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68 Disc Brake option

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Bill Rose

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
In 68, power front disc brakes were an option on the SS-396 cars (J50/J52). Question: I would like to know if ALL disc brake cars came with ralley wheels.
I have a set of NOS full hubcaps and would like to put them on my 68 with power disc brakes if this is the way they came standard from the factory.
I've been told the ralley wheels were used b/c the holes in the wheels cool the brakes. Anyone know which wheel covers were standard with power front discs ???
 
#3 ·
Here's 71SSBB's rolling chassis with the NOS caps with 'SS396' centers:

http://www.chevelles.com/showroom/71SSBB/68chassis.jpg

I have a set just like that which came original on mine, though my '68 SS396 came with drum brakes on all corners. I believe that the disc brakes required 15" rims, which would leave 71SSBB's SS396 wheelcovers out in the cold.
 
#4 ·
I don't know the answer to your question, but i do know 69 SS camaros had disc brakes as standard equipment, but rally wheels were not included with the SS package. Standard wheels were plain steel 14x7s with dog dish caps... I would GUESS 68 Chevelles could have steel wheels/hubcaps with disc brakes too. also... I do know that in 69, wheels had to be 7" wide to fit cars with discs, as 6" wide wheels did not clear and were for drum brake only applications.
 
#5 ·
It must be the HOLIDAY season, but Joey and I agreed twice this month :D

I too feel that after 67, the 68 and up steel wheels came standard and if you wanted the Ralley Wheels, you had to BUY EM. which is different than in 67, when the Disc brake option was first offered and ralley wheels came with the disc brake option from the factory. The Steel wheels didn't work with the drums and discs in 67..but after 67, they redesigned the steel wheel, I believe...and so unless you also ORDERED the Ralleys with your Disc Brakes, you got the standard wheels and caps...which all boils down to Put the full caps on that Queen
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But...please, others feel free to correct me...I don't often cross over to the other side of town, and could very well be mistaken ;)
 
#7 ·
Holy crap!! Joey and Mike in agreement on a topic of discussion...isn't the Christmas season great! Now, both of you break at the bell and to your corner between rounds.

Seriously though...Happy Holidays to BOTH you guys!
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Discussion starter · #10 ·
Thanks guys for your input. The wheels that were on the car when I bought it were 15x8 ralley wheels (from a Vette I think) (if anybody wants them , let me know). The 68's have 4 piston caliper's so I think they need either ralley wheels, or steel wheels with extra room for caliper clearance. Standard 14x6 wheels don't work. I would think this is why they used 7 in. wheels in 69 like Joe said.
If I want to put the full hub caps on, I would have to either put the caps on the ralley wheels or find the original steel wheels that have room for the calipers. So I guess the search will begin for steel 14x7 steel wheels with enough room in them for 4 piston calipers...Maybe I'll get a letter off to Santa. Ya never know, he just might be a Chevelle guy... :D :D

Mike, Why don't you like the ralleys? I think they look good. Do you think the caps look more factory original. b/c there unique to a specific year???
 
#11 ·
I like the full face caps just cause you rarely see them on a 68 Chevelle, gives a more "showroom fresh" look than rallys which a gazillion 68's have. I hate to think we could be 3 for 3, but I bet this is why Mike likes 'em too. As for the wheels, i know the 14x7 69 steel wheels are coded XT, and are quite valuable, as they were used on COPO cars. They also made these in 70 as well, also coded XT. I know I have seen many vintage pics of 68 Camaro SS396 cars with steel wheels and dog dish caps, and i want to say that these too were coded XT.. the date codes would be the only thing separating 68,69, and 70 14x7 steel wheels. by the way, these could be found on just about ANY Chevrolet car with disc brakes, including station wagons, Impalas, etc... although people have been scrounging for XT code wheels for a decade already, so odds of finding a set for "next to nothing" is probably pretty slim.
 
#12 ·
Originally posted by 71SSBB:

Mike, Why don't you like the ralleys? I think they look good. Do you think the caps look more factory original. b/c there unique to a specific year???
Click to expand...
Honestly...I just get sick of seeing Ralley wheels on every Chevelle...guys with 66's put them on with RWL tires and flat caps like 67's, and 66's never got ralleys.... then the guys with 67's use them, even if their car didn't come with Disc brakes, and well...I guess the full caps, as seen on your rolling photo....just look so darn good with those Redlines, they say SS and yeah...just give it a more OLD Vintage look...but that's just me, I am sure a POLL would find many like the car with the ralley's and Derby caps. For now, throw the full caps on the car, with it now completed and take a pic. She will look sweet!

