I have searched the net, talked to owners of body shops, and searched the forum. I am now counting on some opinions of my fellow G community. I'm looking at some Avant Garde's in 5x112. They have told me I can have them redrilled at no cost to match our bolt pattern. They also stated this will not void any warranties. I have heard of people running redrilled wheels but want some expert opinions on safety and long term reliability. Anyone been running on redrilled wheels for several years? Any issues with vibrations or noises? Safety hazards? Let me know guys, look forward to the responses!

 

When redrilling wheels, you definitely want to do it with wheels whose bolt pattern is closest to your desired bolt pattern, in your case 5x114.3, so 5x112 is pretty good. A coworker of mine is running redrilled cast wheels from 5x120 to 5x114.3 and has been on them for about a year now and hasn't had any problems whatsoever. Just make sure it's done by a reputable shop, and you're good.

 

Avant Garde has some 5x114.3 wheels now. But they only come in a dark grey.

But, you should be fine running redrilled wheels.

 

^ ya the dolphin grey isn't my color of choice so I debated custom powdercoating and machining the face but that will add $125 per wheel so I'm seriously considering redrilling the wheels so I can have my finish of choice. Does the outside of the wheel where the lugs go look any different due to the new pattern?

 

Iti won't look any different if they do it on the same holes. There are many ways to approach it, some of which are:

- Redrill to 114.3 and inserting a sleeve to "cover" the inner edges of the hole -- both of which will be covered by the lugs
- Use of adapter rings, they're like spacers that convert between the two sizes.
- Without redrilling, but using wobble lug nuts (a.k.a. variation lugs)

I have no experience with any of them so you'll have to do your own research on which is the safest option for you and your surroundings.

 

^ I researched the adapter rings and the wobble bolts, redrilling definitely sounds like the best alternative. It's good to know the lugs will cover up the new and previous holes. Does anyone know what this "sleeve" is that covers the inner edges of the hole and how it works?

 

Here's a little illustration i whipped up that might help explain, it's not accurate but should give you an idea.

The cyan colors represent 114.3, the magenta represents 112.

My guess is the sleeves will be the size of those crescent magenta shapes within each hole.

 

^ very nice.

which avant gardes were you looking at? if they're the m310's, i highly HIGHLY suggest waiting until late january...

 

Why late January?

I have been eyeing the M310 too but they only have them in the dolphin gray. Not a good color on a black car.

 

can't say anything about it now, but trust me. if you want the m310's but don't like the finishes, wait.

 

Hmm...now you got me pondering what this surprise could be. I'm looking at those and the m368's which also only come in dolphin grey right now. I called Avant Garde and they told me they had no immediate plans to expand their color choices in that bolt pattern. I can certainly wait until late January, I will just need them come spring since I just put Blizzaks on and ditched my all seasons since they were the original tires on the car and bald.

 

what finish were you looking for? and i guess since you can wait, you're going to have to

 

going for gloss black w/ machined face. The gunmetal on the m368 essentially looks black. I noticed the m310 has both gunmetal and black w/ a machined face, at least in the bolt pattern for VW's.

 

gotcha. maybe you shouldn't hold your breath then if you're looking for that finish.

 

^ well I am open to other finishes but that's probably my preference. I'm gonna wait anyways, gotta pay off my cc bills from christmas It sounds like a few of you agree redrilled is ok in terms of safety and long term reliability. Anyone else have anything to chime in?