What do you think,would my 75GF Custom look better with a set of W23 chrome rally wheels & WW tires? I see lots of Chrysler Formals with the W23 wheels but do you think they look good on a ¨lower level¨ Plymouth or Dodge??
Formal wheel opinion - Factory wheel covers or Chrome Road Wheels??
- Thread starter 66l78rat
- Start date
3175375
Senior Member
The W23 wheels would look great!
mrfury68
Senior Member
I am a big fan of the road wheels. They dress up any body style. Back when theses cars were ordered new, one could check off single items on the option sheet. So even a lower trim level model could be had with road wheels.
Having had a set of W23s on my '70 Monaco (factory option on the car), I can say that BOTH look good.
In my experiences, the W23s look great . . . but the center caps were a bit prone to getting loose and rattling. There are specific bolts with a copper flat washer under them, OEM, but many substituted normal bolts, which were a bit too long and put an elevated dimple on the outer chrome of the cap's base. The threads in the cap are "self-cut" by the bolts, so additional discretion there is necessary.
The trim rings look good, but can be the victim of "harsh installation", where they can get dimples and low spots, which are evident as the wheel turns.
With proper care and attention to detail in installation, the W23s can be a great option. The '74 C-bodies were when the wheels got popular, plus on Cordobas, although they were around in 1970 on C-bodies. Differences were the "dome" on the center cap. Thinner and splined on the earlier ones and smooth on the 1974+ versions.
Just some thoughts and experiences,
CBODY67
In my experiences, the W23s look great . . . but the center caps were a bit prone to getting loose and rattling. There are specific bolts with a copper flat washer under them, OEM, but many substituted normal bolts, which were a bit too long and put an elevated dimple on the outer chrome of the cap's base. The threads in the cap are "self-cut" by the bolts, so additional discretion there is necessary.
The trim rings look good, but can be the victim of "harsh installation", where they can get dimples and low spots, which are evident as the wheel turns.
With proper care and attention to detail in installation, the W23s can be a great option. The '74 C-bodies were when the wheels got popular, plus on Cordobas, although they were around in 1970 on C-bodies. Differences were the "dome" on the center cap. Thinner and splined on the earlier ones and smooth on the 1974+ versions.
Just some thoughts and experiences,
CBODY67
Darter6
Active Member
The W23 wheels look great on any Mopar.
Ran them on my 80 Aspen Wagon and my 67 Dart in the photo.
Ran them on my 80 Aspen Wagon and my 67 Dart in the photo.
Is this a serious discussion? Most will think Road Wheels. Only those extreme purists will say keep it to the build sheet.
JC68vert300
Senior Member
That Gran Fury coupe is a beauty, i haven’t seen one in person in years. Whether you stay with full wheel-covers or get road wheels.
it is a car I would be happy to own and drive.
it is a car I would be happy to own and drive.
commando1
Old Man with a Hat
In all seriousness, I admit it's a no brainer that Road Wheels is the way to go, but.....
a good set nowadays are so expensive, I don't know if they now justify the cost.
Truthfully, if today, if I even had a gorgeous NYB, I would just find the best set of wheel covers I could, polish them so they shined like a Baboon's butt, and be happy.
C.B.
commando1
Old Man with a Hat
FWIW, I bought this set a zillion years ago from Murray. I don't think Murray has had as nice a set since. What I paid wouldn't buy you one, now.
Thanks, Murray.
C.B.
Thanks, Murray.
C.B.
57fury440
Well-Known Member
Road wheels.
I'm going to not go with the masses here...
Stay with the wheel covers. Everybody here seems to have road wheels (including me) and the car will just be another one. The wheel covers look good with the white walls and this is where I really don't fall in lockstep with the rest... I don't care for WW tires with the road wheels.
Stay with the wheel covers. Everybody here seems to have road wheels (including me) and the car will just be another one. The wheel covers look good with the white walls and this is where I really don't fall in lockstep with the rest... I don't care for WW tires with the road wheels.
That's outrageous!
57fury440
Well-Known Member
Easy enough to put the whitewalls on the inside when mounting the rims. Either way I like the Road wheels. Even though lots of people here have them, how much of the time will the car be with others from this site?
At least once a year .
Carlisle.
Carlisle.
King Hooter
Well-Known Member
I'm going against the grain here. But with how original and clean your Gran Fury is keep the hubcaps.
Just like not every Charger had a Hemi. Not every Chevelle was a SS. So why does it seem every C-body need road wheels.
Just like not every Charger had a Hemi. Not every Chevelle was a SS. So why does it seem every C-body need road wheels.
In my view, Formals are supposed to represent a trend in the applicable years of luxury vehicles that had somewhat boxy front ends and a lot of straight lines that exude an "expensive" look as opposed to a more stylish look. As such, it seems a little out of character for a "formal" design to have sporty wheels but I fully understand varying positions on this view wherein many Formal owners do consider their cars more stylish that I might not. For example, a Plymouth "formal" had less of a boxy front end compared to a Chrysler, so on a Plymouth either looks good.
I am also one of those persons who think black walls should be confined to performance vehicles and never look good on full size vehicles because they make them just look cheap.
For example, when Lee Iacocca took over Chrysler circa 1980 after the Corporation went bankrupt, he seemed to more successfully merge both looks with his designers for the Corporation's vehicles. One example is the 1981-83 Imperials........................where both themes were present and wheels/wheel covers were more aligned with the goal of its place in the market:
LongLeBaron
New Member
Wow, didn't take long for this thread to expand! Wheels get everybody's attention, on the car or in the forum.
I'm going to go contrarian here and say stick with the covers. I do have the road wheels and like them, but they are harder to clean and would be pricey if you had to replace one, vs. a regular old steelie. Plus I tend to like things stock.
Also, it's always seemed to me that the Fury/Gran Fury covers from '74 on are really just a slight variation on the standard Imperial covers. It's a fairly simple design, but I think it works well on any vehicle. I seem to remember seeing it on some of the Dodge trucks back in the day, too.
Also, at risk of thread hijacking, that's a very striking two-tone, commando1. I've never seen the like before on one of these cars.
I'm going to go contrarian here and say stick with the covers. I do have the road wheels and like them, but they are harder to clean and would be pricey if you had to replace one, vs. a regular old steelie. Plus I tend to like things stock.
Also, it's always seemed to me that the Fury/Gran Fury covers from '74 on are really just a slight variation on the standard Imperial covers. It's a fairly simple design, but I think it works well on any vehicle. I seem to remember seeing it on some of the Dodge trucks back in the day, too.
Also, at risk of thread hijacking, that's a very striking two-tone, commando1. I've never seen the like before on one of these cars.
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