Sweet mod for all of you who know the joy of lightweight wheels. Once you have lightweight wheels, then there is no going back. I personally like this mod for theft deterrent, since it makes the wheels look like they’re stock/OEM.
Before with Enkei center caps:
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/104834138.jpg
After with Audi center caps:
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/103338045.jpg
Suggested tools and stuff:
-linesman pliers (basically square nose pliers),
-utility knife with a sturdy blade,
-Permatex Black Silicone (US part number 81158, Canada part number 59203). According to Permatex, this is a RTV silicone adhesive sealant, designed for interior or exterior use, unaffected by vibration, and it has a continuous use temperature range of -75F to 450F (or -59C to 232C)
-JB Weld Plastic Bonder (not Plastic Weld) if you would like overkill reinforcement bonding.
-bench vise, or c-clamp if you don’t have a vise.
-Enkei RPF1 wheels
Silicone used:
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/57631336.jpg
Silicone part number:
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/209733701.png
Optional JB Weld “Plastic Bonder” (not “Plastic Weld”):
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/710620688.jpg
Step one: Get yourself some Q7 center caps. Part # used here was 4L0601170. I got some cheap Chinese ones from ebay.
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/941841823.png
Step two: Get yourself some “universal” center caps, AKA “center decal caps” which are blanks with a flat face. They come in different sizes, so you will want size “65mm – 68mm”`. When searching ebay or Amazon, consider spelling “centre” as well as “center” for your search. The best ones I found were ones that had beefy retaining clips from Europe, sold by “Alloy Wheel Nuts & Bolts Limited”.
If you Google “rpf1 center cap size” then you may find that the “hub bore” is 73mm, but this is the size of the hole on the BACK of the rim/wheel. The center cap opening on the front of the wheel is 64mm.
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/459402364.jpg
Step three: Your Q7 caps will need the tabs removed. ALL of the tabs. That means the four “main” tabs that hold the cap on the wheel, plus the “smaller” tabs in the middle. I believe there are four main tabs that snap off easily, and then five smaller tabs. See picture with smaller tabs highlighted in circles. I cut the vertical edges of the smaller tabs before trying to remove them, just to make them easier to remove. Then I twisted them off using the square nosed pliers. Before you start to remove any of the smaller tabs, stop and think about how they will block you from inserting the face of the universal cap, since the universal cap lays in the space occupied by the smaller tabs. If you just hack out the smaller tabs without thinking, then it could cause you a lot of fine razor work later to try and remove the remaining bits of the smaller tabs.
Circled small tabs:
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/386731667.jpg
Tabs removed:
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/314748129.jpg
Step four: Mock up each of the universal center caps in each of the Q7 cap faces, just to be sure that you are happy with the fit, and to be sure that there are no “high edges” when you try to fit them together. You want to make sure that one of the smaller tabs does not make the universal cap sit up too high in one spot along the circumference where they will join.
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/970708023.jpg
Step five: You will only want to clamp one center cap per 24 hr, since you only have one vise (or c-clamp), so don’t go putting silicone on everything right away. Bust out the black silicone, and bead the inner edge of ONE Q7 cap with silicone, bead the inner edge of ONE universal cap with silicone, and put a small dab of silicone in the center of the universal cap.
Before silicone:
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/266070009.jpg
After silicone:
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/968866808.jpg
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/450038529.jpg
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/138222892.jpg
Step six: Clamp the the siliconed Q7 and universal caps together, making sure that the circular joined edge is “even” all the way around. This edge is the edge that I am pointing to using the “pick tool” in the second photo. I used a couple of wood scraps against the jaws of the vise, and then two rolls of electric tape for the actual contact points on each cap. A partial roll of electric tape placed inside the back of the universal cap gives a circular and even pressure all the way around the back of the universal cap. A roll of tape on the face of the Q7 cap gives a small circular hole (in the middle of the roll) for the rounded face of the Q7 cap to make contact with, and, a roll of tape won’t scratch the front of the Q7 cap. I put the piece of paper that came with the tape in between the roll of tape and the face of the Q7 cap, to avoid any sticky mess on the Q7 face when un-clamping.
The silicone packaging says that “surfaces may need clamping for up to one hour or until silicone is firm”. It also says “allow 24 hours for full cure and maximum strength”, so I left each cap clamped for 24hr.
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/911507039.jpg
http://audirevolution.net/addons/albums/images/341894650.jpg
Step seven: Optional step. Once you are done with silicone and clamping all four, then you have the option of reinforcing the circular edge a bit more with some JB Weld Plastic Bonder (not Plastic Weld). I mixed some up and put some along the circular edge, in between the clips. I doubt this is necessary, but I did it anyways.
DONE!
In closing, I would like to suggest to everybody that the next time you need to buy new tires, look on Tire Rack at the tire stats, where you can see what the tire weighs. You might be surprised what your current tires weigh versus an alternative. This is not just a heads up for summer tires either. There are all season tires (and winter tires!) that only weigh 22 or 23 pounds each, versus many tires of the same size weighing in at 27 pounds or more per tire.
WOW great for you. What a fun but informative write up. Thanks very cool.
