Although hubcaps for 12" steels are apparently available from Japan, and 12" steels from hilman imps with hubcaps have the same PCD as a mini, you will either need to trawl on-line auction sites, or spend a small fortune, and the daunting task of buying products from Japan.
I have been prompted to make this guide, as when i searched about, no-one really had an answer for me, however i had seen it done before .So, as the title of this topic suggests, this will be a guide to retro-fitting 10" hub caps to 12" mini steel wheels.
You will need:
Steel wheels
Hub caps
16 nuts and bolts. I used M5 x 25mm, as they seemed to fit best
16 washers
2 sets of Pliers, i used a long nose pair and a chunkier pair
Wheel clips from a Volkswagen beetle/camper, I purchased mine from here: https://www.vwherita...-kit-per-wheel/
(You will need 16 clips, however i purchased 30 in total. This is because they can be brittle, will be explained later.)
You may also want to do the test fitting on an old/scabby wheel first, as i found out the clips will mark and gouge fresh paint (in my case hammerite that had been left for around 2 weeks to harden)
To start with you will need to bend your VW clips to a shape like this. The bottom one is how the clip will arrive. You will need to gently bend them with your pliers.
They can be right swines sometimes and break, like this. Around 30% of mine broke, as soon as you get the hang of it it gets easier. The weak points are the bends. It will also hurt your hands unless you're real tough.
Now, using the little holes (not sure what they are for) that are between the Stud holes, fix them on with the nuts and bolts. I placed a washer on the inside. Tighten them up so they don't move at all.
There is no exact measurement that i have taken for how long the clips must be, but they will need to poke out quite far. Your hubcap should be very firm to push on, stiff almost. They will be hard to get off, but should come off with a bit of persuading. You don't want to see them rolling off in your rear view mirror, they are quite expensive!
Finished look. They shouldn't wobble about, and should be firm.
Here is why i have recommended you use an old wheel for the test fitting. Although they are winter wheels i still want them to look good, so they will all need a light sand and re-paint.
Hope this helps! I'll have some pics updated when the rest of my hub caps arrive in a few days. I only purchased one, as i wasn't sure this was even going to work.
Yams
