Wheel upgrade.... | Tires and Wheels (2024)

Not that my opinion would matter, but either of the two factory wheels would look the best and have the best chance of proper fitment.

Your choice of the Klutch SL14 isn't a bad one, but to be honest (again, my personal opinion) the lip machines with the face done in Charcoal would be a way I would go.

I am GLAD the Ansen doesn't come in a size you can use. It doesn't fit the overall style of the car and (to me) looks horrid on the car. Dad had a set on his truck, and they fit the truck style well enough. The bad part was he had to clean them EVERY DAY for them to look nice. He got terribly tired of it, so I etched them with chromic acid and then treated them with aviation-grade alodine. He changed wheels a few years later, just so he didn't have to deal with the Ansens anymore.

_________________________
'08 CVPI: Peelformance White, mostly stock with 176,500 on the clock right now. Mods coming as money, time, and shop space allow. Right now; Metco arms and Watts arms, 3.73s, Addco 650 rear/Addco 2196 front sway bars, front bar lock collars, 2015 Mustang GT 19" wheels, ADTR adjustable coil-over kit, Big Brake front brake upgrade on fresh spindles/hubs, SPC front Camber bolt kit. JModded valve body and Marty 91 Tune.
Awaiting install: Chin spoiler and Marauder deck lid spoiler, 75mm throttle body and SR Performance plenum, long-tube headers and full exhaust,Focus Fogs and relay mods. Previous owner added Tan MGM split bench front seats. (Lost to drowning in Hurricane Sally, Sept 15th 2020)

'07 CVPI. Agency repaint to what looks like Windveil Blue, also riding on Mustang 18" wheels. 168,000 and in serious need of suspension work.

'97 Lincoln MKVIII: Lots of mods and still modding.

'88 Thunderbird TurboCoupe: Ugly but lots of mods happening.

'84 Mustang GT Turbo: lifelong (it seems) project.

My car is garaged every night, but having to tend constantly to wheels like the AR Ansen would drive me nuts even if I don't mind the way it looks (to each his own). They would also look much better if they were machined or hyper silver rather than polished alloy.

There are a multitude of wheels out there that will fit the CrownVic, but personal taste being what it is I don't care for the vast majority of them. While I like the look of the Marauder I don't much care for the OEM rims. Ditto for the 17in. wheels that came standard on the LX Sport--they're were just rather blah and uninspired.

Trust me, I am all for a different wheel. If you look at my signature, you'll see quite a few cars there. They all wear different wheels from what someone would expect (except the '65 Dodge).

My CVPI wears 2015 Mustang 19" wheels (I did have 2014 Mustang GT 18" wheels under it, and everyone loved the look. However, I ran into several cars, and there are several cars here, with the same wheel).

My Lincoln MKVIII (Black car) wears 18" Halibrand Cobra Replica wheels (Chrome lips, HyperBlack faces, and chrome Lincoln center caps I machined myself).

The TurboCoupe wears 18" XXR 559s in Oiled Bronze finish (the car is Smoke Metallic with Black trim/thin red pinstriping in the body trim).

The Mustang TurboGT wore 18" FR500 replicas in Gloss Black webs with Chrome lips. I sold those wheels and tires (to a friend who's car actually ran) and now it has 17" 1994 Mustang GT Tri-bars (with the very tops of the spokes machined back flat) sporting 1996 Cobra center caps (I was trying to emulate the original TRX-style wheel).

The '65 Dodge wore 17" Torque Thrust D wheels with chrome outer lips and Magnesium colored centers (on a Gold car/Black top).

All of the other cars I have owned (and some I have built for others) have all pretty much wore distinctive wheels. So I really do get your desire to not be everyone else!

