Need a MK IV 16" front wheel !

[MkIV Lux]

Nice to read you, Keith [:)]
   
   The spare is machined specifically to allow both front and rear use.
   Not only are the outsides differing between front and rear rim, but also the stubs dimensions. The front rim's inner fits the rear stub but not the other way around.
   
   You are damn right in your statement about the diff. So spare can really only be used to get you to the neerest garage. Should leave the spare at home (as some of my friends already do) and offer more boot space to the lady [;)]
   
   Yes the larger wheel also fits into the boot.
   These tyres are not found on the shelf[:(]
   
   Switching to Bristol power might be a solution [;)][;)]
   Cheers
   Constant

[TTM]

On a more modern car I experienced a 200 mile trek home driving with the spare wheel on the rear axle. With quite a lot of power on tap and the opposing tyre being more than twice as wide, arguing with snowy roundabouts took a certain amount of commitment to avoid any disaster.
   While this context was a bit extreme, I do not imagine anyone risking driving their MkIV in any spirited manner in the knowledge they have different sizes of tyres on the rear axle.
   
   What type of LSD does the MkIV typically use? Not a Torsen I would hope?

[westcott]

Hi Constant,
   
   you are absolutely right regarding passenger's shoes, beauty case and so on.... :-)
   
   I removed and stored the spare wheel directly after the car arrived in my garage. Today i carry a tire inflator kit from Continental i bought years before, just removing the bottle of sealing compound every 2 years to keep it in working condition. That kit will work for punctures up to 5mm but not bigger.
   
   The standard MK IV trunk inner is much more spacious then the LW's one. It is quite big and the inflator kit fits neat in a side pocket behind the rear inner fender.
   
   The next weekends will be very busy installing splined hubs and Ace size wire wheels to the car, O.K. maybe AC 289 size wheels :-)
   
   Keith, thanks a lot for planting that idea into my brain !

[westcott]

Update: Problem solved, we bought the Ebay wheel.
   
   Thanks Mark for the information !

[302EFI]

Hi Uwe,
   Did I get that right, you are going to equip the Frog with wire wheels?

[Mark IV]

quote:Originally posted by TTM
   

   
   What type of LSD does the MkIV typically use? Not a Torsen I would hope?
   
   

   No,
   
   A Salisbury "Pow-R-Lok" clutch type LSD

[westcott]

@ Juergen,
   
   no, for sure not, just kidding :-)
   
   I saw a blue MK IV with wire wheels and 4 exhaust pipes at the rear during a visit at "Burgschmiede Namedy".
   
   End of last year I thought about switching to 15" but did not come to a final decission.
   
   But if someone would offer a set of 15" wheels for a reasonable price now............

[wenzeh]

Uwe, what you call reasonable?  I do have a set of 15" wheels as spare...with lovely Cooper Cobra wheels on it ;-), almost new...

[westcott]

The wheel shipped from the US Ebay seller was declared as "lost" during its jurney arriving at an UK airport.....[B)]
   Nevertheless the seller directly and without any discussion sent the money back.
   
   After that i did a deep dive into 16" wheels and found out the following:
   
   - as long as the wheels are intended for hex nut fixation the 7 inch wide front and spare wheels are identically.
   - if the wheels are intended to be fixed by spinners from the factory the center of the wheels is machined to clear the wings of the spinner.
   - in case of spinner usage the front and rear 16" inch wheels are machined different, so the cut off has different shape and dimensions front and rear
   
   So the spare wheel from a hex nut set is the same as the front wheel of the same set
   A spare wheel of a spinner set is the same as the front wheel of the same set
   
   All wheels from a spinner set can be used with hex nuts.
   
   The wheels from a hex nut set have very small clearance to spinners and if the tolerances come together the wings of a spinner can contakt the center area of a hex nut wheel before the cone itself is seated.
   
   Main dimensions and backspace is the same between spinner and hex nut wheels.
   
   I will take some pics and post them here.
   
   The above mentioned statemets are based on 16" wheels and on two different sets i own, one for spinner fixation one for hex nut usage.
   
   Both wheel sets are from early cars made in 85 and 86.