DIY Network

'65 Mustang Restoration: Wheels and Tires Retro five-spoke wheels and wide radial tires make for a potent combination on our vintage muscle car. From "Classic Car Restoration" episode DCR-510

	The rear set of radials is slightly larger than the front.
	Opting for the larger wheels and tires gives the Mustang a more "muscular" look.

In this final phase in the restoration of our 1965 Mustang fastback, Classic Car Restoration host Steve Magnante upgrades our Mustang's wheels and tires.

Together, the new 17" retro-look 5-spoke rims and radial tires offer the car a more aggressive stance.

Next, body and paint expert Kevin Tetz shows Steve how to color sand and buff the exterior paint to a glossy shine. With the finish work complete, Steve takes our restored car to a Mustang of America club meet. Steve concludes the Mustang series with a recap of the entire restoration process.

First up, Steve upgrades the wheels to 17" 5-spoke Boyd Cottington rims to accommodate the new front disc brakes. The rear 17"x9" wheels are bigger than the front 17"x8" wheels, and give our Mustang a muscular look. Steve also upgrades to new radial tires that are also taller in the rear to add to the muscular stance.

The basic steps in this procedure, as seen in this episode of Classic Car Restoration are summarized below.

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	Steve Magnante cleans the new wheels using a rotary brush.

Wheels and Tires: Project Overview

Among the biggest "make or break" details of any automotive restoration is the selection of wheels and tires. The wrong ones can insult the car; the right ones will compliment it. If we were doing a straight restoration on our '65 Mustang fastback, we'd want to get the authentic original style wheels: 13 inch steel rims with bias-ply tires. That would be the most accurate selection since our project car was a 6-cylinder version originally. If it had originally been the V-8 version, it would still have had bias-ply tires, but on 14 inch wheels.

But for our "resto-mod" project, we can do a lot better than either of those. Because we've improved our Mustang's engine, suspension and brakes, we don't want to hold those improvements back with anything less than performance wheels and tires, so we opted to upgrade the wheels to 17" billet alloy wheels and upgrade the tires to compatible high-speed radials. We selected the 17" aftermarket wheels partly because we want to, and partly because we needed to. The "need" part of the equation arises from the fact that our RRS disc brakes at the front of the car are so large that even a 15" steel wheel doesn't fit. We have to go 16" or larger.

Steve measures the dimensions of the new wheel rims.

On our Mustang we've got 215/45R-17's for the front for a nice low profile. On the back, in keeping with our wider rims, we're using 255/45R-17's, which are about an inch taller, for a total of 27" at the back and 26" at the front of the car. This combination really sets the car apart and gives it a muscular look.

Tools and materials:

regular shop tools
lug wrench
torque wrench

	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C

Installing the New Wheels and Tires

• Remove the old wheels and tires.

• Before installing new wheels, it's important to apply anti-seize compound to the wheel studs (figures A and B) to prevent galling and stripping the threads.

• The wheel goes on, slipping it onto the studs and our new polished lug nuts go on.

• Just snug them down until all the nuts are installed (figure C).

• Here's a little trick, you can spin the wheel to help thread the lug nuts on.

• To tighten the lug nuts, use a torque wrench set to 80 foot pounds, instead of an impact wrench, which can easily lead to over-tightening.

• Simply tighten until you hear the click of the tool.

• It's important to torque in a star pattern, to evenly distribute the pull-down on the brake rotor.

	Our completed Mustang (far left), among good company — a modern Mustang and a Shelby Cobra replica — at an auto swap meet.
	A 1966 Mustang convertible.

Note: This is a summary of steps included in the restoration procedures as shown in episode 310 of Classic Car Restoration. The steps seen in this demonstration are general guidelines for restoration procedures on this particular make and model of vehicle, and for the level of restoration selected for this project. There may be variations in procedures depending model, condition of vehicle, level of restoration undertaken and the types of replacement parts or upgrade kits selected. Always follow proper safety precautions, and read and follow manufacturer's guidelines, diagrams and safety notices that come with any replacement parts or kit that you select.

Safety Alert: As a standard safety precaution, don't rely solely on a jack to support the weight of a vehicle. When using a jack to access or work beneath a vehicle, always use jack stands for support. Make sure that the jack and stands that you use are rated for the weight and type of your vehicle.

RESOURCES :

Special resources for DIY's Classic Car Restoration 500 series: 1965 Mustang

Mustang Club of America
www.mustang.org

Mustang Central
vintage Mustang parts
www.mustangcentral.com

Motorbooks Publishing
www.motorbooks.com

Class-Tech-Cars
www.class-tech-cars.com

Holley Performance Products
www.holley.com

Flowmaster Exhaust Products
www.flowmastermufflers.com

Genuine Hot Rod Hardware
www.genuinehotrod.com

Revelation Racing Supply
www.rrs-online.com

National Parts Depot
www.npdlink.com

Classic Auto Air
www.classicautoair.com

Pertronix Performance Products
www.pertronix.com

Stainless Steel Brake Corp.
www.ssbrakes.com

Painless Performance Products
www.painlessperformance.com

Loctite Products
www.henkel.com

Paintucation
www.paintucation.com

Dupli-Color Paints
www.duplicolor.com

Norton Abrasives
www.nortonabrasives.com

Dremel Tools
www.dremel.com

Classic High Performance Audio
Product: audio equipment

Direct Source
www.the-direct-source.com
Product: stereo electronic equipment

Dakota Digital Instruments
www.dakotadigital.com
Product: digital dashboard

Mustang Project
www.mustangproject.com
Product: LED sequential taillight system

GUESTS :

Kevin Tetz
paintucation.com
Paintucation.com specialized in automotive body, paint and restoration services and instructional restoration videos.