Car wheels on a truck

[Spades]

Bought these wheels for my Mitsubishi Eclipse years ago, sold car last year but kept my wheels. Since ive been contemplating on getting some new wheels for my Sport Trac, it just dawned on me that 5x4.5 (Ford) bolt pattern is the same as 5x114 (Eclipse), but im wondering if there are design differences between cars and trucks.

I photoshopped my wheels onto other Sport Tracs to get a visual of how they would look as i was worried how car (tuner) wheels would appear on a truck

So...this weekend i test fitted the wheels onto my Sport Trac and found that they fit perfectly!! Even the hub was a dead-on fit with no need for lug-centric or hub-centric rings. I immediately bought tires for it and mounted only the rears to get a direct comparison versus stock on the fronts... Maybe i should have mounted on 1 side instead, rather than comparing front-rears, but here it is

You can see it fits flush on the rears compared to the fronts tucked way in

From front angle

And heres a pic of it on my Eclipse just before i sold it

 

[Mbrooks420]

I'd check the load rating of the wheels, but I think it'd be fine.

 

[Tech By Trade]

They look pretty good. I like it.

 

[toypaseo]

I'm really surprised the offset was compatible. They look good

 

[Spades]

I was concerned with the offset also, but i noticed the stock Sport Trac wheels look like they have a higher offset than my aftermarket wheels, so i went on with my test fitment... Im hoping to finish off the fronts this evening

Anyone know if there are manufacturing differences between car and truck wheels? I dont see any load ratings on the wheels, but I do see it on the tires.

 

[Tech By Trade]

-25mm to -44mm will fit. I run -25 Boss in the summer, and the stock -44mm rims with my winter tires. Here are my dirty old summer wheels

 

[blksn8k]

Here's mine with the wheels from my 99 Mustang Cobra which are forged aluminum vs the original cast Limited wheels.

 

[Tech By Trade]

I almost put cobra wheels on mine, the guy sold them before I could pick them up. Luckily I found the boss wheels for 200 bucks in the city that rhymes with fun. The cobra wheels look good too.

 

[Spades]

Finally made time this weekend to finish off the fronts

 

[Trac Marks]

Actually looks really good.

Does the OEM lug nut wrench fit inside the holes? I ran into a situation years ago with another vehicle. Installed new wheels and new lug nuts. Used my toolbox kept torque wrench and a standard socket to do the driveway install. Fast forward months later and got a flat hundred miles from home only to find out the lug wrench was too thick. And it was raining.

Whats the plan for your OEM 18s?

 

[07LTDDSM]

That Mitsu is gorgeous! GST? GSX?

 

[toypaseo]

Does the OEM lug nut wrench fit inside the holes? I ran into a situation years ago with another vehicle. Installed new wheels and new lug nuts. Used my toolbox kept torque wrench and a standard socket to do the driveway install. Fast forward months later and got a flat hundred miles from home only to find out the lug wrench was too thick. And it was raining.

I ran into that problem in the past on my Paseo with some aftermarket wheels. I needed a thin-wall socket. I looked online, they were maybe around $13, but I needed one ASAP. I went to Sears to see if they had anything. No, but then I noticed a deep well spark plug socket in the correct size. Since I could return it if it didn't fit, I bought one. It fit within the wheel lug opening. Took the rubber insert out and used it. Keep in mind that I did eventually split one from use, and that was at a lower torque than an Explorer, but that was from over eight years of at least twice-a-year use. Since I live over 80 miles from the nearest Sears, I bought a replacement from my local Carquest. Still thin-walled, and fit fine.

Is that deep well spark plug different than a thin-wall lug nut socket
Would a deep well socket split at the Explorer's torque spec

 

[Spades]

Trac Marks - I will certainly keep in mind about the lug wrench as that never even crossed my mind to check fitment. Thanks for the tip! .... I may consider selling or trade the stock wheels

LTDDSM - it is a 97 GSX