Mercedes wheels on a Bus

[seventyfo]

I searched quite a bit and it appears these wheels will fit my '73 Bus. Before I buy though I'd like to hear from anyone who may have used these also and what if any modifications had to be made. There is a an entry in the Vanagon tire sticky from someone who said they were a direct bolt on with the Bus lug nuts. They're 14" x 6 1/2" and stamped ET30.

[jbbrown]

A good friend and old school VW dude has them on his late Bay. He states that they are a direct bolt on and has nothing but good things to say about them. I think they look great on a Westy!
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"If it isn't leaking you should check your oil"

73 Super Beetle (sold),78 Triple White Vert, 74 Westy, 2008 City Jetta, 2008 Audi A4 2.0 T, 2009 Teardrop Trailer. 2009 Suzuki SV650A

[seventyfo]

Cool, I found five of them with tires and center caps for $100 in a pawn shop. I guess I'll be making a trip back for them. Thanks.

[jbbrown]

Great score bro! $100.00 sounds like a good deal. The fact that they have rubber on them is a bonus. Make sure the tires are appropriate for a heavy beast like a Bay.
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"If it isn't leaking you should check your oil"

73 Super Beetle (sold),78 Triple White Vert, 74 Westy, 2008 City Jetta, 2008 Audi A4 2.0 T, 2009 Teardrop Trailer. 2009 Suzuki SV650A

[WestyPop]

Those MB wheels usually use 12mm lugs; our buses have 14mm lugs. Mine have a steel insert that will get opened up to 14mm using a drill press. Make sure the lug nuts you use match the ball-shaped curve of the MB wheel nut countersinks.

Some have said to use the front studs in the rear, and get longer studs(Porsche?) for the front. IIRC there's a good write-up about the MB wheel conversion here on this forum, or at least a bunch of good tips & caveats to be found by using the "Search" feature & typing in "Mercedes wheels".
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Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.
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J.R.
68 Westy
(+ others)

[White99z]

My friend has them on his bus. I will ask him what he did. I remember him saying about something with the lugnuts and studs. His is a 77.

Good luck!

[seventyfo]

Mine's a '73 Westy. If I have to do a bunch of messing around changing studs, drilling out the holes and such I'll probably pass. I measured the lug holes and they were right at 9/16" so I'm figuring there shouldn't be any drilling.

[Rubber Duck]

Here's what my buddy did: Put the rim upside down (front with the logo on the floor) make sure its either with rubber to protect the rim or lotsa thick cloth to protect the rim. Then using a drift, he pounded out all the inserts that Mercedes puts in the rim. The inserts are steel and when you have those out, the rims will fit perfectly on the bus (in his case, a 79).

You might want to remove the two little bolts that hold the brake drum in the rear to make a nice flush fit, but otherwise, it worked for him.

Now it were me, I would put those rims on a drill press and simply drill out those inserts to fit your bus studs. Mercedes uses lug, the bus uses studs and nuts.

Those rims are great. Light, strong and all you've got to do is shoot them a nice silver paint and clearcoat and they look like new!
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Rubber Duck
1974 Westfalia

[alikatcraig]

Always measure the amount of stud required by holding the rim onto the hub. I have 'C' class rims, and the advice of putting the fronts on rear and 52mm fronts is woefully inaccurate. I need about 75mm studs!! No steel inserts, and very easy to open up. I did however see that 12mm studs were available with a large enough knurl dia. to fit our hubs. I did find that some Porsche studs have a 14.5mm knurl and are too small for our 14.85mm hole, but McKenzies may have some off road ones that are the correct size.

Al
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1967 Ghia
1971 Deluxe Microbus
1974 Convertible Bug
1973 Standard Bug
1998 Mexican Bug

[jah_B]

The stock rim is 5.5" with a 39mm ET. This will tell you what the new wheels will do to your clearances.

http://www.1010tires.com/WheelOffsetCalculator.asp

You can thank R.Atwell.

http://www.classcampers.com also has a fitment guide for mercedes and other euro-alloys in their technical section. At the moment I can't get to it.
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1984 CABRIOLET 6spd, quaife diff, Neuspeed springs, sway bars, tie bar, short shift kit, bilstein shocks, 16X7 RSE 3pc wheels, BFG TA 205 40s

1972 tintop P30 CAMPMOBILE: M/T, 1.7L, dual kadrons, 019 diz. Sunny the S'kool Bus


You gotta know what you don't know. That's the key to wisdom. man.

[alikatcraig]

My rims are 7" ET 37 and fit nicely except for the studs. McKenzies came up with some Sway Away long studs (100mm) which should be fine!! Thanks for the link.

Al
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1967 Ghia
1971 Deluxe Microbus
1974 Convertible Bug
1973 Standard Bug
1998 Mexican Bug

[Jeff Geisen]

The wheels bolted up with slightly longer studs, no insert pounding, no drillin'. I used Raybestos studs.
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I Corinthians 4: 1 thru 5

‘63 ragtop - ‘68 single cab

[LeeE]

How do you install the longer studs? Or is that something that should be done by a shop?
I have a set of BBS honeycomb wheels for a Vanagon that I'd like to use on my '78 Westy.

Thanks
LeeE
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1978 Westfalia stock 2.0 FI
Welcome to the Okeedokee Swamp

[jbbrown]

[Jeff Geisen]

Lee, I installed the studs myself, not a difficult project at all.

JB, I like the 16 inch wheels I have installed now even better.

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I Corinthians 4: 1 thru 5

‘63 ragtop - ‘68 single cab

[jah_B]

Jeff,
Didn't you mention the width and offset of those 16" wheels somewhere else? I can't remember what you said you were running, but they look just sharp as all get-the-heck-outahere. I think you also mentioned they increased your turning radius somewhat.
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1984 CABRIOLET 6spd, quaife diff, Neuspeed springs, sway bars, tie bar, short shift kit, bilstein shocks, 16X7 RSE 3pc wheels, BFG TA 205 40s

1972 tintop P30 CAMPMOBILE: M/T, 1.7L, dual kadrons, 019 diz. Sunny the S'kool Bus


You gotta know what you don't know. That's the key to wisdom. man.

[Jeff Geisen]

... decreased the turning radius, jah. The width of the 16's is 7", so I had to add material to the stops on the beam so the inside of my wheels would not contact the stabilizer bar at full turn. The 7" width of the wheel is all the stock rear suspension will handle without cutting open the fenders. The clearance from the tire's sidewall to the spring plate is a 32nd of an inch at the most.

I do not know the offset, I never did measure it.

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I Corinthians 4: 1 thru 5

‘63 ragtop - ‘68 single cab

[alikatcraig]

My 16's have a 37 offset with 7" width. I have to get them on yet, but trial fitting shows plenty of room on the rear, inside and out. I have not cut the studs down yet as I want to see if I need 1/4" spacers to increase the turning circle (if it is even an issue). These studs are Sway Away and will hammer/press in. The old ones came out with a few blows from a brass hammer. Green loctite on the knurl only of the new studs before fitting, then fit rims and torque down and allow to set up.

Al
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1967 Ghia
1971 Deluxe Microbus
1974 Convertible Bug
1973 Standard Bug
1998 Mexican Bug

[Jeff Geisen]

... the wheels clear fine, but as you get farther along you will find that tires will be necessary, and that is where the clearance issues will surface. A seven inch wide wheel does not look too cool with a seven inch wide tire. With an inch of tire sidewall on either side of your wheel, you are looking at a nine inch width.
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I Corinthians 4: 1 thru 5

‘63 ragtop - ‘68 single cab

[alikatcraig]

Mine came with tires - albeit Continental car tires, and the profile is pretty much level with the rim. I'll send pics when they are on the bus (and keep my fingers crossed!!)


Al
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1967 Ghia
1971 Deluxe Microbus
1974 Convertible Bug
1973 Standard Bug
1998 Mexican Bug