Post by casias on May 10, 2015 7:58:53 GMT -5
I had considered 5 lug conversion for a long time, but didn't go anywhere with the thought. It was brought up here, as well as by another member recently, so I decided to research this idea.
1) Rear axles are easy. Moser engineering, and just about every other axle manufacturer will custom make rear axles with whatever bolt pattern you want, provided it can be done. Moser charges about $400 shipped for a set.
2) What are the original dimensions of the Dakota R/T wheel? I chose this because that is what I have. The offset and bolt pattern are common to all 1998-2004 dakota and durangos. The wheel is 17X9, with an offset of 25 mm (I didn't measure this, but found it consistent on a few reliable sources). The bolt pattern is 6 X 114.3 (6 X 4.5).
3) What about backspace? It depends on the width and offset of the wheel you choose, but anything over about 4.5 inches will clear stock calipers and suspension components. Unless you plan on using a really narrow wheel, or extreme positive offset, this won't be something you need to consider.
4) Most important measurement often overlooked. CENTER BORE. The center bore on the dakota, and some other chrysler wheels is 71.5 mm. This allows the wheel to sit hub-centric on the hub, and carries the load. On a hub-centric setup, the lugs do not carry much load at all. They provide for shear and lateral forces.
5) What's available? Most vehicles, other than big trucks (Ram), have a 5 bolt pattern on about 4-5 inch diameter. Any of these patterns will work on the dakota or durango, so you want to pick something with a huge selection of wheels.
Decision time.
I decided to go with the chrysler 5 X 115 mm (5 X 4.52) bolt pattern. The LX platform (Charger, Challenger, 300, Magnum) all have 71.5 mm center bore. Choosing 5 X 114.3 (5 X 4.5) is much more prevalent, but most of the wheels available have a smaller center bore. Some wheels can be opened up, some cannot.
Review this chart from roadkill customs. Start with the center bore on the right side, and you will see very few, and mostly undesirable, vehicles have 5 X 4.5 with a 71.5 center bore.
www.roadkillcustoms.com/hot-rods-rat-rods/Wheel-Bolt-Pattern-Cross-Reference-Database.asp?LugCount=5&StudSpreadInch=&StudSpreadMM=114.3#axzz3Zdvog7lg
So moving on with my decision. The LX platform also has 1) similar weight, offset of 15-25 mm, and a huge selection of custom wheels. So here is what I did.
Hopefully you have replaced your front hubs at least once. The original cast steel hubs are not suitable for changing the bolt pattern. The chinese hubs are milled pieces from much more durable steel (I know, right?).
So a sent a pair to Moser Engineering (Medium flat rate box, $10 shipping). They welded and redrilled the hubs, and lathed both sides to a smooth finish without runout.
I had slightly longer, and larger studs pressed in. These are GM studs (Dorman 610-428). I like the rounded nose that acts as a guide.
If you are choosing the 5 X 115 bolt pattern to use charger or challenger wheels, use M14-1.5 lugs. (Dakota lugs are 1/2 inch).
As far as the rotor. I searched for hours to come up with an off-the-shelf rotor, but called no joy. I did find that autozone has DIMENSIONS for every one of their duralast rotors online. This was very helpful.
So I redrilled a set of rotors, using a template I found online.
So there you have it. I usually don't post threads unless they are done, but I won't be using these for awhile.
1) Rear axles are easy. Moser engineering, and just about every other axle manufacturer will custom make rear axles with whatever bolt pattern you want, provided it can be done. Moser charges about $400 shipped for a set.
2) What are the original dimensions of the Dakota R/T wheel? I chose this because that is what I have. The offset and bolt pattern are common to all 1998-2004 dakota and durangos. The wheel is 17X9, with an offset of 25 mm (I didn't measure this, but found it consistent on a few reliable sources). The bolt pattern is 6 X 114.3 (6 X 4.5).
3) What about backspace? It depends on the width and offset of the wheel you choose, but anything over about 4.5 inches will clear stock calipers and suspension components. Unless you plan on using a really narrow wheel, or extreme positive offset, this won't be something you need to consider.
4) Most important measurement often overlooked. CENTER BORE. The center bore on the dakota, and some other chrysler wheels is 71.5 mm. This allows the wheel to sit hub-centric on the hub, and carries the load. On a hub-centric setup, the lugs do not carry much load at all. They provide for shear and lateral forces.
5) What's available? Most vehicles, other than big trucks (Ram), have a 5 bolt pattern on about 4-5 inch diameter. Any of these patterns will work on the dakota or durango, so you want to pick something with a huge selection of wheels.
Decision time.
I decided to go with the chrysler 5 X 115 mm (5 X 4.52) bolt pattern. The LX platform (Charger, Challenger, 300, Magnum) all have 71.5 mm center bore. Choosing 5 X 114.3 (5 X 4.5) is much more prevalent, but most of the wheels available have a smaller center bore. Some wheels can be opened up, some cannot.
Review this chart from roadkill customs. Start with the center bore on the right side, and you will see very few, and mostly undesirable, vehicles have 5 X 4.5 with a 71.5 center bore.
www.roadkillcustoms.com/hot-rods-rat-rods/Wheel-Bolt-Pattern-Cross-Reference-Database.asp?LugCount=5&StudSpreadInch=&StudSpreadMM=114.3#axzz3Zdvog7lg
So moving on with my decision. The LX platform also has 1) similar weight, offset of 15-25 mm, and a huge selection of custom wheels. So here is what I did.
Hopefully you have replaced your front hubs at least once. The original cast steel hubs are not suitable for changing the bolt pattern. The chinese hubs are milled pieces from much more durable steel (I know, right?).
So a sent a pair to Moser Engineering (Medium flat rate box, $10 shipping). They welded and redrilled the hubs, and lathed both sides to a smooth finish without runout.
I had slightly longer, and larger studs pressed in. These are GM studs (Dorman 610-428). I like the rounded nose that acts as a guide.
If you are choosing the 5 X 115 bolt pattern to use charger or challenger wheels, use M14-1.5 lugs. (Dakota lugs are 1/2 inch).
As far as the rotor. I searched for hours to come up with an off-the-shelf rotor, but called no joy. I did find that autozone has DIMENSIONS for every one of their duralast rotors online. This was very helpful.
So I redrilled a set of rotors, using a template I found online.
So there you have it. I usually don't post threads unless they are done, but I won't be using these for awhile.
