Wheel spacers are one of the most common aftermarket upgrades on passenger cars and off-road vehicles. Most commonly, they’re up to 25 millimeters thick, however, larger wheel spacers are available for specific applications.
Because wheel spacers act like an extension to the wheel hubs, it’s important to install them properly to maintain the safety of your car.
In this article, you’ll learn what wheel spacers are, what types of wheel spacers are available on the market, which tools you’ll need, and lastly, how to properly install wheel spacers in your car.
Choose The Right Type Of Wheel Spacers
There are a couple of types of wheel spacers to choose from. The two main types include hub-centric spacers and lug-centric spacers. Another difference between spacers is the mounting type and width.
When it comes to choosing between hub-centric and lug-centric spacers, it’s always a good idea to go with hub-centric ones. They’re held centered by the center ring on the hub, making them a much safer choice compared to lug-centric spacers which are held centered only by the bolts.
Wheel spacers are the only link between the wheels and the hub, which makes the material they’re made of extremely important. Affordable spacers are usually made from cast aluminum, while more expensive ones are made from forged aluminum, which is much more durable.
Even if you get the best of the best when it comes to wheel spacers, you can make a wrong choice if you get wheel spacers that are too wide or too narrow for your specific car. If you’re looking for wheel spacers purely for aesthetic purposes, fitting even the smallest spacers to your car will provide a wider stance to your car, however, if you want to do things right, you’ll need to measure the distance between the fender and your wheels. Once you do, you can get the ideal wheel spacers for your car. Also, make sure to measure the distance at the front and back wheels because it will be different, and the same spacers won’t provide ideal fitment at the front and the back.
Before buying wheel spacers, make sure you know the bolt pattern and central hub width. This information is critical because spacers with an improper bolt pattern won’t fit your car.
Step-By-Step Guide To Installing Wheel Spacers
Fitting wheel spacers to a car is a pretty straightforward process, and in most cases doesn’t require additional modifications to the suspension components. There are, however, a few tools and equipment you’ll need to do the job safely.
When it comes to tools, you’ll need a jack and jack stands, a lug wrench, and a torque wrench. A degreaser, impact wrench, and car lift aren’t required but will make the job easier.
The first thing to do is to loosen all the bolts on all the wheels. This is done even before you jack up the car because it’s easier to get enough torque to loosen the bolts while the car is on the ground. If you tried to loosen the bolts when the car is already in the air, the moment you try to turn the bolts, the wheels will also turn unless there’s someone sitting in the cabin, pressing the brake pedal.
Once the bolts on the wheels are loose, you can lift the car on the jack stands. Make sure to place the jack correctly to the jacking points under your car because you can damage the car if you don’t place it properly. Always make sure your car is stable before setting the jack stands underneath it.
After your car is safely placed on jack stands, it’s time to remove the wheels from the car. This is done by completely removing the bolts from the wheels. If you haven’t removed your wheels for a long time, it can happen for the wheels to seize, and you’ll need to hit the tires slightly to break the wheel free from the hub.
Using a wire brush, clean the hubs from dirt and corrosion. Although this won’t affect the fitment of wheel spacers significantly, it’s a great idea to mount it on a clean surface for best fitment and reduce the possibility for the spacers to seize on the hub. You can also clean the hubs with a degreaser before fitting your new spacers.
When the hubs are clean, you can place your new spacers and align the holes on the spacer with the holes on the spacer. When mounting the spacers, always be sure that they’re fitted properly. They should fit really snugly to the hub, and it’s easy to overlook a small angle when placing them on the hub. Look for gaps and use a rubber hammer if you need to fit the spacers properly to the hub. If you’re using bolt-on spacers, tighten the bolts by hand after which you’ll need to torque the bolts to the manufacturer’s recommended specification.
If you’re using slip-on wheel spacers, you’ll also need to get longer bolts. Using the same bolts that were on the car will end up having fewer threads in the hub, which can ultimately cause the wheels to come off. When using wheel spacers, you should always get bolts that are equally longer than factory bolts when you take the width of the spacer into consideration. This will allow you to safely use the spacers.
The last step is to fit the wheels while the car is still on jack stands. Lightly tighten the bolts with a torque wrench. Lower the car back down slowly, looking for any fitment issues. Once the car is fully lowered to the ground, tighten the wheels accordingly to manufacturer recommendations, and take the car for a test drive. Have someone check the tires scrubbing on the wheels while fully turning the steering wheel to each side. After this, you can check the bolts one more time and that’s it. You’ve successfully fitted wheel spacers to your car.
Fitting wheel spacers isn’t complicated, however, it requires choosing the right set of spacers for your car. Once you find the right spacers, it won’t take more than an hour to fit them into all four corners of the car.