Whats the big deal?

[Musick17]

Ive read some stuff on here about people that highly recommend you dont use wheel spacers/adapters...

but why?

I have a set of 16x8 wheels with a 6x4.5 pattern and was thinking of just buying adapters for them to use on the ranger. What kind of problems have you seen with this? Are the main issues only when your spacing out 1"-2"? I was not planning on spacing out at all unless needed to accomodate the backspacing.

 

[gribly]

Well, some of us are lug-nuts ourselves and tend to be a little harsh on equipment. You're adding in a weak point. I know some have gotten away with it, while others have barely made it up one trail. Just take a second to think about what the spacers do and how they are mounted, if you feel comfortable with it, go ahead. I won't.

 

[Musick17]

I know yyour putting the weight of your truck out farther and all the added stress is on the spacers. And anything is going to break if your real rough on it. Where I live though a 'trail' would be considered a muddy field road most the time. There is next to no place to wheel at.

so i guess my next question is, would you be comfortable with wheel adapters/spacers for a vehicle that is 90% on road use?

basically I sold my old ranger and bout a newer one with 100,000 less miles on it for only 500 bucks difference from what i sold mine for. And... I absolutely hate this thing. Looks like a turd. So a small lift, new wheels, and tires so get it more visually pleasing is all I'm going for.

 

[straycat]

I just would never use them on my 2wd or 4x4 rides. Some people I know have used them and told me that they had a lot of issues after a few thousand miles and some said they never had an issue after using them for a number of years. The spacers put a lot of strain on the wheel area and can cause bearings to go out or hubs to burn out. I know that now and then as I watched an episode of Extreme 4x4 that have used them on occasions. But it is your truck and if you want to use them then go ahead and use them. Ask a 4x4 shop about them. Mine sells them and they use them but they also tell people about the issues that can occur from using them.

Good luck, Bro.

 

[59bisquik]

I have never run them personally, but a couple of guys on the UA did. Andrew lost a wheel on the way to New Hampshire while on the freeway and the Hi-Lift guys had multiple issues with wheel spacers also. After seeing those issues, I would never run them on my rig. But thats just my opinion!

 

[Musick17]

Ive heard way more bad about them than good! So its a definite no go for me on that.

 

[WNY964x4]

i dont see how a whelel spacer is any different than a wheel with major backspacing when it comes to stress on the front end , whether you have a stock wheel with a spacer or a huge backspace wheel , you are moving the tire out either way and adding stress. As long as you get a quality made spacer (one that has the studs as part of it , not those flimsy slide over ones) you should have no problem , i know quite a few people that run them with no issues , my buddy has a 97 F-350 CCLB with a 7.3 , 8 inch Lift and 41's , running 2.5 inch spacers with no problems after 15k miles , and we have rotated the tires 3 times and checked the spacers every time. i personally plan to run them on my 97 Ranger so that i can space the tires out enough to make it look wider while running a stock backspace rim. just my .02

 

[Musick17]

Whats so sketchy about the ones I would have to buy for the 6 luh rims i have already is that there is no way to configure it to be one machined piece. Its a 2 piece spacer.

 

[martin]

Might be cheaper to just buy new wheels.

 

[Capt Jay]

No difference between a quality spacer and a back spaced rim. Stress is being placed on the ball joints and bearings, period. As for people loosing tires, try torquing the lug nuts and checking them occasionally. It doesn't matter what you have, if you don't do minor maintenance things don't last.

 

[Musick17]

Might be cheaper to just buy new wheels.

Yeah, thats what I'm doing. the 2 piece spacers were $70 a wheel!