Vetluver

I've seen several posts regarding rolling the rear wheel well to allow 285-295 width tire. Exactly what's involved? Do you need any special kits to replace the plastic inner wheel well? I've got a great body man but before I mentioned to him I want some background so I can make sure it's done right. i'd hate to trash my brand new ceramoacrylic paint.
Thanks

ima55r2

Here's a way to do it:

http://tom.actionfit.com/fenderolling.html

vrus

This is going to sound funny, but I have successfully rolled wheel wells on several of my past cars using a simple aparatus: a wooden bat.

Its pretty simple.. Take the wheel off.. Using the thick part of the bat, rest it onto the fender well approx 2 or 3 inches down from the top of the bat.. Then, just roll the bat applying pressure as you roll. Go back and forth on the wheel well 2 or 3 times and it should be nicely bent back.

Make sure you use a wooden bat and not an aluminum one.

siswati

and this is going to sound even funnier

way back in the days when I was living in South Africa I had a hot VW Jetta with aftermarket wheels that fitted stunningly - they never rubbed even when cornering hard.

Then one day headed up the Natal North coast at speed with 3 of my buddies and luggage - no rubbing but awfully close. Then we started to hit some undulating roads with severe dips and every time we dipped it would rub and rub pretty badly. Soon we realized if we kept it up it would soon chew right through the side walls. So we stopped, took out a classic Coke bottle (glass) and with 3 guys sitting on top of the trunk we put the bottle between the tire and the rear fender arch and rolled the car back and forth.

The bottle held up and did the job perfectly on the side of the road. No damage to the external paint - but there were a few cracks in the paint finish on the inside of the fender which I later touched up.

not the professional approach - but there are many ways to skin this cat

Siswati

Rafal

Rolling the fender may not solve the problem. Set your suspension on Sport, put three people on the back seat and mount one rear wheel over a tall kerb.
Act quickly, before the suspension has a chance to level off. Now check were the narrowest gap is betwwen your existing tire and the fender inside edge. You can measure that gap with a ruler and decide how big a tire and what offset wheel you can squeeze in. You will find, that the place where rubbing will occur first is at the joint between the plastic rear bumper (sharp corner) and the metal fender, ie. the trailing edge of the tire, not the top.
Unfortunately, you cannot roll that, so work with offsets instead.

mbbodytech

The tire rack sells a really cool tool to roll the wheel lips. It bolts to the hub and has a nylon wheel that you can adjust and crank back and forth till you get it at the desired amount of roll. It's a little expensive, though.

MrAMG

Some members have posted indicating that they have rented the equipment to roll fenders. If I remember correctly, the average cost is $60, and keep the equipment for 60 days.

And keep us posted.

KWiK

You can rent a fender roller at PURE motorsport or TireRack