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Hi Guys,

I know a few of you are running Porsche 5 lug wheels on your splitties... How did you do it?

I am thinking of getting a set of Cookie Cutters (15") to put on my '66. I was hoping to keep the drums stock and use some sort of addaptor plate? Have seen plates that go to Chevy 5 lug from wide five.

Or will I have to drill the drums and press in studs?

I do not want to loose the RGBs or bastardize the hell out of my bus just for some wheels though.

Hopefully I will not get flamed to death for this subject here like I would on the Vintage Bus list

Thanks,


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Adrian Pillow
'66 VW Westfalia - "Biscuit"
'79 Porsche 911 SC - "Cochise"

Adrian, I learned my lesson with adapters years ago while having to torch a wheel off my 23 window deluxe because of an adaptor gone bad. So actually to me they are the bastardization process. If you want to do it right have the drums drilled and studs installed. Then you will have wheels bolted directly to your car. And at highway speeds thats a whole lot better for peace of mind as well.
Also the outspacing of the wheel with adapters will bring about additional clearance issues as room in the wheel wells quickly dissappears when going to wider wheels and tires.
Do`nt get me wrong. I think the cookie cutters are cool but I do`nt think adapters do justice to them and I do`nt think they are safe either.Put them babies on there the right way and be proud of what you have and how you`ve done it. You wont ruin your drums by having the dual pattern capability and with the price of adapters the drilling won`t hurt either.Those are good looking wheels on a split. I went to 2 piece Empies on mine after I learned my lesson with adapters.Good Luck. Bob

[This message has been edited by Bob Ingman (edited 10-31-2001).]

Kind of along the same lines but not really, does anyone know what the best way to install aset of Cookie Cutters onto a '73 Bus? You can't just redrill the drums since the studs come out of the hub themselves, I've seen it done before but with no info on how they did it.

hmm...maybe, but there's got to be some way to do it maybe swapping in 944 hubs and brakes, I already have a complete set of cookie cutters I picked up for almost nothing, so I don't want to have to buy new wheels.

Adrian, take your drums to a machine shop . They will drill and press in new studs. With you doing the labor and packing your parts in, their charges will be at a minimum.
Before you ask where to get studs and in what length I will suggest you consult a distributor of the wheels for studs of proper length.
California Import Parts is one I know of . Good Luck. Bob

Thanks Bob! You said exactly what I anticipated having to do.

I think any full service wheel/tire shop could probably do this drilling and studs..?

I plan on 15"x6" cookies that are powdercoated white to match the bus. For some reason cokkies do not hold a luster well enough to polish. Also the shape does not work well polished because of its odd angles.

I do not think there will be clearance issues on the rear wheel wells with these wheels either..? Not certain though.

Thump from Manasshole (Hey I lived in Warrenton for years, Manasshole used to not all be townhomes like today ), I think you maybe SOL for late baywindow lugs. The early bays (68-70 drums) had the wide five pattern and I think this is where you saw the cookies mounted..?

Try http://www.vanagon.com/ under the "info" section for "tires/wheels". The Vanagon uses the same baywindow wheel pattern. I think the Mercedes wheels would be an excellent choice.




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Adrian Pillow
'66 VW Westfalia - "Biscuit"
'79 Porsche 911 SC - "Cochise"

I've HEARD that there is problems drilling the drums for an early bus. Seems there isn't enough room for some reason to fit the Porsche 5-bolt pattern on there.

Depending on the offset of the wheels, adapters could be an option. For instance, late model 944 phone dials have enough of an offset that you would have to use spacers to make 'em correct. So using an adapter is gonna be more or less the same as using a spacer. Some people say adapters aren't safe. I don't know myself. Just kinda pointing out what I've found in research.

The other option is to install a Porsce disc brake kit on the front. Expensive. $900 or something from oldspeed.com. I guess on the rear it'd be and IRS kit with 924/944 trailing arms so you get the Porsce pattern back there. Lots of work and money here with this option.

Find out the offset of those wheels you got and compare it to VW factory wheels. Maybe a well built set of adapters are what you could use.