_________________________
'08 CVPI: Peelformance White, mostly stock with 176,500 on the clock right now. Mods coming as money, time, and shop space allow. Right now; Metco arms and Watts arms, 3.73s, Addco 650 rear/Addco 2196 front sway bars, front bar lock collars, 2015 Mustang GT 19" wheels, ADTR adjustable coil-over kit, Big Brake front brake upgrade on fresh spindles/hubs, SPC front Camber bolt kit. JModded valve body and Marty 91 Tune.
Awaiting install: Chin spoiler and Marauder deck lid spoiler, 75mm throttle body and SR Performance plenum, long-tube headers and full exhaust,Focus Fogs and relay mods. Previous owner added Tan MGM split bench front seats. (Lost to drowning in Hurricane Sally, Sept 15th 2020)

'07 CVPI. Agency repaint to what looks like Windveil Blue, also riding on Mustang 18" wheels. 168,000 and in serious need of suspension work.

'97 Lincoln MKVIII: Lots of mods and still modding.

'88 Thunderbird TurboCoupe: Ugly but lots of mods happening.

'84 Mustang GT Turbo: lifelong (it seems) project.

I have already dismissed them.

I have also dismissed the Aodhan and F1R wheels partly for similar reason as their offset of 35 on a 8.5 rim sticks out too much for my liking.

The remaining wheels all have 42 offsets available.

Here is another Photoshop effort with Mustang wheels at the top and Klutch wheels at the bottom. This view gives us another angle to see how these wheels might look. While I like both I think the Mustang wheels have the edge as the Klutch wheels look almost like they could have been a factory design (if Ford had been a bit more daring). Colour also has much to do with the overall look. On a car with a more vibrant colour (such as red or blue) the Klutch wheels would pop more. On a more subdued colour such as my car’s Spruce Green the Mustang wheels seem to work better. The Mustang wheels would also likely be more cost effective.

Also here is another wheel I could consider. This is the 2Crave MACH ME7 in 18x8 and available with 42 offset. And I must say I quite like it as it looks sportier and a bit more aggressive than the Klutch design. With tuner lugs (which I have on my current rims) I think this would look very nice.

Sometimes you just have to see something with your own eyes to get it.

I know what hyper silver is as it can sometimes look like bare metal under the right light reflections. My current DAI wheels are hyper silver—sometimes they look bright silver and sometimes they look like shiny metal.

I think I get what hyper black is—a base coat of black with a silver overcoat giving the surface a somewhat dark chrome look. But looking at pics online it’s not easy to get a real handle on what this looks like in person—sometimes it looks bright and near machined yet other times it’s darker. But it never looks black.

I don’t understand what chromium black is supposed to be. Is it something between black and hyper black? 🤨

Found it on YouTube. Apparently chromium black is (of course) definitely not black, but rather a gunmetal colour.

I was curious because I saw this colour on a rather cool looking wheel (XXR 556) I could have liked if it had been in a silver or machine finish. I am just not a fan of this trend in very dark coloured wheels.

Why did you go with spacers?

_________________________
Prairie Tan 1997 mercury grand marquis 290k, 90k engine installed at 270K 18 in mustang gt rims, 235/50/18 Pirelli p zero.

2016 Jeep Patriot 60k bought with 3 mile stock other than a KN filter

Those aren’t the same Mustang rims I’m looking at that are 18x8 with a 44 offset. Is the offset different on your wheels? What size spacers did you use?

Now you have me wondering if I might need spacers if I go with the Mustang wheels (which is where I’m leaning).

I made an error upthread. I was certain my current wheels were 17x8. They’re actually 17x7.5 with 42 offset. So that means if I go wider I have to watch the offset.

On 18x8 rims I can go 42 to 35. On 18x8.5 I can’t go more than 42.

_________________________
Prairie Tan 1997 mercury grand marquis 290k, 90k engine installed at 270K 18 in mustang gt rims, 235/50/18 Pirelli p zero.

2016 Jeep Patriot 60k bought with 3 mile stock other than a KN filter

_________________________
Prairie Tan 1997 mercury grand marquis 290k, 90k engine installed at 270K 18 in mustang gt rims, 235/50/18 Pirelli p zero.

2016 Jeep Patriot 60k bought with 3 mile stock other than a KN filter

Good to know. Thanks as I am leaning toward the Mustang wheels.