Just running them out back eh? If so, you will definitely need wider fenders. The offset looks more suited for a Buggy. I like the wheels thought. Perhaps searching for those fibreglass widened stock fenders on thesamba.com or alike will be a good thing. I have seen 2 inch fenders on Hotvdub magazine for about the same as a pair of stock metal fenders.
If you're good at body work, then you can play with the fenders and stretch them a bit while keeping them stock looking.
From the jbugs listing: "These wheels are 2 1/2 inches wider than stock and will NOT fit under stock VW fenders"
Actually they're 3" wider than any stock 5-lug bug rim, but the salient question here is, where were the 3" added?
You need to know the backspace (or offset "ET" number)...it's possible to get 7" rims under stock fenders, if they have more offset than stock so more of the added width goes inboard (limited by springplate clearance). Since jbugs says these won't fit under stock fenders, one would assume they don't have enough offset. However, when a car is slammed to the extreme yours is the wheels tend to "tuck" inside the rear fenders and may only hit them when the car is jacked up, so they just might be OK (rear) for you.
Stock 4" rims are ET40. Add 3" in width at the same offset, and 1½" goes in while 1½" goes out. If they were ET30, for example, there'd be 10mm less to the outside and 10mm more to the outside...vise-versa for ET50.
Too much offset/backspace can be solved easily with spacers, but too little is a big problem.
It'd be nice if jbugs would simply list the offset so you could predict for yourself if they'll fit....
Assume these rims have the same backspace as stock and the entire extra 3" is outboard - looks to me like you've got that much room to your fenders at the present ride height. If you have a stock 4" rim with no hubcap clips, you could bolt it up backwards temporarily to confirm that (do not drive it this way more than aroung the block, the lugbolts will tend to work loose). This yields a difference of a little over 80mm, moving the outer sidewall about 3¼" towards the fender.
You've got several choices in tire size/profile. 195/65, 205/65, 215/60 and 225/60 are all pretty close to stock diameter (won't change gearing significantly) and will all fit OK on a 7" rim. There are shorter tires too (55, 50, etc. aspect ratio). Obviously the narrower tires will give more fender clearance, but they'll also have a stiffer sidewall - good for handling, but less-forgiving of the extreme negative camber you're running...they'll tend to wear out faster on the inner edge than a wider tire with a little less air pressure in it would. The 65-series sidewalls are taller than the 60-series, too, though. The 205/65 would probably be the most practical choice but far from the only one.
I'm thinking they will fit. but yeah i'll try to put her down with the oem 4incher in reverse. So if i'm understanding it right..this extra 80mm(3.15inches will give me the 7inches...correct?
They have about the same backspace as the stock 4" rim, then. From those backspace/frontspace measurements the offset is a couple millimeters negative.
hrtburn wrote:So if i'm understanding it right..this extra 80mm(3.15inches will give me the 7inches...correct?
That's the way I figure it. Backspace is always measured to the lugbolt plane (dirty side of the rim center where it contacts the drum); frontspace should be measured to the same point. When you flip the stock rim you change the offset by 80mm plus the thickness of the center so the outside should come out just under 4" from the drum, like the 7" rim.
Marc wrote:They have about the same backspace as the stock 4" rim, then. From those backspace/frontspace measurements the offset is a couple millimeters negative.
It just means that there's slightly more frontspace than backspace.
As for fender width, if you've got over 3" of tire-to-fender clearance with a stock 4" rim (or any at all with a stock 4" rim bolted up backwards) then the 7" rims will probably work with stock fenders, provided the tires aren't too wide or square-shouldered...but I suspect they'll rub when the axle droops as when the car is jacked up or you go over a whoop-de-doo in the road.
Most vehicles use rims with positive offset, which keeps the tire contact patch somewhat inboard so that the load is shared by both wheel bearings rather than the outer having to do all the work. Swingaxle VWs only have one bearing, but it will last longer this way too. On the front this also reduces the scrub radius which eases steering effort and reduces the tendency for the car to dart from side to side as the tires encounter bumps in the road. With the kind of negative camber that nuno has, the outer half of the tread is just going along for the ride anyway - it won't see any load except in cornering - so no-offset or negative-offset rims aren't going to make much difference...especially since when a swingaxle is lowered to that extreme the only time the wheel bearings receive any lubrication is in a hard corner, so they're already doomed to a short lifespan.
