libre wheels

[trisha]

Do the 14x 5.5 libre wheels work on the 240z and are there 14x6or 7 libres available

[Arne]

I believe that the only 14" size was 5.5" wide. They work on Zs quite fine, assuming you are OK with moderately narrow rubber.

[trisha]

Thanks for the info. I am Ok with that size as I dont push the car to hard,generally just cruise and I like that classic 70's look.

[veritech-z]

What offset? Are you using stock suspension and brakes? Offhand, I'd be tempted to say yes, but if you don't have those wheel specs handy you may have to do a test fit.

In general, on a stock-type suspension/brake (meaning no adjustable coilovers-these are usually narrower and give you a bit more clearance) S30, you can have 4.5" of backspace (backspace is a term that describes the distance from the mounting flange of the wheel[the part that touches the hub when you bolt it on] to the rear edge of the wheel) before you run into strut clearance issues. In order for that wheel to be a problem, it would have to be a pretty high offset, which it's probably not...

Knowing that information about your Z (maximum backspace is 4.5"), you can figure out if any wheel of known specifications will fit on your car. The way you do that goes like this: take the advertised width of the wheel and add 1" (this will account for the lip on either side of the bead). Divide that in half, this gives you the backspace at 0 offset. (in the case of your 5.5" wheel: add 1", so now it's 6.5". Divide this in half, and you get 2.75"-so no problems there assuming they are 0 offset). Now offset is usually given to you in millimeters, so you'll have to do some conversions to figure out the rest, but it's not that hard (in google you just type in XXmm to in and it will give you the result you need). Positive offset (+30 for instance) means that the mounting flange of the wheel is moved towards the outside edge (away from the center of the car), and negative offset (-19 for instance) means that it is moved towards the center of the car (usually resulting in a deeper lip depending on wheel style). If you are given an offset of say +12, convert that to inches (about .5") and ADD it to your backspace number. If it's still less than 4.5", your good, if no, you'll need as much spacer as it will take to get your backspace back to 4.5". If you are given a negative offset (-12), then SUBTRACT that from your backspace, and start worrying about if you need fender flares or not. I've never taken any front spacing measurements, so I can't be much help there. My personal wheels stick out a bit, but I don't mind, it's not too dramatic. I've got Impul Hoshino Racing RS-III's in +38 offset, so I needed a 1.25" adapter to make them work like 0 offset.

So in short, a 5.5" wheel of almost any offset should fit, assuming you don't have brake clearance issues. Hope that answers your question?

[Victor Laury]

Trish, They work. They are most likley 14X5.5 @+15 A little "Tucked in" looking. That fitment is very popular for the Datsun Roadsters. Use them until you can find the Z fittment - 14X7 @0, then sell them to a Roadster owner to fund your purchase.

[Carl Beck]

Do the 14x 5.5 libre wheels work on the 240z and are there 14x6or 7 libres available

The Libre wheels work on the 240-Z. None were available for the 240-Z wider than 5.5 inch wide.

I have American Racing Libre's on both my 72 240-Z's - wouldn't have anything else. You can run 185R70's or 195R70's (one or two sizes larger than stock) on them with no problem.

FWIW,

Carl B.

[Victor Laury]

Trish - I thought they had 7'' Libras. Obviously I'm incorrect

[Arne]

Trish - I thought they had 7'' Libras. Obviously I'm incorrect

Victor, I'm also pretty certain that American Racing didn't make true Libres wider than 5.5", but I seem to recall seeing the same style from other manufacturers in the 7" wide. Not common, but I suspect there may still be a few out there.

[trisha]

Thanks for your help everyone. I found out the wheels I'm looking at are currently on a 510 so now I'm really unsure. Do you know where on the wheel (if possible) does it show the offset.

[veritech-z]

It's usually stamped on the back somewhere if it's there at all. A lot of times it will either be on the back of one of the spokes, or it will be in a recess on the back of the mounting flange between the lug nut holes. You can see the size information stamped on the back of this Advan Rally wheel I took from an eBay ad. You can see it says: 15X6JJ (the JJ tells you what the bead is shaped like-extrenious information for your purposes) 45 (which means it's +45 offset, negative usually has a little "-" on it) right there in between the bolt holes.

In an attempt to get some clarification about the available wheel sizes, I got this from a google search. No help on the size avaliability, but interesting none the less: http://www.zparts.com/zptech/comparisons/wheels/pages/are_vs_noname_back.html

[BR-Z]

Libre's were offered in the 14 x 5.5 (as several have mentioned above) and were (are) run on Datsun roadsters as well as z's. There is a 7" wide version of the Libre that is ONLY offered in the 13" diameter. These 13x 7's are probably most famous for being run on the 70-73 trans-am era Datsun 510's, particularly the BRE car driven by John Morton. The 13x7's won't fit 240z fronts, as they contact the backing plate. They do fit the rear of a 240z (with stock drums).

[7T1240]

I believe that the only 14" size was 5.5" wide. They work on Zs quite fine, assuming you are OK with moderately narrow rubber.

The Libre wheels work on the 240-Z. None were available for the 240-Z wider than 5.5 inch wide.

I have American Racing Libre's on both my 72 240-Z's - wouldn't have anything else. You can run 185R70's or 195R70's (one or two sizes larger than stock) on them with no problem.

FWIW,

Carl B.

Well guys, now you've piqued my interest to the point where I can't wait to go to work tomorrow (if you can imagine that!). You see, my Libre's are in storage down at work, and for the life of me I remember them being 14 x 6's. Now you've got me wondering. I made an earlier post when I got them back from being refinished:

http://classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20025

They're definitely American Racing wheels (see attached photos). I'll check tomorrow and let you know. Edit - Sorry, for whatever reason I cannot upload a photo right now.

Gary S.