Copyright ©2010 by Calli Tire & Wheel LLC
The wire wheels we sell are true knock-off wheels. Meaning the wheels are held on the vehicle by the knock-off, which is attached to adapters. Adapters are attached to the vehicle by lug nuts.
The spokes on these wire wheels are sealed on the inside with silicone and do not require any tube in the tire. Be careful to never to hit or cut this silicone, or your wheels will leak. These wheels are used on daily driver vehicles all the time without any problem. Because of the silicon seal, and should damage occur, for liability reasons only, we say that these wheels are recommended for car show use only. That said, we have been selling wire wheels since 2003 without any problems.
These Wire Wheels come in two offsets: Standard and Reverse offset. These two offsets are designed for vehicles that take a low, such as +13mm offset, to a medium +20mm offset wheel. These low offset vehicles are mostly Rear Wheel Drive. If your vehicle takes a high offset wheel, such as +35mm, it is most likely Front Wheel Drive, but not always. One example is Mercedes, their cars take a high offset wheel but rear wheel drive. If your vehicle is front wheel drive and takes a high offset wheel, Standard and especially Reverse offset will stick out past the vehicle's fender, and could rub, hit, or not allow the vehicle to turn.
We Do Not Sell any Front Wheel Drive (FWD) offset wire wheels. You may go with a Standard offset wire wheel, but again, the vehicle might require modifications to keep from rubbing and may require mud flaps to be legally driven on some roads. The reason We Do Not Sell FWD wire wheels is that the spokes are closer to the lip of the wheel, which causes two problems. One being the silicon can be very easily damaged during installation and under certain driving conditions (curbs, pot holes, etc). The second is that it is very difficult to get the tire's bead to seat properly, as it tends to hang up on the silicone.
The following definitions of Standard and Reverse (Deep Dish) offset only apply to low offset vehicles:
Standard offset wheels will sit inside the wheel well area, similar to your vehicle's stock wheels. Standard offset wheels have a small lip, and the spokes are closer to the front of the wheel.
Standard Offset Wheel, below. Front and Back sides
 |
 |
Reverse Offset is often called Deep Dish. Reverse offset wheels have a big lip because the spokes sit further back in the wheel. On some vehicle's reverse offset/deep dish wheel might stick out past the fender well of the vehicle.
Reverse (Deep Dish) Offset Wheel, below. Front and Back sides
 |
 |
Back Spacing Information, as measured in the pictures above, is:
13x5.5 Standard = 3.25" (Approx).
13x5.5 Reverse (Deep Dish) = 1.90" (Approx)
14x6 Reverse (Deep Dish) is approx. 1-1/4"
15x6 Reverse (Deep Dish) is approx. 1-3/4"
13x7, 14x7, and 15x7 Reverse (Deep Dish) is approx. 1-7/8"
13x7, 14x7, and 15x7 Standard offset is appox. 3-5/8"
14x6 and 15x6 Standard offset is approx. 2-7/8"
15x8 Standard offset is approx. 4-1/4"
15x8 Reverse (Deep Dish) offset is approx. 2-1/2"
15x10 Standard is approx 4-7/8"
15x10 Reverse (Deep Dish) is approx 2-7/8"
There are 4 (four) wheel adapters, two are red, and two are white. When you sit inside the vehicle, the driver's side is the left side and the passenger side is the right. The red adapters go on the right side of the vehicle, and the white adapters go on the left side.
CRITICAL/IMPORTANT: RED right/passenger - WHITE left/driver
Once the adapters are installed, you slide the wheel onto the adapter. Make sure the teeth on the adapter and the wheel lock together. If you have disc brakes, please check the clearance around the brake caliper; you might have to use a wheel spacer. Be careful if you are going with a wheel size smaller than your stock wheel size. Let's say you have a 15" stock wheel and you want to put a 14" wire wheel. If the brake caliper fits inside the entire 15" stock wheels, then a 14" wheel will not fit.
If everything is ok, then you screw on the knock-off/center piece. Each knock-off is also labeled Right and Left or has an "R" for right side or "L" for left side. Tighten the knock-off with the lead hammer, or the tool and a mallet (for bullet or hex knock-off).
After the first day of driving, you should make sure all four knock-offs are still tight, then check them regularly. If, for some reason, they do come loose, either from mixing up the left and right side adapters and/or knock-offs, the teeth on the wheel and adapter will be damaged, or even worse, the wheel can come off.
