problem fitting (losing!) oem hub caps with Wheel Vintiques steel wheels

[UKPlymouth]

Any advice appreciated on this matter.
I fitted a brand new set of WV 63 series steel wheels to my car today. Id recently tracked down some used oem Plymouth Division dog dish hubcaps. Fitted the new wheels and the hubcaps and went for a short drive.
Arrive home and one of the hubcaps has disappeared ! I'd only done a few miles. I then re-traced the route, first in my car and then on foot, but no hub cap to be found.
This got me thinking, do the oem Mopar hub caps not fit these repro wheels and do i know have to buy
Wheel Vintique dog dish caps to match?
Its pretty frustrating trying to source oem hub caps all the way to the UK and then to lose one is pretty gutting! Anyone with any experience on this?

 

[Cranky]

Did you drive it hard on curves or turns? I always lost at least one every time I drove my 66 hard. I finally took them off and stuck on chrome baby moons. Didn't look bad at all on a yellow car with a black top and wheels. Also, several years ago a buddy gave me a set of 1970 Challenger hub caps and I stuck them on my trailer.....lost one right off the bat. Pulled off the other 3 before they disappeared too.

 

[UKPlymouth]

[
Really? maybe i should give up, but i can't believe all the guys using these caps are losing them so easily. I was doing 30mph in my local town, no speed humps, no racing, just slow and enjoying the day. Retraced every damn step and can't find it.

 

[Cranky]

Someone might have found it....but sounds to me like they were not fitting very well. Steel flexes and the harder you drive it into the turns the more the wheel will flex. Also, the area that grips the rim may not be tight enough but it didn't seem to help much on mine when I tried to make them tighter. Also, if the rims don't have a pronounced safety bead in the rim, they might not have anything for the clips to grip.

 

[UKPlymouth]

Cranky, not sure if we are talking about the same hub caps? Mine have no clips, they are the classic dog dish 9" caps that locate on raised humps just outside the bolt circle on the wheel. Just press on, to my knowledge.

 

[aldal]

UkPlymouth, I am having the exact same problem. My 7 inch police style wheels that I had on the car had 4 nubs to hold on the dog dish hubcaps (I couldn't hardly pry them off). I replaced them with 5 inch front and 10 inch rear police wheels from WV that only have 3 nubs to hold on the dog dish hubcaps and I can give them a good bump with my hand and they pop off. I haven't figured out what I am going to do so if you come up with something please post it.

 

[kiwigtx]

I run WV 63 series wheels and Classic Ind Dog-dish caps on my truck, and have never had one fall off. In fact they are a Bee-atch to put on, so no chance of falling off. I've done burnouts from Hell, been on a skid pan, driven hundred's of miles, bounced the front end....you name it, I've done it in that truck....well, everything except a sub-16 second 1/4 mile :headbang:

Caps I use; http://www.pgclassic.com/product_info.php?products_id=568

pic of my lil' truck;

 

[Cranky]

Cranky, not sure if we are talking about the same hub caps? Mine have no clips, they are the classic dog dish 9" caps that locate on raised humps just outside the bolt circle on the wheel. Just press on, to my knowledge.

I read your post and it still didn't click until I went over it again! That would be harder to remedy and not sure if a shade tree solution would work but I would try using large hose clamps to try and 'shrink' the edge that slips over the nubs on the wheels.

- - - Updated - - -

I run WV 63 series wheels and Classic Ind Dog-dish caps on my truck, and have never had one fall off. In fact they are a Bee-atch to put on, so no chance of falling off. I've done burnouts from Hell, been on a skid pan, driven hundred's of miles, bounced the front end....you name it, I've done it in that truck....well, everything except a sub-16 second 1/4 mile :headbang:

Caps I use; http://www.pgclassic.com/product_info.php?products_id=568

pic of my lil' truck;

Nice truck!! Had a 3 window and a 5 window but sold both of them before doing anything to them. The 5 window went to a friend that made it look nearly as nice as yours and I never saw the 3 window again.

 

[kiwigtx]

Thanks Cranky. i pulled this one out of Arkansas just over 3 years ago. Previous owner had big plans and no cash....I helped out with the cash and got the truck Crate 360 runs sweet, especially now the nesting raccoon's are gone.

 

[UKPlymouth]

Thanks for the responses guys, I'm sure I read but can't fine where that the Wheel vintiques need to have their own WV hubcaps to work either that or some just get lucky like our friend with the truck!
Reckon I'll run without them but I will mail WV after Xmas to see what ey have to offer. Does seem like the three nubs isn't much to hold the cap.
Meantime, multiple retracing of my short route where I lost my caps has turned up nothing;it's disappeared without trace.

 

[kiwigtx]

.................
Meantime, multiple retracing of my short route where I lost my caps has turned up nothing;it's disappeared without trace.

Some Somalian is probably using it for a crash helmet imp:

 

[tallhair]

Thanks Cranky. i pulled this one out of Arkansas just over 3 years ago. Previous owner had big plans and no cash....I helped out with the cash and got the truck Crate 360 runs sweet, especially now the nesting raccoon's are gone.

It's really sweet looking to Kiwi! I wouldn't mind seeing some more pictures of it. Maybe post up a thread and show it off.

- - - Updated - - -

Thanks for the responses guys, I'm sure I read but can't fine where that the Wheel vintiques need to have their own WV hubcaps to work either that or some just get lucky like our friend with the truck!
Reckon I'll run without them but I will mail WV after Xmas to see what ey have to offer. Does seem like the three nubs isn't much to hold the cap.
Meantime, multiple retracing of my short route where I lost my caps has turned up nothing;it's disappeared without trace.

Have you considered just running chrome lugnuts? That's a pretty cool look IMHO

 

[UKPlymouth]

Yep, chrome nuts n' tuff looking is how it will be now.

 

[lewtot184]

those wheel vintique wheels use old (salvaged) centers on new rims. look carefully at the nubs and make sure there is a small groove at the bottom of the nub for the bead of the cap to snap into. the groove may be damaged or just full of paint.

 

[aldal]

Thanks, lewtot184 - you hit the nail on the head in my case. The new or what I thought were new wheels from WV don't have the same depth grove on the nubs to snap in hub cap. I am going to try and clean them out or grind them and if that doesn't work I'll go to chrome lug nuts or different wheels.