ISUZU Rims.....

[nfpgasmask]

Hey everyone, I'm having some real trouble finding black rims that I want and that will fit my VX. I want to keep my stock 18" rims for now, but I am looking for some 16" black rims to wear most of the time.

I really like the AR Mojave style and the Chamber style, but I just can't get a straight answer from anyone (including American Racing) on whether they have any rims that will fit.

So, I am thinking about buying some used ISUZU rims off eBay and getting them powder coated black. Here are some that I am looking at:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ISUZU-TROOPER-ALUMINUM-ALLOY-WHEEL-RIM_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ43956QQitemZ8065380 346QQrdZ1

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ISUZU-TROOPER-ALLOY-WHEEL-16X7-1998-2002_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ43956QQitemZ806621 0481QQrdZ1

Can someone tell me if these will fit the VX? I have heard the Trooper wheels will fit the large bore, match the bolt pattern and still be "hub centric".

I am also looking at just some plain old black steel Rock Crawlers. If there is anyone running these, some advice on what to buy here would be great also.

Any help would be appreciated!

Thanks - Bart

[mbeach]

You want a wheel that has:
6x139.7 bolt pattern, this is the same as 6x5.5"
It should have a hub bore of 108mm. This is 4.25"

I prefer to ignore backspacing, as it takes the width of the wheel into consideration. Use offset instead.
Stock wheels are 7" wide, and have an offset of +38mm. If you choose, say, and AR rim that is also 7" wide, but has an offset of +20mm, you will move the outside edge of the rim 18mm to the outside of the truck. This is not enough to cause rubbing. BUT, if you choose a more common 8" wide wheel, the +18mm will be added to +13mm (1/2 inch) and you'll have moved the outer edge of the rim outwards by +31mm. Depending on your tire diameter and lift, you might rub cladding.

My philosophy is "no compromise."
If your new wheel/tire combo weighs 10% more than stock, you overwork your brakes.
If your new tires are 10% larger than stock, you alter gearing, steering, ABS and speedo readings.
If your tires are 10% wider than stock (@1"), you wander into ruts, increase roadforce, and wear your steering components.
If you have to cut/bash/trim or otherwise modify your vehicle just for the sake of fitting tires that only serve their purpose occasionally, you have compromised the design of your truck.
I recently lifted my VX -I feel like it went too high, and it bothers me. I hope that the springs settle a bit.

As for selecting wheels, you can't go wrong with stock for two reasons. One, is a guaranteed fit, and two is the quality of the wheel. Granted, they are cast and not forged, but you won't find a stronger cast wheel out there than an OEM selection. Think about this:
If some bargain tuner wheel breaks, no big deal to the company. If some OEM wheel breaks, than the company's looking at a lawsuit. They pick the best wheels that can be reasonably purchased for each factory application.

Also, a note about powdercoating.
Aluminum is not heat-treated like steel. It uses a curing process completed at low temperatures, over longer periods of time. Without going all metalurgical, I can say this:
Do not powdercoat your cast aluminum wheels at high temperatures. Most experts say that anything above 275F is too high. You can cause brittleness in the outer layer of the wheels (since they are cast, the grain structure is not uniform throughout the wheel).

Instead, I'd recommend a high-quality epoxy paint, professionally applied (just like what the OEMs use). This stuff is tough -I just spent a week and two gallons of Aircraft Stripper trying to remove it from a set of wheels.

Also, if either of those stock wheels are chromed, good luck finding a place that'll remove it. The disposal license for chromium is in the $25k range, so most places won't touch it.

[morgan-tec]

My stock Axiom wheels are powdercoated silver , and i have powdercoated multiple sets of cast wheels with no problems. The durability of powder is second to none. Just my 2 cents

[nfpgasmask]

Hey, thanks for the input. I guess what I have been struggling with is the whole "hub bore" size. Everytime I mention the 108mm size people say "Oh, we certainly don't have anything that will fit that!" So I just don't know what to do. I would just order the AR rims, but if they don't fit I will be pissed.

And about painting the rims instead of powder-coating, quite honestly, either way would work for me, as long as its durable, so that isn't really as big of an issue as finding wheels I know will fit is.

So do you think either of those Isuzu rims on eBay will fit the VX?

