Dumb question: removing wheel covers, and right-hand lugs?

[Turbo301]

It's embarrassing for me to have to ask, but what's the best way to get my wheel covers off? Typically wheel covers have a pretty pronounced lip a the edge where it's easy to pry, but my Fury's covers are remarkably flush to the rim face, and there's about half-an-inch of rim past the wheel cover, which I'm not used to seeing. In the manual, it says to pry across from the valve stem, but not how/with what to pry. The lug wrench pry end looks much to fat to get any purchase under the cover edge.

I'd also read that the lugs on the left side of these cars are left-hand thread. I'm very glad I read this before I tried to remove the wheels for anything! What a bizarre thing for Chrysler to have done... anyway, I ordered new rotors and I'm sure that they'll be right-hand thread since I got the same part for both sides of the car, so does someone have a link or quick reference for the right-hand nuts I could buy in advance?

 

[Toolmanmike]

It's embarrassing for me to have to ask, but what's the best way to get my wheel covers off? Typically wheel covers have a pretty pronounced lip a the edge where it's easy to pry, but my Fury's covers are remarkably flush to the rim face, and there's about half-an-inch of rim past the wheel cover, which I'm not used to seeing. In the manual, it says to pry across from the valve stem, but not how/with what to pry. The lug wrench pry end looks much to fat to get any purchase under the cover edge.

I'd also read that the lugs on the left side of these cars are left-hand thread. I'm very glad I read this before I tried to remove the wheels for anything! What a bizarre thing for Chrysler to have done... anyway, I ordered new rotors and I'm sure that they'll be right-hand thread since I got the same part for both sides of the car, so does someone have a link or quick reference for the right-hand nuts I could buy in advance?

You have to get under the lip. I would start with a plastic trim tool to start, and finish with a bent tip pry bar or a wheel cover tool specific for that job.

 

[Big_John]

What year is your car? Your avatar pic shows a '73 which should have right hand lug nuts all the way around.

Start with a small flat screwdriver to get the wheel cover off far enough to put a larger screwdriver or pry bar under the edge.

Chrysler did left hand lug nuts because they tighten as the left wheel spins. That was the theory, but it caused more issues than helped and went to all right hands. I kinda like the left hand threads, but my last car ('65 300L0 already had the left front converted, so the easiest thing for me was to change the left rear to right hand also. If your car is earlier than 1973, it's easy to change the rears.

If you do need to change them, this is how I did it. Post #13, 14 and 15 in this thread. Tool tips You could also use a large hammer to knock the stud out, but you need to be careful. While I've changed them with a couple greased washers and an upside down lug nut, the tool I show makes it a little easier.

 

[Turbo301]

What year is your car? Your avatar pic shows a '73 which should have right hand lug nuts all the way around.

Start with a small flat screwdriver to get the wheel cover off far enough to put a larger screwdriver or pry bar under the edge.

Chrysler did left hand lug nuts because they tighten as the left wheel spins. That was the theory, but it caused more issues than helped and went to all right hands. I kinda like the left hand threads, but my last car ('65 300L0 already had the left front converted, so the easiest thing for me was to change the left rear to right hand also. If your car is earlier than 1973, it's easy to change the rears.

If you do need to change them, this is how I did it. Post #13, 14 and 15 in this thread. Tool tips You could also use a large hammer to knock the stud out, but you need to be careful. While I've changed them with a couple greased washers and an upside down lug nut, the tool I show makes it a little easier.

Yes, it's a '73. So they got rid of that by then, eh? With decades of experience of lugs NOT loosening on countless other makes, it's odd that Chrysler would have tried the left-hand lug thing in the '60s. Plus, I mean, the stud itself is not rotating, the entire hub assembly is...

I wouldn't change the studs; new rotors come with the studs already installed, I just wanted the nuts to go with them. But it sounds like I won't have to worry about that, eh?

Thanks for the tip on the covers. That was kind of my thought process, but it seemed so tedious that I didn't think Chrysler would make us go through that ^_^. I guess daily users would just have to live with dented cover edges if they got a flat on the side of the road and had to use the crowbar!

 

[Sixpactogo]

My 1960 Dart has the full wheel covers that cover the rim also. I use a flat screw driver to pry the caps off and use a rubber mallet to tap them back on so as not to dent them up. Your car has all right hand lug nuts as was reported earlier. Your old lug nuts should all be reusable and fit your new rotors.

