
T3Technique.com or contact me at [email protected]

[macjack]

Thanks, Chris. That's what I was afraid of. Just way more cost to press in than I want to pay, though it would be super nice to have these wheels and their strength.
I heard back from Sparco guy, and will go that route for winter tires, methinks.
_________________
87 TDI Syncro Westy
81 Westy (sold)
80 Rabbit Wolfsburg (rolled)
Bike as primary transportation

[Alaskaberrys]

[otiswesty]

Searched the thread for this Mercedes part number and didn't see any info come up. I found a nice set of Mercedes AMG C-class wheels from the mid 90s 5x112, ET 37 15"x7" alloys
Is the offset of 37 mm a problem? Longer studs would be required on my Syncro I would think? How about in a late bay window bus?
I was thinking an AMG wheel would be a little more stout than a standard Mercedes wheel.
This has part number 2024010902
Looks to be a nice easy to clean wheel too.

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1978 Sage Green P22 Westfalia
1989 T3 Syncro Single cab

Just a regular guy

[candyman]

So anybody have any info regarding a set of mercedes rims 16" 7Jx16h2 ET37

What kind of machine work if any would be needed?
Thanks

Jason

[bobbyblack]

Candyman, we could use a bit more info, in order to sort out the issue. A pic or three might also be good... What model Merc and the year? ... There are quite a few Merc rims that match your present info...
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'87 Westy 'Flossie','86 Westy 'R1','86 tintop GL - Subi2.2 'J2','83.5 stock tintop L 'ZoomBus','74 Karmann Ghia, '63 Notch

[Christopher Schimke]

[candyman]