wheel spacers illegal!?

so ive got my 5100s and aal on there way, so i went to the tire store to check out some prices. after getting all the prices i asked if they could install wheel spacers too... he said wheel spacers are illegal in va. and they wont pass inspection.. so wtf!? i need to either get new uca's or get new rims so the 285s wont rubb the uca's.. so i guess im just going to get offset rims, and im really low on cash. so does anyone know what i should do or what offset rims i should get?

 

let me check on that for you.

 

he just doesnt want to do it.

http://www.vsp.state.va.us/Safety.shtm

 

what a gay! im wondering if i should just get offset rims insted tho?

 

The offset rims are probably better for you wheel bearings than the spacers- between 0 and -12 should do you just fine.

Not more than 4.5 inch backspace...

 

spacers are bad. dont use them

 

Wow, this really had me scared.

 

okay thanks.. now i guess im saving up for rims...
i didnt think the spacers were good,

 

Yah. Dude ur name is colton? mine is too! thats weird cuz i only know one other colton

 

Yep, sure is! I've only known one other Colton also. It's a rare name.

Oh yeah, about the spacers. I almost crapped myself...

 

I don't get where people think spacers are that bad. Quality ones are fine, the 3000GT community has been using them for... well forever as you can't fit anything without them. If a 300hp awd car can use and abuse them, I don't see why a truck can't.

 

Weight for one and center of gravity- Those spacers can load the wheel bearings incorrectly. Higher CG and more weight at that CG means you can mess up the hubs.

I wouldn't be surprised if those 3000GTs have some nasty looking hubs. They might work fine to spin the wheels...but that doesn't mean they aren't damaged or a time bomb for failure.

 

X2...I have only heard good things about spidertrax. I am about to put them on my truck on the 12th. as long as your not trying to build it yourself and buying a quality spacer you should be fine. I have no clue on the hub issue but has anyone really had any proof they have done some damage, I mean we are only talking about an inch or so here...I would like to know and it would help us all out a lot im sure. it would be nice to get some proof instead of everyone always saying what they think.(not trying to be an ass trust me).

I have the spacers just in case, but still havent figured out if i will even need them though. I bought the crawler rims from wheelersoffroad Type B and i have a 305/70/16 going on the truck. CraigTRD ran these same rims with a bigger tire but it was an 11" wide tire and mine comes out to about 12". not sure if this will make the spacers necessary.

 

Im running 285's and i have no problems with them rubbing on the uca's. Only parts that were rubbing was the inner fender plastics and a small portion on the lower front rear of the fender flare that i just cut.

 

Man, I hate bad information. As long as you are using a hub and wheel centric wheel adapter (such as the Spidertrax) there is NO DIFFERENCE on the forces the hub or bearings see vs a lower offset wheel. NONE. Yes, there is more weight, but it is negligable and a set of steel wheels or some 20s, or some larger tires are going to weigh a lot more. Plus, the weight is near the center, which makes it have less effect than the larger tires would.

Anyone who has taken high school physics should be able to see this...

 

No reason to get snarky-Believe it or not I've taken high school and college level physics.

And last I checked- A lower offset rim puts the forces directly from the rim to the hub- where the spacer transfers forces thru the spacer between the rim and the hub....That creates a moment. Slight as it might be- It's not the way the hubs were designed to the loaded.

 

Sorry, just sick of seeing this topic beat to death. Low offset wheels create a moment as well, that is all I'm saying. The hub sees the same forces (assuming equal offset change). Now, the lug studs may see a bit more, but hub centric part shoud help this.

 

Good dialogue guys...thats exactly what i'm looking for. 2 people smarter than me throwing out info that is beneficial to us all.

I take from this that there may be some force there but not enough to be of any real consequence if your using the right stuff. I would imagine that after all these years of using "good" spacers that we would have had someone telling us thier stuff was jacked up due to the setup.

 

Yeah...What I said does need to be tempered with the fact that your truck won't immediately explode upon installation of the spacers and you may drive it with no problems for a long time.

No products out there get mass produced like spacers are if they cause nothing but problems...Are they okay to use...Sure...Would I ever do it...NOPE. But that's a personal choice.

 

People keep saying it's bad for the hubs. I ask, who as actually seen hubs fail as a direct result of using spacers? Anyone, please? I never saw anyone with failed hubs on 1991 sports cars. :shrugs: