Wheel Spacers (Safe or Not?)

Nop5.0 · Jan 18, 2006

I'm sure this topic has been covered but, I couldn't find a whole lot of information specific to the safety aspects when I searched. I'm curious as to how safe the spacers are. I know you need to have x number of wheel stud threads available to adequately secure the wheels but.....are there safety issues beyond that? Thanks.

SinCityVogel · Jan 19, 2006

Well somebody should answer.
I say not safe. If you want the car wider than do it by off set on the wheels.

outdoorstom · Jan 19, 2006

Nop5.0 said:
I'm sure this topic has been covered but, I couldn't find a whole lot of information specific to the safety aspects when I searched. I'm curious as to how safe the spacers are. I know you need to have x number of wheel stud threads available to adequately secure the wheels but.....are there safety issues beyond that? Thanks.

I've had 1" spacers on my car since last year with absolutely no problems or issues whatsoever. They are indeed safe.

bigcat · Jan 19, 2006

if they were not safe, MOST companies would never carry them. there would be a liability issue. i had lug adapters on a car for 30,000 miles and never had a problem. it changed the ford bolt pattern to chevy so i could mount my 5 on 4.5" wheels on a 5 on 4.75" chevy. spacers would be even less of a problem, as long as you did not go too big.

you really need to buy wheels with the correct offset. why would you buy wheels that dont fit? if they were laying around and you wanted to put them on would be one thing, but it sounds like you are buying new wheels. get the correct offset and you wont have to worry about it.

billy_tripper · Jan 19, 2006

They are completely safe. There are two kinds. One is what you would call an adapter. This is a plate that can be anywhere from 1/2" to 3". The plate is bolted to the hub and the wheel is then bolted to the plate. The other kind is a thin plate (1/8"-1/4") that sits between the wheel and the hub, but the wheel is still bolted onto the hub itself. If you are using the thin spacer, you must make sure that you have 7-8 full turns of the lug nuts to be safe. 6 is ok, but you should check them every now and then. If you only have 4-5 turns, you need to get an E.T. style lug nut. These are made with an extra shank to reach down inside the spacer and get more threads. If using the adapter style spacers, use some lok-tite on the studs on the hub because you probably won't want to take the wheels off very often to check for tightness of the lug nuts holding the adapter on. Make sure to get them good and snug and make sure that the stud on the hub doesn't stick out past the adapter because it won't allow the wheel to sit flush on the adapter if it does.

These adapter are safe if properly used, but can be very dangerous if installed incorrectly.

Nop5.0 · Jan 20, 2006

billy_tripper said:
They are completely safe. There are two kinds. One is what you would call an adapter. This is a plate that can be anywhere from 1/2" to 3". The plate is bolted to the hub and the wheel is then bolted to the plate. The other kind is a thin plate (1/8"-1/4") that sits between the wheel and the hub, but the wheel is still bolted onto the hub itself. If you are using the thin spacer, you must make sure that you have 7-8 full turns of the lug nuts to be safe. 6 is ok, but you should check them every now and then. If you only have 4-5 turns, you need to get an E.T. style lug nut. These are made with an extra shank to reach down inside the spacer and get more threads. If using the adapter style spacers, use some lok-tite on the studs on the hub because you probably won't want to take the wheels off very often to check for tightness of the lug nuts holding the adapter on. Make sure to get them good and snug and make sure that the stud on the hub doesn't stick out past the adapter because it won't allow the wheel to sit flush on the adapter if it does.

These adapter are safe if properly used, but can be very dangerous if installed incorrectly.

Nop5.0 · Jan 20, 2006

Thanks very much. Very helpful!

Wheel Spacers (Safe or Not?)

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SinCityVogel

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outdoorstom

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start with the upper hole, and if more traction is

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