Spacers and Adapters

[true85HA]

So i have gone through 55 pages of wheel and tire setup to just ask one question. for everyone who ran spacers or adapters to get the right fitment and offset did you have any issues since installing them? what the largers spacer you would feel safe using ?

 

[Turbo6inKY]

I think the answer is "as small as possible."

Quarter to half inch spacer I wouldn't worry about. You often need that much because some wheel manufacturers have half inch or one inch offset increments, so a small spacer is sometimes necessary to get it just right. Any more than that, and you're really dealing with the wrong wheel.

I've seen two sets of the bolt-on adapters outright fail on two different cars and the wheel cross the finish line before the car did in just the last couple of years.

 

[true85HA]

Turbo6inKY

Thanks for the help I have been trying to do the math and it seems that the lowest off the shelf is a +10 or +12 which would is .39 and .47 inches so right at a half inch spacer. I was looking at the GTA Hawk 17x9 which come in a +12 and need spacers to clear.

 

[BuickMike231]

I've got a full set (front and rears) of GTA wheels on my car and run 5/16" spacers on all four. The fronts (which are the rear wheels) needed them to not hit the tie rods, but the rear wheels (which are actually the fronts) I put them on just to get them away from the frame a bit more. I've had them on since about this time 2015 and hadn't had an issue. I do torque them again every few hundred miles just to be safe, but never noticed any of them loosen up.

 

[true85HA]

I've got a full set (front and rears) of GTA wheels on my car and run 5/16" spacers on all four. The fronts (which are the rear wheels) needed them to not hit the tie rods, but the rear wheels (which are actually the fronts) I put them on just to get them away from the frame a bit more. I've had them on since about this time 2015 and hadn't had an issue. I do torque them again every few hundred miles just to be safe, but never noticed any of them loosen up.

thats good news, what size are you GTA wheels?

 

[gusszgs]

It's the back yard 'joe dirt' clown that puts on too large of spacer, then slaps the wheels on tightening the wheels up in a circular fashion instead of criss-cross to the "feels right to me bubba" and never checks them again

 

[BuickMike231]

thats good news, what size are you GTA wheels?

Mine are the stock 16x8 wheels. I run 255s on all four corners (I was autocrossing my car). The fronts rubbed at full turn but I didn't worry about it much (never really cranked it all the way anyways. 245s would clear much better.

 

[true85HA]

It's the back yard 'joe dirt' clown that puts on too large of spacer, then slaps the wheels on tightening the wheels up in a circular fashion instead of criss-cross to the "feels right to me bubba" and never checks them again

lol yeah not planning on that method

 

[1986 Buick GX1]

I ran some '85 Vette wheels (16x8.5) with 1.5 in. adapter/ spacer because of the high offset/ backspace difference.
I had them on the car from '88- '92 when I got the 17 in. HRE 504 black mesh GTA style wheels I have now.

The only problem I had was when someone stole 4 of the right front lug nuts and loosened the 5th while hanging out/ cruising. Luckily I heard it and stopped within a couple blocks, removed one lug nut from the other 3 wheels and drove 25 mi. home with 4 lug nuts on each wheel.
I suspect someone didn't like me. In my defense, I was a cocky little sob back then. Oh, wait, that doesn't help my case.