Post an add in the classifieds and CW and I bet you will get the correct Steel Wheels too ;)

Mike
 
#13 ·
So.....could you get a 15 inch Rally as an option in '68?? My '68 disc brake Elco has a set of 15's on it and am now wondering if i need to sell them and get 14X7's.....
 
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#14 ·
On a related note, depending on how "anal' youre trying to be with the car, you could easily use the 14x7 rallys that are easily obtained, and put the full covers over them... unless the car was on a lift, you'd never be able to tell, and even then it would be a fairly tough thing to spot... the reason XTs command so much money is that they are generally used with dog disch caps and no trim ring, which leaves the code exposed to the world... with a full face cap you'd never be able to see your 1000.00 set of XT codes anyhow.

FYI... in 1968 they offered a wire wheel hubcap for corvette as an option, but they actually installed them OVER 15x8 rally wheels from the factory. So if GM did it, surely you could! :D
 
#15 ·
Originally posted by BBElky:
So.....could you get a 15 inch Rally as an option in '68?? My '68 disc brake Elco has a set of 15's on it and am now wondering if i need to sell them and get 14X7's.....
Click to expand...
No, the only thing you could get a 15" wheel on in 68 from Chevrolet to my knowledge was the 68 Z28, and the Corvette... and nothing had 8" wheels besides the vette. By the way Mike, we agreed again.
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#17 ·
I believe that Rally Wheels were still standard with the disk brake option at the start of '68 production but later in the run they were no longer included. Rally Wheels did become optional on drum brake cars though at the start of the run. The 14x7 size wheels did not come out until the '69 models, they were still 14x6 in '68. In fact the only 7" rim used in '68 was exclusive to the new Corvette using 15x7 wheels (the 15x8 didn't come out until '69). Z28s & full sized cars used 15x6 Rally Wheels with the disk brakes while Chevelles, Novas and Camaros other than the Z28 used the 14x6 size. As I said, I believe that Rally Wheels were no longer included with the disk brake option somewhere late in the '68 run. I do not have specific proof to this claim however, just a lot of old articles over the years. I know Olds used plain steel wheels when you specified disk brakes.

In 1969 the Chevelle stayed with 14x6 Rally Wheels when they were specified, plus 15x7s were used on some of the COPO Chevelles that were used to create the Yenko SC Chevelle. Non-SS Camaros & Novas offered 14x6 Ralley Wheels, while the SS versions (plus the COPO Camaros)used 14x7s. The Z28 got 15x7s for '69, as did 4-wheel disk brake Camaros (not all 206 of the JL8 brake Camaros were Z28s) . The Big Chevy stayed with 15x6 but the Corvette went all out to 15x8 for 1969.

BTW those old turbine wheel covers on the '68 - '74 Corvettes were lifted from the Buick parts bin. They first appear on the '66 Riviera with spinners. They lost the spinners for '67 and used them through '69 (maybe '70, not sure). Chevy replaced the center Buick sheild emblem with the cross flag emblem and offered them on the Corvette to replace the previous year's bolt-on alloys. Big Chevies got them as an option in '69 when optional 15" wheels were used (all disk brake big Chevies used 15" wheels). In 1970 a 14" version of that wheel cover appeared as an option on Chevelles, Camaros & Novas. Monte Carlos used the 15" size (they used 15x7 Ralley Wheels as well, which is why you often hear the 15x7 Ralley Wheel referred to as Monte Carlo Rallies)
 
#18 ·
I didnt realize 68 Vettes didnt have 15x8s... my bad! So if there was no 14x7 steel wheel in 68, that would mean you HAD to get rallys with discs, correct? otherwise there would be no wheels that would fit... so all the old pics i see of 68 SS396/375 hp camaros with dog dishers and steelies are drum brake cars with 14x6 wheels? You couldnt get a disc brake car with anything but rallys until late 68 is what youre saying? Not arguing this, as i said from the beginning, I'm not sure myself on alot of 68 stuff...Some good info in that last post! i'd STILL run those full face caps under rallys if it were me... they're just too cool! Personally, I'd mount 'em on white stripe tires though, and REALLY freak everyone out!
 
Discussion starter · #19 ·
Believe it or not, I just went out to my shop and put a full SS cap on the 14 in. ralley wheel that is on the 68 ,and I didn't even have to take the derby cap off. Not to say I would want to do it that way, but the full caps fit right over the derby. Have to admit, I like the look of full wheel covers with SS396 in the center. The white wall thing I'm gonna have to pass on since I recently paid $600.00 for those red lines.
I appreciate the interest in this matter. To some it may seem trivial, but these are the kinds of things that keep me up at night... :confused: :confused:
 
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