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Disappearing wheel covers (??????)


deano
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I have a 2010 Transit Connect. I love it.

 

But the doggone thing sheds wheel covers. Once it ejected the first one, I bought a set of aftermarket ones which attach in the same way as the originals. Of the eight wheel covers (4 original, 4 replacement), I am now down to three again, having ejected one again yesterday.

 

Once I happened to be looking in my side mirror when one went sailing off my left rear for no apparent reason.

 

Is anyone else having this bizarre problem? Not sure I want to buy four more, just to keep feeding the gods.

 

Do those things have any really value/purpose, other than cosmetic? This is just my personal "utility truck," not my primary vehicle, and I am leaning towards leaving things as they are. Eventually all the other wheels will be bare as well.

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I have had  that issue on other vehicles , My TC has Alloy's.  The wheel covers work themselves off when the rim flexes.  My Travel trailer spins lots of covers off in my travels. 

If you get the closed lug nuts to keep the wheel studs from rusting then you can go with out covers.

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You could order a set of european "center" covers.  They will probably stay on better, since they are much smaller and weigh less.  But you will probably have to paint the exposed wheels since the factory paint is not very good and does allow the wheel to rust.

 

https://www.fordpartsuk.com/alloy-wheel-centre-cap-5361

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9 hours ago, deano said:

 

 

Do those things have any really value/purpose, other than cosmetic?

 

 

Yes.  The hubcaps cover your hubs.  Even aftermarket alloy wheels have a center hub cover or cap of some sort so that you just don't have a hole in the middle of the wheel.  Protects the hubs from the elements, dirt, sand, road salt, mud, pee, et cetera.  Imagine sand getting into your wheel bearings.  While a hubcap is not perfect, and will not completely protect your hub & bearings, it keeps out a lot.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Some of the hyper-milage guys attach vacuum formed lexan covers on their wheels with zip ties for aerodynamics.  You might be able to zip tie the hubcap through holes in the cap and the holes in the wheel.  May not look that good, but would certainly keep them from flying off.

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  • 5 weeks later...
On 12/9/2018 at 2:04 PM, WillMartin said:

My wheels are good and rusty.  The plastic covers make the van look much better, but all will be replaced with Fusion wheels sooner rather than later.

 

Any update? I'm curious if Fusion wheels will look good on our TC's.

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There's a thread in the Wheels & Tires forum titled 'Fusion Wheels' with pictures of some vans with wheels from other Ford products.  There's a picture there of my 2014 with the Ford Focus wheels I bought on eBay to replace my steelies

 

Don

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