Aluminum Wheels, 1976 vs 1980

[Art Mc Nay]

I am trying to find out the difference between the 1976 optionial aluminum wheels versus those that were available for the 1980 Corvettes. They were both 15 x 8's, and the 76's were on a 4.75 circle diameter,7/16-20 UNF Studs with a N-0.50 offset. I am not sure if the 80's were a little different in appearance or not. I would appreciate any info on this subject

[Patrick H.]

Re: Aluminum Wheels, 1976 vs 1980

The 80-82 style have clear center portions, rather than black. Look in your Mid America catalog, or many others, for a picture.

Patrick

[Patrick H.]

Re: Aluminum Wheels, 1976 vs 1980

The 80-82 style have clear center portions, rather than black. Look in your Mid America catalog, or many others, for a picture.

Patrick

[Bill Baird]

Re: Aluminum Wheels, 1976 vs 1980

The aluminum wheels from '76-'79 (excluding the '78 pace car rims) had black painted centers, non-painted slots, and had a bit of a brushed aluminum look. The optional wheels from '80-'82 (as well as the '78 pace car rims) had unpainted centers, black painted slots, and a polished aluminum look. The '78 pace car rims also had a red stripe along their outer edge.

They were all 15x8 with the same bolt pattern and lug nuts. As far as I know, they all had the same offset. I've noticed visual differences on the back sides of the wheels, as well as differences in the contours of the slots, but haven't looked into them enough to know how these differences relate to model year, etc.

As far as I know, they were all produced by Kelsey-Hayes, though I've seen some showing up at swap meets recently that were made by Western. I believe that these are repro.s, though I'm not 100% sure about that.

Bill Baird

[Bill Baird]

Re: Aluminum Wheels, 1976 vs 1980

The aluminum wheels from '76-'79 (excluding the '78 pace car rims) had black painted centers, non-painted slots, and had a bit of a brushed aluminum look. The optional wheels from '80-'82 (as well as the '78 pace car rims) had unpainted centers, black painted slots, and a polished aluminum look. The '78 pace car rims also had a red stripe along their outer edge.

They were all 15x8 with the same bolt pattern and lug nuts. As far as I know, they all had the same offset. I've noticed visual differences on the back sides of the wheels, as well as differences in the contours of the slots, but haven't looked into them enough to know how these differences relate to model year, etc.

As far as I know, they were all produced by Kelsey-Hayes, though I've seen some showing up at swap meets recently that were made by Western. I believe that these are repro.s, though I'm not 100% sure about that.

Bill Baird