7.25 rear from 5x4” to 5x4.5” bolt pattern

[Ruinnations]

I posted this in another thread but thought it might be easier for someone searching in the future to find in a thread specifically about this.

I recently swapped axles in a 7.25 rear from being 4” bolt pattern to 4.5” using axles and drums that I bought from Doctor Diff. The axles have the 4 bolt flange and slid right in. He also sold the 9” brake drums drilled for 4.5”. They have 1/2x20 wheel studs. I went with the 3” wheel stud option. As it turns out that is a bit overkill on length but the studs do hide under the dog dish hubcaps on my police wheels. The car is a 65 Valiant convertible slant 6 that originally had 9” drums all round. The front had the disk conversion done a while back and now the rear bolt pattern matches.

The hub diameter on the new axles is still setup for the small pattern wheels so hub rings might be worth looking into. Not sure if I am going to stick with the police wheels or go for an aftermarket wheel. The tires in the pictures are 215 60 15 and have plenty of room in the wheel well.

P.S. Some of you will notice that the brake setup is not 65 style. The rear is form a 73 duster that had 9” SBP brakes. Very similar brake setup but not exactly the same.

 

[Ruinnations]

Update on the project. Have driven about 75-100 miles on the new setup and all seems very good. Also updated the wheel and tire package on the car.

 

[JDMopar]

Looks great! 17" Torque Thrusts? Front tires clear the fenders ok while turning. I'm fixing a 65 Barracuda and will be going down the same road of looking for wheels & tires about this time next year.

 

[Ruinnations]

Looks great! 17" Torque Thrusts? Front tires clear the fenders ok while turning. I'm fixing a 65 Barracuda and will be going down the same road of looking for wheels & tires about this time next year.

Thanks

Yes 17x7 Torque Thrust ii Polished. Tires are 215 45 17
No rubbing when turning and plenty of room in the rear wheel openings. I have taken some hard corners to check for any rubbing when tire is leaning and turning. All good. My car is a slant 6 so 215 is more than wide enough to put the power to the ground.

For the wheel and tire calculators online I put the car in as a 1987 Dodge Diplomat. The option of modified to BBP 1965 valiant did not exist. I figured I had cop car wheels on the car, might as well put the cop car in the calculator.

 

[barracuda-67]

Thanks

Yes 17x7 Torque Thrust ii Polished. Tires are 215 45 17
No rubbing when turning and plenty of room in the rear wheel openings. I have taken some hard corners to check for any rubbing when tire is leaning and turning. All good. My car is a slant 6 so 215 is more than wide enough to put the power to the ground.

For the wheel and tire calculators online I put the car in as a 1987 Dodge Diplomat. The option of modified to BBP 1965 valiant did not exist. I figured I had cop car wheels on the car, might as well put the cop car in the calculator.

What backspacing did you specify for those 17x7 Torque Thurst ii wheels?

Thank you for all the detailed information and photos that you posted!

 

[libe415]

I’m updating my suspension on my 65 barracuda & looking for those same wheels. What backspacing are your?

 

[nktrnljerms]

Hey there, How are you liking your setup now after about 8-9 months in?

I have a 68 Barracuda convertible V8 Car and am looking to do a similar swap from the 4” to 4.5” bolt pattern as well.
Up Front and back conversion.

Back: How are the new drum brakes in the back?
Front: Drums or Disc Conversion? I can not tell from the picture you posted.

The car looks great and has a sweet stance BTW.

 

[Ruinnations]

I’m updating my suspension on my 65 barracuda & looking for those same wheels. What backspacing are your?

Sorry for the delay in response. The specs and part number are

American Racing Vintage Torq Thrust II 17x7 +0mm VN5057765

 

[Ruinnations]

Hey there, How are you liking your setup now after about 8-9 months in?

I have a 68 Barracuda convertible V8 Car and am looking to do a similar swap from the 4” to 4.5” bolt pattern as well.
Up Front and back conversion.

Back: How are the new drum brakes in the back?
Front: Drums or Disc Conversion? I can not tell from the picture you posted.

The car looks great and has a sweet stance BTW.

Thanks

The back drums are still the same 9” stock style drums just drilled for BBP.

The fronts were converted to disk with A proportioning valve and dual pot master before I got the car.

 

[Ruinnations]

I have lowered the front a bit more since the original posts. With the car as low as it is now I do get slight rub at full lock when hitting the bump backing out of my driveway. I don’t mind the slight rub. I think it is more a function of how low the car is than anything else.

 

[barracuda-67]

What backspacing did you specify for those 17x7 Torque Thurst ii wheels?

Thank you for all the detailed information and photos that you posted!

Following up on my own question (and thanks to all who posted on here on @Ruinnations ' thread!)

For our 1967 Barracuda:
I went with 16 inch rims and 225/50r16 tires.
5 x 4.50 in. Bolt Circle, 4 in. Backspace

American Racing VN215 Gray Classic Torq-Thrust II One-Piece Wheels VN2156765US​

Wheel, VN215 Classic Torq-Thrust II, Aluminum, Matte Gray, 16 in. x 7 in., 5 x 4.50 in. Bolt Circle, 4 in. Backspace

Wilwood front discs. Stock A-body drum spindles.

I will post all this elsewhere in a new thread along with photos.

Tire sizing:

	c	225/50r16		24.9 in outer dia	same dia as stock	-
YES, this is it!		Section width		8.9 in width	stock: 7.3
Notes July 2024		Rim width		6.0 - 8.5 in
		Sidewall height		4.4 in	may be ok - YES was OK!
		revs per mile:		836.74	+0.27% compared to stock

I originally purchased 15 inch Rallye wheels with the big bolt pattern 5 x 4.5, but the center hole was too small for Wilwood front disc spindles. So I went with American Racing wheels above and increased to 16 inch diameter.

I purchased 225/60r16 tires - but they did not fit. They severely clipped the lower edge of the front fenders. Rather than trim-back the fender by 1/2 inch (1 cm), I switched to 225/50r16 which are fine.