Help keep these center caps on the truck!

[Luke_P]

I have an '89 K2500 with steel wheels and the pound-on center caps. I lost one of them soon after I started driving the truck, and I have dropped and recovered center caps on two other occasions. I know how to orient them, and know they are just pounded on, but I can't really get them to seat well. They stay on ok on the highway, but when the road gets bumpy they get loose.

What am I missing here? Perhaps I have the wrong lug nuts? I haven't changed from how I bought it, but who knows if that is correct. Searching for lug nuts online turns up styles similar to what I have.

I'm attaching a picture of the caps and of the lug nuts. Hopefully there is something obvious. Thanks!

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[someotherguy]

Pic of the backside of the caps, where they press onto the lugs? 88-89 had some, uh, "different" ways of retaining the caps that GM got away from shortly after, so I haven't had the opportunity to mess with many of those early designs. You may be experiencing why they changed..

Richard

 

[Luke_P]

Here is the backside. Part number is marked 15548246-B and 15546240-C

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[GoToGuy]

I would check the parts manual, make sure there isn't a special lug nut that went with these wheels. My 95 Rally have unique center covers. And as they age and wear and tear these are the issues, that you may have to brainstorm a solution.

 

[someotherguy]

I would check the parts manual, make sure there isn't a special lug nut that went with these wheels. My 95 Rally have unique center covers. And as they age and wear and tear these are the issues, that you may have to brainstorm a solution.

I could be mistaken, but I think those are the special lug nuts. Not that there's all that much special about them, other than being the style without the external threads that the later center cap designs used since those employ the black plastic lug caps that screw on to retain the center cap.

Richard

 

[Luke_P]

The parts list I could find seems to point to something like what I have, but I don't have a manual that shows wheels, nuts, and center caps all together for whatever the options were that year. Anyone have a link that would show all that?

 

[df2x4]

Here you go:

https://nemigaparts.com/cat_spares/epc/chevrolet/52c-k/05/tc05-300/

 

[Luke_P]

Wow thank you for the link... Well, there's a lot happening on that page. I think my part is number 11, but none of the options correspond to the part numbers on my caps. In any case, mine look just like what the internet shows for the listed caps.

Further, my lug nuts look just like part number 5 here. I suppose the conclusion is that the metal retention plate is just worn out, and like someotherguy says, the reason GM changed from this design early on.