Wheel studs are too short! What to do....

Ok, so I’m in the same boat as the last post...except I don’t have wheel spacers.

bought a set of old steel wheels from a coworker. They were originally from a 3rd gen 4runner, not sure exactly which year. I installed them last night and the lug nuts only thread on half way. Not sure how extended thread nuts would do anything because the hole on the rim is just big enough for the stud. Any ideas? Can I even replace the studs with longer ones on a 2002?

 

Wow, just found this thread.

It's my understanding that the Pancake style spacers (without built-in studs) are not recommended for most applications. And certainly not a truck that will be used like a truck.

Just Say NO to pancake style spacers. And if the OE wheel studs are to short for your new application, you got the wrong application. Just my $0.02

 

To get the wheel flange away from the brake backing plate, you have to basically do the same process you would have to do to replace the wheel bearing, in this case a unit bearing, if I'm not mistaken...and I could be since it's a five lug. I believe for 2nd Gens forward, it requires a spanner and a hydraulic press. At any rate, you would be better off either cutting the studs down until you can get them in, or get the shorter Toyota Matrix studs referenced earlier in this thread. Or you could drill a hole in the backing plate to put the studs through and then put a grommet in the hole to seal everything back up.

That's all I got.

 

Then the only other thing I could suggest before you go spend a pile of $$$ at the machine shop having the axles pressed out of the wheel bearing, the studs pressed in and the axles pressed back in and the lock nut retorqued, is try taking your brake wheel cylinder out and see if there's a hole big enough to slip the stud through and then pray the angle isn't too much to get the stud to drop in.