Can anyone explain to me why the stock wheelbase is off from the factory? The rear wheels are forward from center to the wheel opening by a few inches. I've seen this on other vehicles as well and don't know the reasoning behind it. It just looks wrong.
Maybe when the car is loaded and the springs flatten out, the wheel moves back where it should be. I have seen this before especially on GM cars of the thirties and forties. Can't explain it, except they often used the same body for different makes of cars with different wheelbases.
Corporate cheapskates. The bodies were made longer, lower, more streamlined, but the bean counters wouldn't cough up the few bucks per car to make them really look right. Eventually GM styling began saying that that "the wheel forward look made it look like it was in motion even when the car is sitting still." Managment didn't really care as long as they could make 'em cheap and sell 'em all.
Unfortunately, the wheels don't center out in the wheel opening when the back is weighted because of the geometry. There is just too much even to shift the whole body forward on the mounts to get it to look not like a mistake.
The Jalopy Journal
