Revolution Wheels

[MarkB]

Hi all

Whats the verdict on fitting the new manufactured revolution wheels? I read on hear of offset problems failing the upper wishbones. I intended to get some for my Mk2 Gt6 but they could possibly end up on my Mk2 Vitesse. Also will they fit onto the M12 Freelander studs I have and can you get the wheel nuts to fit the revo's and M12 Studs. Lots of questions I no but any advice appreciated.

Mark

[JohnD]

The new Revolutions have been made (in China) with a larger centre hole than originally.
The Triumph PCD is smaller than almost any other car, which places the holes very close to that centre void.
I have no evidence, but have been advised that they are too close, and will be significantly weaker than original Revos, if you could get any.

I've raced for years with Ford studs (very similar to Freelander studs) at the front and rear, never had a wheel fail, never had a suspension part fail.  What DOES fail is the OE half shafts, which have a sharp shoulder toward the outer end that raises a stress point.  Bad design, and I know of nothing that can cure it, short of the Nick Jones style conversion using Volvo half shafts and LoBro/CV joints.   Mine now has full house MGF rear uprights as well.

John

[mikeyb]

I've got some original Revo's, was looking at fitment the other day wondering if I needed to fit spigot rings to the inside centre holes. The only trouble is that there is a large 45 deg chamfer on the inside of the centre hole

[GT64fun]

Mark

I fitted a set of the new Revos to my GT6 Mk2, supplied by Rimmers following a rebuild and to replace a set of Cobra Superslots that I fitted back in the 1980s. (Actually sold on the 5.5 Dunlop steels which would have been worth a bit these days....oh well!)

The Superslots had an ET of about +11 and whilst there was no clearance problem with the wishbone, with 175/70 tyres they ran pretty close to the bulkhead on lock and did project a bit from the front wheel arch which meant the wing and side of the car got quite dirty. In the madness of youth I experimented with a filler inspired arch extension, but that didn't last that long. At the rear the wheels nicely filled the arches but were a bit tight, depending on the sidewall profile of the various makes of tyre that I ran over the years.

The new Revos have at ET of +25 which is really too much but only just. Some have reported problems but not everyone. Canleys used to sell them and did not think there were any issues.
I did have a problem with the top wishbone just contacting the outer edge of the rim with reasonable lock, so fitted some 5mm universal wheel spacers as a fix, as I already invested in new tyres etc and had sold the Superslots. A subsequent experiment with fettling the wishbone, improved the clearance slightly, but not quite enough to allow the spacers to be removed with confidence.

On the plus side the wheel sits nicely within the arch and the car stays cleaner for it, which is an issue particularly with a white car.

On the negative side I think the wheel sits slightly too far in at the rear, making the arch look a bit empty. I will add some spacers to correct this in due course and have actually designed a hubcentric spacer which I intend to get machined up. I have Nicks CV conversion on the rear so M12 studs and have also made the change on the front, so no real worries about using thin spacers. 8mm is about the maximum with the standard m12 Freelander stud in my opinion.

In respect of the centre hole/PCD issue, I understand John's comments but at the moment I'm not overly concerned and certainly haven't heard of anyone breaking one, but no doubt someone will now it's been mentioned.

All in all I'm quite happy with the wheels and think they really suit the car and had always thought they would look good on a GT6. They are not hugely expensive and could always be changed at some point in the future.

Regards

Ian F ;)

[triumphlux]

I bought a set from Rimmer Bros about 5 years ago (5,5j x 13"). These are real 'Revolution' wheels and not similar to revolution like JWB Revolight and maybe others.
I drove those wheels on the Spitfire Mk 1 and on my Vitesse without any problems. The Vitesse had the front wheelarch bent to the inside but I can't remember if it was necessary to have enough space.

[MarkB]

Thanks for all the replies.

My main concern was that the offset would make the wheels stick out to far and rub the arches, issues I am having at the moment. My car came with Wolfrace wheels which I have never been a big fan of. Had them on a Stag and a Scimitar also. When I replaced the tyres which were Firestones I played it safe and fitted the same size 165 70 13 tyres all be it Yokohama A drive. At the same time I lowered the car, inch spacer at the rear and shorter front springs and this is when the problems started. Passenger side rear wing was replaced a couple of years ago and I have no clearance problems but the drivers side rubs occasionally, but when carrying a passenger its terrible. Wheels are 5.5 13 e.13.

Ian did you need to order special wheel nuts for the M12 studs to suit the Revo's or are they just plain 60 degree nuts.

thanks

Mark

[GT64fun]

Mark

The ET of your Wolfrace wheels is similar to my original Superslots, so the arch rubbing issue is the same as I described above.

The greater ET of +25 of the Revos solves this but at the expense of pushing it 'just' too close to the top wishbone.

An ET of +20 would be fine, so if someone could ask the Chinese to manufacture to this specification then problems solved.

(anyone care to confirm offset for reproduction Minilites)

I obtained M12x1.5 Acorn standard 60 deg taper nuts from Mr T's Wheelnut Emporium.

Regards

Ian F ;)

[MarkB]

Thanks for that Ian, much appreciated.

Mark