Wheel bolts from steels okay for alloys?

[GabrielKnight]

Will the wheel bolts on my steels also work on my new alloys when I get them? I know its not ideal for the long run. In the short-term I have a high security nut for each wheel, but I want to get the car home and see what it looks like before I choose the remaining bolts to match.

 

[RichRSi]

Not 100% sure but I imagine the mounting area to the hub is thicker on alloys then it is on steel wheels, also sometimes alloy's bolt holes are tapered for the nuts collor and not flat so i would hazzard a guess that you would need longer bolts and possibly tapered ones too.

If you aint sure I wouldn't risk it. This might sound obviouse but if they are after market alloys, is the central bore renault 60.1 because if it aint they'll be even more unsafe without spigot rings.

 

[GabrielKnight]

central bore?
renault 60.1?
spigot rings?

ffs, why is nothing ever simple.

 

[RichRSi]

Central bore is the center of the hub, the hole in the center of the alloy mounts up to this and 'slots' over it. This is what basicly takes the weight of the car on the wheel. The bolts are just there to hold the wheels on not take all the weight iirc. 60.1 is the bore diameter in mm.

The spigot rings make up any difference in the size of the hole and distrubute the weight evenly across the hub, they sit in the center hole of the wheel so the wheel 'slots' onto the central bore.

Thats life dude! Like I said dont drive it unless you know it's safe!!!

 

[Daniel]

I did this once. Three bolts sheared off after about 30 miles of driving!! I wouldn't bother tbh. Too much aggro if the bolts do snap.

 

[RichRSi]

I did this once. Three bolts sheared off after about 30 miles of driving!! I wouldn't bother tbh. Too much aggro if the bolts do snap.

I have visions of gabrielknight being overtaken by his own wheels on the duel carriage way :S

 

[GabrielKnight]

I have visions of gabrielknight being overtaken by his own wheels on the duel carriage way :S

Comedy gold! I'm so glad you told me!

Here are the wheels I bought:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI....m=120159226626&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT&ih=002

Here's a bunch of spigot rings:
http://search.ebay.co.uk/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=spigot+rings

Which ones should I go for?

I already bought a pack of McGard wheel bolts for 'renault'. Will they still be the right size after fitting the spigot rings?

 

[RichRSi]

I cant really answer your questions with any authority, you need to speak to an expert to make sure everything is 100%, demon tweeks have been pretty helpful in the past.

You need to know the central bore of the wheels you have bought, if you are lucky they will slot straight on, if you are unlucky the bores will be smaller and will need to be drilled out, by an engineer!!!! If the bores are larger you need to find spigot rings that reduce the bores down to the correct size.

Regarding the bolts, I have no idea if yours will fit. If they are designed for alloys I guess they might be ok, remember though; if the hole in the wheel you put the bolt in is tapered (gets narrower as it goes in) or is just a straight hole flat to the surface of the wheel then the wheel bolt will need to match this profile also.

 

[GabrielKnight]

Awwww, ffs! (seriously, thanks for the info tho!) I thought I'd checked every one of those pesky measurments before buying, and now there's more to get the b******s on!

If I could afford an expert / Demon Tweeks / engineer, I would have spent more than £90 on alloys with tyres! Please no-one reply with safety lectures tho - I will def make sure everything is safe before I take off. Just means I probly can't take my car to the show in a fortnight Well, better late than dead.

 

[MT AUDIO]

steel wheel bolts will fuse with alloy wheels

 

[V1NNY]

using the old bols is a no no tbh

 

[GabrielKnight]

I emailed the guy who I'm picking the wheels up from to ask for the centre bore measurements and he has replied:

'[FONT=Arial, Verdana]I will try my best to ask my mate to measure the centre cap and the bore hole size as it is such an easy job. For your information, it is not necessary to have spigot rings as without the rings, it's not going to do any harm to the car hubs. The wheels have been fitted on my Starlet since import back in June 2006, and I have replaced them with another alloy wheels which are also having a bigger centre bore. My Starlet has 54.1mm centre bore, but both the wheels bores are bigger than 54.1mm as far as I can see.'

So, how important is the centre bore size? I'm confudled now!
[/FONT]

 

[Turkish]

Very, the bloke is a c*nt. It's in his interest to tell you the wheels will be fine as he's selling them!! If the centre bore is too small they will need modifying to fit and if it's too big YOU WILL NEED SPIGOT RINGS!! Don't listen to anyone who tells you otherwise. The centre bore of the wheel needs to be a snug fit on the hub.

 

[V1NNY]

yeah the spiggot rings are essential, just hope there not too small for the hubs, the spiggots help the bolts allign properly and stops play in the wheels, i remember reading that someone on here didnt use them and it sheered the wheel bolts off, also you will get a lot of vibration at motorway speeds

 

[GabrielKnight]

He has now replied:

I have measured the measurements as
requested. Sorry for taking a bit long of you, here
are their measurements:

Centra cap = 53mm diameter (measured on the original
centre cap)

Alloy wheel centre bore = 60.1mm diameter (it's
written on the inner lip of the bore hole)

Which means that you are very lucky enough to find
this perfect fitment alloy wheels without using any
spigot rings! Hope these informations will help you a
lot.

How likely does this sound? Is 60.1 a fairly standard size or is he just stringing me along?!
Hope its true!

 

[MT AUDIO]

very likely,most wheels are made for cars witht the buggest bore and then spigot rings are bought to change the size,if he is lying you will be entitled to your money back,why would he be lying if he has 100% postive feedback?

 

[GabrielKnight]

So by most standards, is 60.1 is the biggest bore?

Or is it Jeremy Clarkson?

 

[MT AUDIO]

60.1 is what you need