New wheels arrived! Questions within

I think a Dremel would be too weak to cut metal. I would use a die grinder with a cutting wheel on it.

Roll the fenders...

You could always roll the fenders. This gives a very clean and professional look if done correctly. There is someone in town that actually has a machine that is designed to do this and it helps the finished product come out looking like it came like that from the factory. It also will help retain the value of your supra.

The other option is to use a rubber mallot to very gently tap the fender lip in and up. It helps to take a razor blade and score the paint so it will not crack beyon the score helping to keep your paint look imperfection free.

If you have more questions on this feel free to email me.

-pete

Your going to need to cut the lip of the fenders off with a die grinder, rolling the fender will not give you enough clearance. I went through this with mine.

I have heard that rolling the fender has a good chance of cracking the paint... Thats why I planned on just cutting them.

I also considered a rotozip... Isn't a die grinder a pneumatic tool? I was hoping to be able to do this in the garage... I Don't have an air compressor.

I guess I'll just see if there is someone around who can help me out.

Thanks for the help.

A die grinder is your best bet. A dremel doesn't have the cutting power, tapping with a hammer won't bend double thickness sheet metal, and pounding with a hammer will most likely deform the fender. A cut fender lip is not visible unless you're below wheel level. I cut about 2/3 to 3/4 of my lip off and don't have any problems with an 11 1/2" wheel. Seal and paint the cut lip to avoid corrosion in the future.

Jeff

Hey Jim, finally got those new wheels, huh? Sweet. I had my fenders cut as well at AAM. I'm not exactly sure what tool they used, though. I think it was a pneumatic saw. Anyway, it turned out great and you can't tell that it had been cut until you stick your head under there.

There is some place in Cary that has a fender rolling tool that they will lend you, but you have to roll it yourself. What tire are you going to try to fit under there? With an 11" wheel, you could prolly go with a 315 or maybe even 335.

Can't wait till you get that beast back on the road and take me for a ride! As for my car, it looks like I blew ANOTHER crank seal yesterday! I'm taking it back to the dealer tomorrow to have it replaced along with another timing belt. Later.

Nevermind my previous post.. I just did a search on Die Grinders and realized they aren't pneumatic... I guess I'll be heading to Home Depot!

What should I use to seal the metal after it's been cut?


Thanks for all the input.

Weiyan8 said:

Hey Jim, finally got those new wheels, huh? Sweet. I had my fenders cut as well at AAM. I'm not exactly sure what tool they used, though. I think it was a pneumatic saw. Anyway, it turned out great and you can't tell that it had been cut until you stick your head under there.

There is some place in Cary that has a fender rolling tool that they will lend you, but you have to roll it yourself. What tire are you going to try to fit under there? With an 11" wheel, you could prolly go with a 315 or maybe even 335.

Can't wait till you get that beast back on the road and take me for a ride! As for my car, it looks like I blew ANOTHER crank seal yesterday! I'm taking it back to the dealer tomorrow to have it replaced along with another timing belt. Later.

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Yeah I finally got them!!! I might have to take a look at your car to see what they did to your fenders. I'm going to start with a 295 I think... I'm not even sure that I'll need to cut them... but it'll be close.

That sucks about the crank seal... is it the raised rev-limiter?

Hey Jim. I can show you my fenders anytime. Just let me know the next time you're in the area. What offset did you get for the rears and when are your tires coming in? We used some black paint and sprayed the edge so it would not rust. Again, you cannot see the paint at all.

Yeah, I'm not sure why the crank seal went again. I do have a raised rev limit, but I did not even come close to going past the redline when it went. Maybe my PCV valve is clogged? But, I called the dealer where I had the last seal replaced and they said that they would warrenty the work this time. So I'm happy. Later.

Congratulations Jim. Don't try to roll the fender, you will only need to trim about .2" off the lip. You won't even remove the spot welds. Give me a call around 10pm tonight and I will let you know how I was going to do mine if needed.

Later, Steve

Steve Jarvis said:

Congratulations Jim. Don't try to roll the fender, you will only need to trim about .2" off the lip. You won't even remove the spot welds. Give me a call around 10pm tonight and I will let you know how I was going to do mine if needed.

Later, Steve

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Thanks Steve!

They look AWESOME! I can't wait to get some tires on them and bolt them up.

I'll have a few pics of the wheels tomorrow.

Jim,
A dremel will work fine. If you get the variable speed one, keep it around speed 2.5-3, no more than this or you'll just burn the cutting wheels. I know the dremel works great because that's how I cut my fenders. It takes about 30 minutes, you just have to go slowly and not try to force it. Just be careful and patient. Mine came out perfect and I cut pretty much the whole lip off to fit my 11" rears. Good luck.

SingledSupra, What kind of wheel did you use, cutting but, what type? Aprox. how many did you use? Thanks!!

After you cut the lip off, how about posting some before and after pics while you still have the wheel off?

Those are some sweet ass rims!!! How much did it cost you to get them including shipping and where did you order them from?

SwamiBob

swamibob said:

Those are some sweet ass rims!!! How much did it cost you to get them including shipping and where did you order them from?

SwamiBob

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Thanks Swami!

I ordered the from Eurosport in Hawaii (808-545-1658)... ask to speak with Jeff.

They ended up costing me about about $2800 Shipped.

Nice

Hey Jim. Those wheels look great. I've always loved the way those wheels looked. Did you get a chance to weigh them? Just curious to see how much they weigh. Now, hurry up and get those tires mounted, cut your fenders, and drive the thing so I can see it! Later.