1960s New tires and vented hubcaps update

[Steve W]

Well...a little delay in posting due to the car needing a just little more work.

The Hankook whitewall Kinergy tires I bought (P235 75 R15) actually arrived next-day! So, I took them and the car to the shop, and left it there for them to mount and balance and do a front end alignment. They called me to come down and take a look at something on my front suspension.

Now, I had already done some work on the front end (sway bar bushings, sway bar ends, strut rod bushings, shocks, idler arm) and I knew that a few other things needed to be done. They showed me my center drag link was shot...and it needed the left outer tie rod, and all 4 upper control arm bushings. So, I ordered all the parts and had them do the work. (Not that I'm lazy...but  since my accident, I'm just not comfortable clibing in and out from under the car while its on jack stands anymore. For simple things, OK, but for the bigger jobs, no.)

While I was waiting for the parts to arrive and the work on the car to be done, I had posted here about vented hubcaps for cars with front disc brakes...and I found a pretty decent set on eBay. So, I ordered them, and when they arrived I was pleasantly surprised...pretty darn nice!

But the thing that bothered me a little is the same thing that I didnt like about my original hubcaps...the black (or more like dark charcoal gray) detail paint in the rings wearing off in random spots.

Now I really like the overall design of the hubcaps, so I decided to polish the black lines off the caps, and I REALLY like the way they came out. I left the satin parts satin-y and just polished the rest with Mothers and 0000 steel wool. They really shine and the rings, without the paint, add a sort of multi-facted effect in the sunlight. I Like 'em!

I actually received 4 vented hubcaps, but I've been told that our cars, when ordered with front disc brakes, only had the front two hubcaps with vents, and the back ones solid. So...I picked the best two vented, and my best two originals and polished them all out!

Then, when I got the car back with my new tires and suspension work done, I installed the hubcaps and went for a ride. I LOVE the look, the tires are great...no noise, good ride and with the suspension work, the car handles better than ever!

So, overall I'm happy. What I'm not too happy about is each tire seems to have a little spot in the whitewall that looks almost like a blem. I contacted the shop I bought them from and we'll see what they say. But I'm not too concerned, after all, my car is full of blems...and so am I! And these tires, even though they were not expensive, are far better than the ones I took off!

So..I'm good! Wanna see 'em?: