EMPI Chrome Lug Bolts — 60° Taper Seat | For EMPI & Aftermarket Custom Wheels

Chrome lug bolts with a 60° tapered seat, the profile used by most modern EMPI wheels and by the wider aftermarket. If you have just fitted a set of custom wheels to an air-cooled VW, these — not your old factory bolts — are almost certainly what the wheels need.

This is the single most common wheel-fitting mistake on an air-cooled VW. Factory VW bolts use a rounded ball seat; most aftermarket wheels are machined with a straight 60° cone. Put a ball-seat bolt into a taper-seat wheel and the two surfaces touch on a narrow ring instead of a broad cone. The joint feels tight, torques up normally, and then loosens, because there is almost no clamp area doing the work. It is worth thirty seconds with a flashlight to confirm which seat your wheels have.

Vehicle Fitment

• EMPI custom wheels and most aftermarket wheels machined with a 60° taper seat
• Air-cooled VW: Beetle, Super Beetle, Karmann Ghia, Bus, Type 3, Thing
• Dune buggy, Baja & sandrail builds on custom wheels

Will NOT fit: stock VW steel wheels and any wheel with a ball (radiused) seat — use EMPI 00-9564-0 / 00-9565-0 / 00-9568-0 instead.

Choose Your Size

• 12mm, Set of 5 — for EMPI 5x205 wheels: The wide-5 bolt pattern used on early Beetle, Bus and Type 3 hubs.
• 14mm, Set of 4 — for EMPI 4x130 wheels: The later 4-lug pattern.

Technical Specifications

• Part Numbers: 00-9711-0 (12mm, 5x205) / 00-9712-0 (14mm, 4x130)
• Manufacturer: EMPI
• Seat: 60° taper
• Head: 19mm hex
• Threaded Length: 24mm
• Finish: Chrome
• Shipping Weight: 1.00 lb (12mm) / 0.85 lb (14mm)
• Package Dimensions: 6 x 6 x 1.18 in (12mm) / 3 x 2.5 x 1 in (14mm)
• UPC: 707924408683 / 707924408676

Installation Notes

• Confirm the seat profile against your wheel before ordering. This is the whole ballgame.
• Check clearance behind the drum or rotor with one bolt fitted before doing all four corners.
• Anti-seize on threads only, never the seat.
• Torque in a star pattern, then re-check after about 50 miles.
• Running spacers? You will need extra length — see the long 12mm taper bolts, EMPI 70-2875-0.

Frequently Asked Questions

• How do I confirm my wheels are taper seat? Look into the bolt hole. A 60° taper is a straight-sided cone; a ball seat is a smooth radius. If the wheels are EMPI or another modern aftermarket brand, taper is the likely answer — but check.
• Can I reuse my factory bolts on new wheels? Only if the wheels are ball seat. Mismatched seats will not stay tight.
• How many do I need? 20 for a 5-lug car, 16 for a 4-lug car.
• What head size is the wrench? 19mm hex — note that this differs from the 22mm head on the ball-seat bolts.
• Do these work with wheel spacers? Only short ones. Anything substantial needs longer bolts and a test fit.

WARNING: This product can expose you to chemicals which are known to the State of California to cause cancer and reproductive harm. For more information, go to www.P65Warnings.ca.gov. All parts legal for use on pre-pollution controlled vehicles only.

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