Luster, uh, I mean Lester,
Thank you for the flames. It is quite cold here in Wisconsin and I appreciate you warming me up. LOL LOL
Here is what I have from Pete Disher's website,
www.1968Cobra.com . As you know, Pete is the respected authority on all things KR. Please feel free to contact him regarding this information. I hate to say it, but SAAC did not put forth the same effort in documenting KR's as Pete has, and I feel the 1997 Registry is in error on this subject.
Here we go with quote 1:
"Hubcaps
"I hate hubcaps"
Sorry, but every car came from AO Smith a nice box of shiny, new hubcaps in the trunk. I'm not saying they all made it on the cars, but that's what was intended. Hubcaps were the subject of a service bulletin. The bulletin warns that due to excessive hubcap weight, the wheel and tire should be balanced with the hubcap in place. Just for the record, the webmaster loves hubcaps."
Quote 2:
"Today 10 spoke wheels are very popular on 1968 Shelbys. There have been several variations of the wheel. Shelby continued to make the wheel after 1970. Not many cars recieved factory 10 spoke wheels. Only three cars have been documented leaving the factory with 10 spoke wheels.
I spoke with one original owner about 10 spoke wheels. Dan purchased a new GT500KR in the summer of 1968. He told me, 10 spokes were not available from the dealership.
I have installed 10 spokes on several cars. Often times there are clearance problems with disc brake calipers on 1968s.
The Best 10 spoke Wheel Chart
Wheel Spoke Design Valve Stem Location Lug Nut hole design
version 1 tapered on rim countersunk
version 2 tapered between spokes flat face
version 3 tapered on rim flat face
version 4 tapered between spokes countersunk
version 5 straight on rim flat face
version 6 straight on rim countersunk "
Quote 3:
"Steel Wheels
1968 Shelbys recieved 5 steel wheels (size 15x6). The Shelby Club has only documented three cars leaving the factory with 10 spoke wheels. "
This is one of the reasons why I wanted to see if Richard had any original paperwork to document the original wheels on his car.
We all know that 10 spokes are very popular and likely a lot were dealer installed. After all, if a guy ordered a KR and it showed up with plain steel wheels and a box of hubcaps in the trunk, but his buddy bought a base GT500 and it had these cool wheels, what do you think the guy with the KR did?
My point is that with the exception of 3 documented cases, all cars left the FACTORY with steel wheels and hubcaps. Just like a factory Paxton S/C Shelby vs. a dealer installed one vs. one that Johnny Hotrod bolted on 4 years later at home.
The purist in me loves hubcaps. The other 51% of me decided to put 10 spokes on my KR going to BJ, as most people are as mis-informed as some people from Vegas and may not appreciate the dorky hubcaps even though they are correct.
I know the forthcoming investigation into this great hubcap conspiracy launched by me on Yenko.Net will make Watergate look like kids on a playground. LOL LOL LOL
Colin