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How do you get the damn wire wheel covers off a 64 Riv?!?!


Deanoko

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If they're stock you just pry them off. Go around it doing a little at a time (6 or 8 inches apart) as opposed to popping them off on the 1st spot. watch out, they'll scrape and ding if they just land on the cement unless you catch it.

 

If they're solid aluminum covers and not hub caps do not do the above.

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They are the OEM wires, so I will be careful and work slowly around.  Thanks much.  Just didnt want to be forgetting some hidden hold down from behind the center, or who knows where else! 

I'm putting rear shocks on and it looks to be easier to access the top nut with the wheel and tire off. 

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57 minutes ago, Deanoko said:

Is there a trick, or you just pry on them until they bend? ☹️

I am sure others have their methods. This is mine. Attached are pictures of my weapon of choice. I first put a piece of cardboard underneath the tire. As gungeey pointed out they can fly off and hit the cement floor. They are heavy too, which makes a sudden grab more difficult if they come off. Slow and easy is the trick. The wheel covers can be easily damaged if you pry too hard or use something with sharp edges, such as a tire iron. I wrap the end of my pry tool with duct tape to keep this from happening. I also insert a 3" X 3" piece of 1/4" thick paneling between the rubber head of the tool and the tire. You do exert a lot of pressure and this keeps the rubber head from sinking into the tire making it harder to pry. As gungeey said go around around a little at a time. You can tell when it starts to come loose. Once you get it free in one spot, removal is pretty easy. Once you do it a few times you will get the hang of it. When you put them back on use the heel of your hand. They will seat just fine. Again once you do it a few times you will get the hang of getting them on. Do not pound them back on, even with a rubber mallet. They can be damaged. Hope this helps.

 

Bill

 

 

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Edited by Riviera63 (see edit history)
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6 minutes ago, Deanoko said:

It helps a lot, (thank you!) but makes me wish for the turbine wheels I had on my 63!  These things are a pain in the ass! 

You are welcome. They aren't that bad. Just take getting used to. Once you get the hang of it, it is a piece of cake. These are the Cadillac of wheel covers compared to the cheap flimsy crap on other makes and models. Just the weight of them is impressive. 

 

Bill

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7 minutes ago, Riviera63 said:

You are welcome. They aren't that bad. Just take getting used to. Once you get the hang of it, it is a piece of cake. These are the Cadillac of wheel covers compared to the cheap flimsy crap on other makes and models. Just the weight of them is impressive. 

 

Bill

Think about it.  If they didn’t fit tight, the weight would have them flying off at the slightest bump in the road.

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As Bill said earlier, the more you do this the easier it gets.  Get yourself a dedicated pry bar, not just a long screwdriver.  I use the longest one from this $15 set of pry bars from Harbor Freight.  Your pry bar needs a fulcrum of some sort to work. A screwdriver does not have a fulcrum.  The longer the lever the better; that’s a simple rule of physics.  FA385D2F-5B04-4F1B-8441-FC0A83AB47C4.jpeg.4658c738171409335e681ae514079be6.jpeg

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I ended up carefully getting them off today.  That allowed easy access to the upper shock mounts once the wheel/tire assembly was off. 

I bought the set of 4 Harbor Freight pry bars, along with the combination pry and rubber hammer affair from Amazon.  Between all of them I was able to get the wires off and back on without any damage.  Thanks for all the sage advice. 

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Of course.  Crude but functional.  It's too bad they didnt give the blade tip a little angle because,when straight, you've only got (maybe) the 4 and 8 o'clock positions before you're hitting wheel well surrounding quarter panel trim and probably even less, with a flat and in dirt! 

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11 minutes ago, RivNut said:

I got to thinking about this later. Buick supplied a tool for wheel cover removal. Your jack handle.  Used by more than one person changing a flat along the side of the road

.80FB6A7E-3DBA-46F4-905A-FA0088E53165.jpeg.aca80e742c4b515810f2b1c1fffb0283.jpeg

Works for me. 

Word to the wise:  Using the factory jack will distort your bumper. 

20230209_123012.jpg

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1 hour ago, Chasander said:

 

These things really pry off hard

 

Good day.

 

i actually got a replacement for that ^ wheel, and I use that one on my spare. I did pick up a couple more to refinish to replace to eventually the one with just a chunk missing. 
 

Later,

65C29222-49CE-4927-AF97-6EAB67A4274C.jpeg

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Of course.  Crude but functional.  It's too bad they didnt give the blade tip a little angle because,when straight, you've only got (maybe) the 4 and 8 o'clock positions before you're hitting wheel well surrounding quarter panel trim and probably even less, with a flat and in dirt! 

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On 2/10/2023 at 6:50 AM, Chasander said:

These things really pry off hard

FD105C27-64D3-426D-B2B8-7FD89086B8EA.jpeg

It’s tight, but I Jack the car and turn the wheel. I have a hammer a long chisel I use to push the nut off the stud holding the wheel cover on. Like the one in the picture. At first it was hard, but I’m getting better at it.

Turbinator

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