 

[Big_John]

So they got rid of that by then, eh? With decades of experience of lugs NOT loosening on countless other makes, it's odd that Chrysler would have tried the left-hand lug thing in the '60s.

Lot's of cars had LH/RH lug nuts. Buick, Olds and Pontiac had them until 1965. Studebakers had them until the early 60's. Nash and AMC until late 50's. I think Rolls Royce/Bentley still uses them, but I could be wrong.... I'm pretty sure they did use them into the early 2000's. There are others...

 

[Boydsdodge]

If you're close enough for a drive to Toronto, I will give you a hand and some Chrysler ownership lessons.

 

[MoPar~Man]

If you're close enough for a drive to Toronto, I will give you a hand and some Chrysler ownership lessons.

He's in London (or just to the west I think). I can give him a hand.

The handle end of the tire iron that came with the car has a flat edge, it looks like a big slotted screw driver. That's for wedging between the hub cap and the wheel and prying the cap away from the wheel. But yea- I can see why you think it's too thick or blunt. A regular (but still large-ish) flathead screwdriver works better.

 

[Boydsdodge]

When you do get the cover started, do it gradually side to side from where you started to first pry.

 

[Turbo301]

Thanks, all.

I usually use a big screwdriver for the wheel covers on my other cars, but they all have bigger gaps between the rim and the cover; I wasn't sure if one would fit on these very close-fitting caps. But I can start small.

It's good to know that there are close resources if I need a hand .

 

[Snotty]

it's odd that Chrysler would have tried the left-hand lug thing in the '60s.

They did it from the '50s up through 1970.

What's odd is that the '71 Service Manual has a comment in it that all studs are now right hand thread. But, there is no mention of existing left hand threads in the 1970 SM.

 

[Turbo301]

They did it from the '50s up through 1970.

What's odd is that the '71 Service Manual has a comment in it that all studs are now right hand thread. But, there is no mention of existing left hand threads in the 1970 SM.

I suppose the figured all the techs knew about the left-hand threads already, so it was the change to right-hand threads that was "news".

I guess techs and even the factory must have been more on-the-ball then than now, 'cause I can't imagine people remembering to torque/untorque nuts differently on different sides of the vehicle now. And with proper torque, the direction is immaterial, and I'm surprised their engineers wouldn't have concluded the same many years before 1970.

 

[Snotty]

and I'm surprised their engineers wouldn't have concluded the same many years before 1970.

Engineers and designers are not always the sharpest tacks in the shed.

When the Dodge Viper was introduced, it offered a five-point racing harness for both seats. Fantastic! BUT!! Federal Officials said no! The Law required three pint, retracting seatbelts. They would not authorize the production of the Viper with those "unsafe" five-point harnesses.

Chrysler continued with the left-thread studs long after the last company that also offered them, Studebaker, saw the needlessness of the requirement. After all, just how many right-hand threaded, driver's side wheels actually did come off while driving?

 

[Turbo301]

Engineers and designers are not always the sharpest tacks in the shed.

To be fair, when it comes to the product they're making/designing, I don't think anyone is a sharper tack than the designers and engineers involved. There are a lot of aspects of a given design that "outsiders" may not realize. I do aerospace-related engineering so I know this first-hand .

 

[Snotty]

To be fair, when it comes to the product they're making/designing, I don't think anyone is a sharper tack than the designers and engineers involved. There are a lot of aspects of a given design that "outsiders" may not realize. I do aerospace-related engineering so I know this first-hand .

Every time I look into a transmission, I am amazed and fascinated at the engineers who designed them. I really am. But, like in my profession (now retired), just because someone holds a degree doesn't mean they have much sense. There are always exceptions.

 

[Turbo301]

No doubt about that, and there are always 50% of people who graduate in the bottom half of their class .

 

[Snotty]

No doubt about that, and there are always 50% of people who graduate in the bottom half of their class .

And some of those end up being the best in their fields.

There's a cliche: A Students teach as professors, C Students do the grunt work and are good at it, B Students hang out in bars pissed off and angry because they weren't A Students.

I was a B Student in College and C in Grad School.

 

[Turbo301]

There's a cliche: A Students teach as professors, C Students do the grunt work and are good at it, B Students hang out in bars pissed off and angry because they weren't A Students.

LOL! That's a good one.

 

[1970cat]

hubcap tool

 

[Boydsdodge]

hubcap tool
View attachment 673494

Nice but hard to find. I haven't seen one for sale in a very long time.