JUST HOW SAFE ARE WHEEL SPACERS??????

[TerryandPam Wallace]

I have been reading the posts regarding wheel spacers and have considered adding them to the back of my Trac. My only concern is, just how safe are they? Do you have to balance the wheels in a specific manner? Do they change the handling of the Trac? Other than installing spacers to just simply move the tires further away from the hub, what exactly do they accomplish?



Thanks in advance for answers to the above )probably dumb) questions.



Terry

 

[mookie]

I don't have any imperical evidence, just anecdotal.



I've never seen a post or an article about broken spacers. I've just heard people say "I wouldn't use them" or "Make sure you don't get cheap one's" (inferring that cheap one's will break).



Does anybody have any proof other than opinion?



As far as their function, they can push the wheel and tire out to correct/reduce a rubbing problem. In my case, they brought my rear wheels out further in the wheelwell which I think looks better and they increased the rear track by 2.5" for more stability (although I couldn't tell you how much more).



Spacers on the front will increase loading on the wheel bearings.

 

[Eldon Webb]

I have had 1 1/4 inch spacers on both front and rear on my Trac for several months with no problems. I used thread lock and torqued them to 85 lbs and then drove for 15 or 20 miles and pulled the wheels and checked the torque. I did this one more time and again after 50 miles. The spacers had instructions and also Todd Z helped me out once more as he has done several times

 

[WXMotorSports DecalsPartsAccs]

Quality is the key from a name brand. I have 1.25" spacers on our E46 M3 and we have tracked that car a dozen times in the last year. No ill effects with handling. The brand is H&R which makes springs, coilovers and many other suspension parts.

 

[Sean M 2]

I run 1.5 in spacers front and rear. It gives the truck a nice aggressive stance and simultaneously increases track by 3 substancial inches for added stability. They are perfectly safe, as long as they are INSTALLED PROPERLY. I checked mine ever once in awhile after immediately installing them. However, it does put more stress on the front wheel bearings, but no more so than aftermarket wheels with a comparable offset would.

 

[Jake Levin]

Do the 1.5" ones make the tires sit out beyond the fenders? here in NJ you won't pass inspection if the tires stick out beyond the fenders

 

[Michael Cacioppo]

I have 1.25's front and back. They are billet aluminum and I am using hole centric lug nuts to attach them to the Trac. They've been on for over a year. Absolutely no problems. They effectively change the backspacing of your wheel and do not present a higher wheel bearing load than using wheels with a bigger backspacing. They are not recommended for serious rock crawling possibly because of the large lateral forces that can occur. They probably are worries about pulling studs out of the billet aluminum. This is only a guess on my part.

 

[Mike Wilson]

Install a Quality set properly, checking the torque every so often, and don't try Rock Crawling

with them, and you should be O.K. for normal driving.

NO IMPACT WRENCH!!! Use a torque wrench!