Fitting Weld Draglites 15X10 rims and MT ET radials on a fox WITH PICS

K.C.90gt

Founding Member
Jun 5, 2000
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Detroit Area, MI
I finally got my rims and tires fitted on my Fox and I must say, i was a little suprised at how close these were to the inner wheel wells. First off I searched and searched these forums before I bought these rims and tires to make sure I didn't run into any problems during install but I couldn't find much help with pictures, so I decided to put this up for everyone who wanted to know how a 15X10 inch rim 6.5" BS will fit on a fox. I got that rim and decided to go with the new MT ET Street Drag Radial 275/50/R15.
This is what I had to do to get these to fit:

1. MUST remove quad shock.
2. you have to pound the wheel wells by the spring perch and along the edge in front of that.
3. After endless pounding It was still rubbing, so I went out and bought 1/4" spacers and fit them on.
4. Parking brake cable had to be adjusted and secured with hose clamp to prevent from rubbing on rim.

I did not have to roll fender lips at all like I thought I would (so far), this is probably because I went with Moroso Trick Drag springs in the rear. It sits up much higher than stock.

If I had a chance to redo this again, I would have went with the 15X10 5.5" BS. I will include some pics now to show you the fitment BEFORE I added the 1/4" spacers and while still on jacks(no spring load).

Wheels on with car on stands:
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Rear shot:
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View looking from infront of the rear tire looking up at the spring perch(drivers side), notice the pounded metal:
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Another view from same angle, notice how close it is, when dropped down off stands it would rub here... had to put on spacers because If I pounded anymore it would pinch the spring in the perch and I wouldn't be able to get it out.
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After all that I got the things to finally fit on there with the spacers but they still are very close, and I think the passengers side might still be rubbing but I didn't have a chance to look at it tonight. In conclusion, It can be done, BUT if I would have went with the 325/50/15 tires that I first planned on using that it would have been almost impossible I think, because it has a section width of 13 inchs instead of the 11 inches the 275 has. I might not have pounded as much as other people or not because I cant really compare since no one else shows pics of their beat up fenderwells, but anyway it was a pain. I think I know now why most people end up going with the 15X8 4.5BR with the 275 tires because it probably fits a little better. Well, there you have it, it is late and I can't really think of much else to say, so if you need to know anything else, just let me know and ill be glad to answer.

OH and here are some shots of the car with them on. (15X3.5, 15X10 6.5"BS)
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It looks nice -- but you have more pounding to do. Get a 3-4 pound mini-sledge and go to town. Work your way all around the wheelwell -- you will probably find the hardest part around where the shock goes -- probably where the spring sits as well. You can move it in quite a bit and gain a lot of clearance. This is most important for when they start to bulge out some depending on the pressure you run.

For comparison, I have 15x10's - 6.5" BS, 26x11.50 ET Streets. I have run this same setup on two cars now with no spacers and no rubbing after pounding. You may need to do the fenderlips as well depending on how much the car squats.
 
Anything worthwhile takes effort....

Thanks for posting this thread. I am planning on some 15x10's for the rear but was nervous for good reasons. Not only does that look mean, but maby you'll be able to snag below a 2 second 60 now. Also, every other foxbody you see with welds on it will have 8" and you'll be thinking "muhahaha" and they will be thinking "wow, how did he do dat".

I plan on possible mini-tubbing mine. If not that I'll probally just do a coil over conversion in the back but by first welding a bar across the rear up top and then welding the coil over strut bracket to the axel, then welding the top bracket to the bar, so it will be closer on the inside. Then I can cut in there wider. I may have to cut and weld a little sheet matal, but I think it'll be worth it.
 
You did a good job and they look great! Anyway you look at it, there's no easy way to get a big tire in the back. I didn't want to pound my metal, so I went with Air Lift's air bags and 295-50-15's. The rim isn't as wide, but I like the size of the tires.
 
A 325/50/15 will fit on a 15" x 10" 6.5" backspace wheel on a fox body, without rubbing.

