VolvoHeretic
VolvoHeretic SuperDork
3/22/25 6:14 p.m.

I saw this 16" steel wheel in Hot Rod Magazine in an article about the 2018 Bonneville Speed Weeks Record holding Team Vesco Terminator II Turbine powered wheel driven car. I can't prove it now but I'm positive I remember it's a 16" diameter (steel?) wheel which would make a great wheel center for the inner rear dually wheel for my 8 wheeled super car after welding it into a Diamond Racing 16x9" rim shell. It sure appears to be a commercially manufactured wheel but I have never seen anything like it. 

Any ideals? 

https://www.hotrod.com/features/streamliner-showdown-chase-hot-rod-trophy-bonneville-speed-week/

 

stuart in mn
stuart in mn MegaDork
3/22/25 7:35 p.m.

Superfast Matt just had a video on YouTube that had some interesting information on the Vesco car.  I think he touched on the wheels and they were custom built for the car - you'd have to watch the video to be sure (it's a good video even if it doesn't answer the question.)

GameboyRMH
GameboyRMH MegaDork
3/22/25 8:25 p.m.
VolvoHeretic
VolvoHeretic SuperDork
3/22/25 8:56 p.m.

In reply to GameboyRMH :

Thanks a million for that video link! Back in 2018 I emailed Team Vesco Racing but it either got lost in their spam box or they thought I was some crackpot (I am). At least I now have a good photo of the wheel in question and I knew back then that they had custom aluminum wheels built. smiley

Pete. (l33t FS)
Pete. (l33t FS) MegaDork
3/22/25 10:02 p.m.

That looks a LOT like the spare tire's wheel for an S60R/V70R.  It's not the actual wheel because the Volvo wheel is alloy and has more spokes, but it is an extreme offset wheel like that, with a very weird shaped bell to clear the brakes.

I wonder if any cars that came OE with 4 piston calipers have steel temporary spares shaped like that.

VolvoHeretic
VolvoHeretic SuperDork
3/23/25 8:08 a.m.

This is what I dreamt up back in 2010. The plan was to have a 0.25" band of 6061 T0 aluminum rolled up, the ends machined round, and then welded to the 0.375 center and rim shell, before finally tempering to T6 strength. (I think)

The Idea was to build a GM based IRS using a Toronado/Eldorado front spindle and have the dually wheels centered over the hub bearings or maybe the spindle Steering Axis Inclination (SAI) intersection with the ground. The spindles would be attached to a home made 9" welded up box center section using shortened stock axles and housing ends. The hub end to end center section width would be something like 17.5" and attach to S10 length half shafts with a 0.5" adapter. Overall width outside tire to outside tire would be something like 82". 

Obviously it would definitely be a lot easier and cheaper to just use the Vesco wheel instead. That steel wheel won't work if I used a C5 spindle because the spindle is too tall to bury inside a 16" wheel.

It's hard to remember because it's been a long time and I never wrote things down.

Next is to rethink the bonded on aluminum body skins and glass after watching Melon's Cybertruck shed it's SS skin.

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