ZR1 wheels for your c4

philly

philly

solid fixture here in the forum
There is an incredible amount of aftermarket made ZR1 style wheels for the c4 corvette. however the zr1 wheel has a couple distinguishing features that make it uniquely zr1, most importantly the recessed centercap in the rear 17x11 inch wheel is far deeper than the front 9.5w wheels. example:

correct zr1 wheels: notice the deep recessed center cap




fakers:





Although there are lots of replica ZR1 wheels that are in fact 11 inches wide, the lack of the recessed center cap detracts from their originality and the style of the wheel. previously, early c4 owners who shared the offset with the later zr1 could infact use actual zr1 wheels, hoever the laer c4 cars with their 50mm offset could never have that luxury.

however hot rod hanks has them, with the correct styling and offset for all c4 vettes, for a fair price!



http://www.hotrodhanks.com/products/whe ... uctID/7885

now if only someone would reproduce the 11 inch wide salad shooter my life would be complete. sorry if this seems petty but i love the look of the ZR1 wheels on the c4 and its always been a mission to find some that fit and looked right.
 

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btw indycars i got that paint net program and its a breeze to resize images now, thanks!
 
I think a great many guys would not recognize an original wheel vs a knock off in 99% of the cars they look at.
ID point out that PRICE may not be a 100% reliable indication of QUALITY, but it does tend to be some what related and your frequently far better off buying a few quality parts vs a good many more less expensive parts for the same total cash spent , and a great deal of research and sticking to well known brands tends to lessen your chances of parts failing, used components can at times be a very good value!

Ive got the later 1995-96 turbine factory wheels on both my 1985 and 1996 corvettes , not so much because I like the look, but because of the cost of replacing them with a good set of 4 18" high quality chrome wheels is rather high and finances just have not yet allowed that to be a realistic option
ALY05007L.jpg

I have seen a good many guys purchase what I feel are vastly inferior quality after market wheels over the years on muscle cars so I think the first thing ID suggest is to do some serious research into things like back spacing, offset and wheel finish, plus Id try to find owners of similar wheels that are at least 1-2 years old to find out if the fit finish and durability are decent, I especially remember one guy who had constant issues with wheels loosing air slowly and balance issues on a set of what he thought at the time of purchase was a fantastic price for some corvette wheels, that were after several years sold at a loss just to be rid of them!
I remember my BROTHER-IN-LAW putting slicks on a set of wheels he purchased at a local flea market, that had both hubs shatter, and resulted in him sitting in the road watching his two center-less wheels, still in slicks ,rapidly departing the area, while his car had sustained rather extensive rear fender damage, and a great deal of UN-expected damage.
DAMAGE, that I told him might be the result, of his bargain basement priced purchase.
this happened the first time he tried to launch his 440 magnum engine, powered road runner from a standing start using slicks, on the car, by side stepping the clutch at 4000 rpm ...and resulted in the shocked , even,the stupid look on his face when I looked at him and just grinned and before I could say a thing he said......"DON.T YOU DARE TELL ME.YOU TOLD ME SO!"
I have been slowly acquiring the components to install a big block chevy engine in my 1985 corvette and a 4l80e trans and a dana 60 rear differential with a 4 link rear suspension, but having to support my son and his family on my pension has effectively made working on my personal projects far from easy.
I have helped several people that I know do a great deal of similar projects on their corvettes in exchange for parts, cash and at times just to gain experience doing the big block swap.
 
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I have the 1990 Salad Shooter ZR-1 wheels on my 87 C4 vert Phill.
Took a while to locate originals.
They are special 2- piece construction built.
Super Strong. Tested them to 150 mph runs several times.
No failures. Lugnuts never loosen.
Worth evety dollar spent to buy them .
Original made for a 200 mph Super Car Vette.

Brian
 
The centrifugal loads and torsional twist loads on a wheel above 140mph is increadable.
Cheap wheels will fail. Will die driving.
No 2nd chances.
Why I sought out & bought the real deal 1990 ZR-1 11X17 Wheels.
 
acknowledged all, however there just isnt a way to run factorry zr1's on later 50mm offset cars because of the offset... i totally understand the argument for quality control and pricing usually reflects the R and D that went into build durable quality wheels, however i dont simply want to write off these under the school of thought that if they arent atleast 1500 bucks, theyre probably junk.
 
philly said:
acknowledged all, however there just isnt a way to run factorry zr1's on later 50mm offset cars because of the offset... i totally understand the argument for quality control and pricing usually reflects the R and D that went into build durable quality wheels, however i dont simply want to write off these under the school of thought that if they arent atleast 1500 bucks, theyre probably junk.
Click to expand...

No Phill, there is a way to use factory ZR-1 C4 Wheels on the 1988-96 standard C4 Vettes.
You need a set of 1986-87 Rear Spindle assemblies. With Outer stub axles intact.
Can use 1984-85 also but no provision for 4-channel ABS Sensors.
 
philly said:
acknowledged all, however there just isnt a way to run factorry zr1's on later 50mm offset cars because of the offset... i totally understand the argument for quality control and pricing usually reflects the R and D that went into build durable quality wheels, however i dont simply want to write off these under the school of thought that if they aren't at least 1500 bucks, theyre probably junk.
Click to expand...

I did NOT in any way mean to convey the idea that unless you pay $1500 for a set of wheels that your not going to find a quality wheel, I just meant to point out that the common lower end of the price range ,wheels don,t tend to have anything like the quality or strength of some of the more moderately priced or upper mid range price options available and shopping carefully with a good deal more that looking at the price alone would be smart. I've seen so many guys invest good cash in cheap wheels , that they initially considered a bargain, only to find serious flaws in either construction strength, or durability or finish flaws that, I have developed a strong tendency to dismiss the cheapest cost corvette knock off clone wheel options as in general, "crap quality " simply based on my and my friends previous experience's. , theres several good choices in wheels that don,t cost even 40% of the cost of original wheels, but when you get into the less than $150 -$250 each range ., in many cases ,the quality tends to be obviously lower, so ID shop locally and look over the wheel, you intend to order, rather than use a catalog picture alone
 
The optional C4 Callaway Corvette Magnesium Dynamag wheels are Terrific if you can afford.
$2k bottom price. Seen sets sell as high as $5 k.
Don't have a Callaway but Love those Special 5-star Dynamags.
 
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