You'll need that mini sledge and a torch (not a little propane torch) and you will need to Heat n' Beat till your arm feels like it will fall off. They will fit with no spacers or rubbing.
 
thanks guys for the good comments.. i really love the way they look too.. I drove around and checked them again and i dont think I will have any rubbing issues. I still dont know about the fender lips though because I haven't finished my front suspension yet and launching with them yet. Oh and I do have Pro3i race spherical bushing lower control arms already on there, but I may need some new uppers, I'll just have to see when I done with the front, because right now I cant really drive around with it like this because my intercooler is literally an INCH off the ground. Anyway, here is a REAR shot for all the people that wanted to see. :D

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I was hoping to fit 15x10's w/ 6.5" backspacing and 275/50 BFG's on the back of my GT by flipping the quad shock...is this possible at all? I don't think I'll have the money for upper/lower control arms and all of that stuff right now. Anyone get them to fit by flipping the quad shock and trimming the boot? I know 90MustangGT said something about trimming the boot one time.

Thanks for the pics K.C.! That looks awesome and that ass shot is priceless :hail2: That's what makes me want to do it so bad :D

Hissing Cobra: What kind of air bags do you have, where did you get them and how much would it cost for one for each side?

Rick: What kinda torch are we talking here? How much is a good torch that'll heat it up enough?
 
TheUser said:
I was hoping to fit 15x10's w/ 6.5" backspacing and 275/50 BFG's on the back of my GT by flipping the quad shock...this this possible at all? I don't think I'll have the money for upper/lower control arms and all of that stuff right now. Anyone get them to fit by flipping the quad shock and trimming the boot? I know 90MustangGT said something about trimming the boot one time.

Rick: What kinda torch are we talking here? How much is a good torch that'll heat it up enough?

The rims absolutely won't fit WITH the quadshocks and 6.5" BS -- at least as I recall. I think I tried measuring them up once and they wouldn't even bolt on. You can go with 5.5" BS, but that will cause fenderlip nterference under hard launches.

The kind of torch you need for heating up the metal enough to stretch it is an oxy-acetaline (?) -- basically a big cutting torch. Not something you swing by the hardware store and pick up.
 
89MustangGX said:
The rims absolutely won't fit WITH the quadshocks and 6.5" BS -- at least as I recall. I think I tried measuring them up once and they wouldn't even bolt on. You can go with 5.5" BS, but that will cause fenderlip nterference under hard launches.

The kind of torch you need for heating up the metal enough to stretch it is an oxy-acetaline (?) -- basically a big cutting torch. Not something you swing by the hardware store and pick up.

But they are so much fun!!! You can pick one up at home depot for about $275, small tanks but they get the job done and it's protable. It's really fun to watch someone use one for the first time, it pops when it runs too lean and the novice operater nearly looses his rear main seal if you know what I mean. I think you can rent them a lot of places.

That just looks so incredibly mean from the back!!!!!!!!!!
 
TheUser said:
I was hoping to fit 15x10's w/ 6.5" backspacing and 275/50 BFG's on the back of my GT by flipping the quad shock...this this possible at all? I don't think I'll have the money for upper/lower control arms and all of that stuff right now. Anyone get them to fit by flipping the quad shock and trimming the boot? I know 90MustangGT said something about trimming the boot one time.

Thanks for the pics K.C.! That looks awesome and that ass shot is priceless :hail2: That's what makes me want to do it so bad :D

Hissing Cobra: What kind of air bags do you have, where did you get them and how much would it cost for one for each side?

Rick: What kinda torch are we talking here? How much is a good torch that'll heat it up enough?

hate to say it but I don't think it's possible to leave the quad shocks on because I already had mine flipped when I first tried to bolt up this rim and it hit the quad shock piston.. it was almost all the way on but not quite there.. so you will have to either ditch the quad shock or move it over where it bolts to the axle somehow which would probably take alot of work. If you look at the pic that shows my shock, you can see the bracket and bolt where the quad shock use to hook up too, that should give you an idea of why it wont fit. Thanks for the compliments too.