Thanks - Bart


You want a wheel that has:
6x139.7 bolt pattern, this is the same as 6x5.5"
It should have a hub bore of 108mm. This is 4.25"

I prefer to ignore backspacing, as it takes the width of the wheel into consideration. Use offset instead.
Stock wheels are 7" wide, and have an offset of +38mm. If you choose, say, and AR rim that is also 7" wide, but has an offset of +20mm, you will move the outside edge of the rim 18mm to the outside of the truck. This is not enough to cause rubbing. BUT, if you choose a more common 8" wide wheel, the +18mm will be added to +13mm (1/2 inch) and you'll have moved the outer edge of the rim outwards by +31mm. Depending on your tire diameter and lift, you might rub cladding.

My philosophy is "no compromise."
If your new wheel/tire combo weighs 10% more than stock, you overwork your brakes.
If your new tires are 10% larger than stock, you alter gearing, steering, ABS and speedo readings.
If your tires are 10% wider than stock (@1"), you wander into ruts, increase roadforce, and wear your steering components.
If you have to cut/bash/trim or otherwise modify your vehicle just for the sake of fitting tires that only serve their purpose occasionally, you have compromised the design of your truck.
I recently lifted my VX -I feel like it went too high, and it bothers me. I hope that the springs settle a bit.

As for selecting wheels, you can't go wrong with stock for two reasons. One, is a guaranteed fit, and two is the quality of the wheel. Granted, they are cast and not forged, but you won't find a stronger cast wheel out there than an OEM selection. Think about this:
If some bargain tuner wheel breaks, no big deal to the company. If some OEM wheel breaks, than the company's looking at a lawsuit. They pick the best wheels that can be reasonably purchased for each factory application.

Also, a note about powdercoating.
Aluminum is not heat-treated like steel. It uses a curing process completed at low temperatures, over longer periods of time. Without going all metalurgical, I can say this:
Do not powdercoat your cast aluminum wheels at high temperatures. Most experts say that anything above 275F is too high. You can cause brittleness in the outer layer of the wheels (since they are cast, the grain structure is not uniform throughout the wheel).

Instead, I'd recommend a high-quality epoxy paint, professionally applied (just like what the OEMs use). This stuff is tough -I just spent a week and two gallons of Aircraft Stripper trying to remove it from a set of wheels.

Also, if either of those stock wheels are chromed, good luck finding a place that'll remove it. The disposal license for chromium is in the $25k range, so most places won't touch it.

[mbeach]

The 16x7 rims will fit without a problem, these are the same as used on the 99 Vehicross.
The others look like 15x6.5 rims to me. They might have issues with clearance to the upper control arm up front -Joe Black runs a nice set of 15" Nissan wheels, he had to do a bit of clearancing in that area. Also, think about mud packing in between the brake caliper and rim -I wouldn't go less than a 16" myself.

As for powder, it is super-durable, BUT, you don't see much powdercoating done on aluminum, especially cast. Now you know why.

[nfpgasmask]

Awesome, thanks for the extra info. 16s would be fine with me....I honestly just really dont like the shiny "bling-bling" 18s that came stock with my 2001. It's just not my thing....

As far as paint goes, can you recommend some brands and types? Thanks for taking the time out to help me.

Bart

[mbeach]

There's a lot of guys on here that are paint smart. I just used what comes in a can marked "Wheel Paint"

I'll most likely sandblast them this winter and get it professionally done, either epoxy painted or a low temperature powder coating. My job looks great from 3 feet away. I'd like to have better.

[nfpgasmask]

Yeah, I was actually thinking of that Rustoleum "heat resistant" paint made for painting charcoal grills and other metal stuff that is exposed to heat, but I suppose that wouldn't be too good of an idea...

And quite honestly, If its not SUPER SHARP, that is ok with me. I am quite fond of the rugged Mad Max look. :)

Here is another link to an eBay set of wheels:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ISUZU-TROOPER-ALUMINUM-ALLOY-WHEEL-16-X-7-95-96-97_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ43956QQitemZ80653813 06

These are 16s, and they look like the ones you might of thought were 15s. I also did a junkyard search online and found these steel ones that are for the Trooper II:

http://car-part.com/images/interchange/W64198.gif

I am wondering if these would fit, however I don't really care for the design so much.

Bart

[mbeach]

Don't forget, some older factory Toyota and GMC 4wd wheels will fit as well. Look for the 4.25" bore and proper bolt pattern. Generally, any Toyota or Nissan that had manual hubs will fit our center bore.

I know what you mean about the Mad Max look, this was my old S14:
http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/thumbs/sideshot.jpg (http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/sideshot.jpg)

[morgan-tec]

When i had my wheels made for th Axiom i made the center bore larger at the shop. If you find a wheel that you like that will fit except for the bore you could take them to a local machine shop and have the back side of the wheel machinded out to fit the hubs, this is what i did to make mine fit perfectly. Just a thought, also any wheel that will fit a Hummer H3 will fit the Vx, they are a stock offset of +40mm so they will work except for the center bore which you could have made to fit as i stated eariler.

[Nazrat]

Also of note: Isuzu uses lug-centric wheels so as long as the center bore is large enough to clear the hubs you are fine. Toyota and others use hub-centric wheels which require a precise fit on the center bore for proper alignment. You'll find some newer (98+) Isuzu steel wheels that have a large hub bore than is necessary.

-Tad

[nfpgasmask]

See, that's exactly my problem. It doesn't seem like wheel manufacturers put that info in their specs usually. For example:

SIZE: 16x8
OFFSET: 0
BACKSIDE: 4 1/2
BOLT PATTERN: 6-5 1/2

But where is CENTER BORE or HUB SIZE? None of the rims I have looked at state the size for the bore.....its very annoying and making things confusing for me...

But, all your help has helped a lot, thanks.

Bart



Don't forget, some older factory Toyota and GMC 4wd wheels will fit as well. Look for the 4.25" bore and proper bolt pattern. Generally, any Toyota or Nissan that had manual hubs will fit our center bore.

I know what you mean about the Mad Max look, this was my old S14:
http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/thumbs/sideshot.jpg (http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/sideshot.jpg)

[nfpgasmask]

VERY good to know. Thanks.

Bart





Also of note: Isuzu uses lug-centric wheels so as long as the center bore is large enough to clear the hubs you are fine. Toyota and others use hub-centric wheels which require a precise fit on the center bore for proper alignment. You'll find some newer (98+) Isuzu steel wheels that have a large hub bore than is necessary.

-Tad

[morgan-tec]

Most of the wheels you find with this bolt pattern will be a 78mm center bore for GM trucks and suvs. I could not find a wheel i liked so i had mine made close to fit and then i finished the job myself. Dont be afraid to step outside the "bolt on" box and get creative. I have had to do this on ever singe mod i made to my Axiom.

[CSTYLES]

VX Crazy has the rock crawlers, check out the gallery.

Rock Crawlers (http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=6000&cat=500&page=1)

[nfpgasmask]

Yeah, the rock crawlers are decent, and I have seen a lot of folks wearing those, but I am still unsure if those rims had to be modified or if they found rock crawlers with a large bore. I think I am going to go with some Trooper wheels and just paint them or powder coat them, depending on which ones I settle on...

Bart


VX Crazy has the rock crawlers, check out the gallery.

Rock Crawlers (http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=6000&cat=500&page=1)

[Daver]

When i had my wheels made for th Axiom i made the center bore larger at the shop. If you find a wheel that you like that will fit except for the bore you could take them to a local machine shop and have the back side of the wheel machinded out to fit the hubs, this is what i did to make mine fit perfectly. Just a thought, also any wheel that will fit a Hummer H3 will fit the Vx, they are a stock offset of +40mm so they will work except for the center bore which you could have made to fit as i stated eariler.


Heh. I've been looking all over for the stock H3 offset and I couldn't find it. Considering trading my VX for an H3 (black, como no).

Wanted to find out if my OZs would fit on an H3. Thanks! :)

-Daver

[nocturnalVX]

Yeah, the rock crawlers are decent, and I have seen a lot of folks wearing those, but I am still unsure if those rims had to be modified or if they found rock crawlers with a large bore. I think I am going to go with some Trooper wheels and just paint them or powder coat them, depending on which ones I settle on...

Bart

I have the black steel Tech 1 Rock Crawlers too & they required no mods whatsoever. However, I went with 31" Pro Comp ATs on 15x8 wheels instead of 29" on 15x7, so some trimming of the front cladding was needed. Check my gallery for pics. Get a wheel & tire set cheap from here (http://www.4wheelparts.com/4wp/products/index.asp?cat=TIR).

[nfpgasmask]

I have the black steel Tech 1 Rock Crawlers too & they required no mods whatsoever. However, I went with 31" Pro Comp ATs on 15x8 wheels instead of 29" on 15x7, so some trimming of the front cladding was needed. Check my gallery for pics. Get a wheel & tire set cheap from here (http://www.4wheelparts.com/4wp/products/index.asp?cat=TIR).

Cool! Thanks for the info man!

Bart