<VV> BMW wheels for your Corvair

[Sethracer at aol.com]

I read  an ad in our local Penny Saver newspaper on Wednesday night. It was 
for 5 BMW  wheels & tires from a 1984 533i. I have heard of folks using the 
5 on 120mm  wheels on their late Corvairs (5 on 120.65mm pattern.) So I 
thought I would at  least take a look at them, and I made an appointment. They 
were not sure of the  wheel/tire size. At $100 for all 5, it would be a 
bargain, even just to do a  trial fit-up. So, at 11 AM on Thursday (retirement 
has its benefits) I stopped  by the home of an elderly couple whom I had 
contacted on the phone. He told me  they had just donated the car (original 
owners) to a “Breast Cancer Awareness”  charity, and the long removed ti
res/wheels were most definitely surplus. The  wheels had been in covered storage 
(California) for, maybe 20 years, but were  clean. The tires were old and bald 
(I will draw no comparisons here) Michelins.  When I looked at the tires, I 
realized why he had removed them – as a set – and  installed new wheels 
and tires, 20 years before. These OEM wheels were Michelin  TRX metric design 
and the tires were 295/60 – 390. If that doesn’t sound  familiar, it shouldn
’t! The French Company got a wild hair up in the late-70s  and went their 
own way on a new wheel/tire design which was accepted by a couple  of other 
countries’ cars, some BMWs, many Ferraris and even a Ford Mustang  option. 
Goodyear actually made a few TRX tires for a while. The TRX was used for  a 
few years and then dropped like a hot potato. A few years ago, 2008, Coker  
tire convinced Michelin to make some reproduction tires for the restoration  
market. They came on the market (specific size unknown) at $425 each.  I 
checked and they are still available –  now at $514 a piece. So if you really 
want your Corvair to have a unique  tire/wheel combo, unlikely to be seen at 
your local cruise night, this might be  the ticket.