Adding Wheel Spacers - a different perspective

[Romer]

This is a good article on wheel spacers

I had to add small spacers to my 40 as the tires where rubbing against the caliper

I don't see the attraction for wheel spacers on the 200. Sure it looks beefier and I hear the comment on stance being better for CG and roll over, but I haven't been (and try not to) get in a situation where rollover is a concern. I have wheeled all over the country including the Rubicon with my previous Land Cruiser wagons

In another thread I read the thought about wheels being out farther protecting the side panels. It also places greater risk at slicing a tire ( done that)

IF you add larger tires and with the wheel you pick you have a chance of rubbing against the Calipers or suspension or frame, then spacers makes perfect sense to me.

Adding them does look better, but it places additional stress on the suspension, likely not significant and adds one more thing that might fail out on the trail (mitigated if you check the torque now and then). Additionally requires trimming for an essentially aesthetic modification if your using a setup that has no rubbing.

Not trying to be a naysayer, I like the look you guys get when adding spacers.

If I end up upgrading to Tundra Brake Calipers later on, or go bigger tires, I will rethink the need for spacers based on functional reasons. Like I said, I had to add them on my 40, mostly due to the wheels being closer to the calipers creating rubbing.

Since many folks are new and wanting to copy other builds, I thought it prudent to post some info to make sure proper thought goes into adding the spacers with all the data.

Modifications are what we do to personalize your rig. I am not anti-wheel spacers, I just have a different perspective I thought worth providing as many new owners here don't have a lot of experience wheeling their trucks.

I also know that many owners have progressed the way I have and their experience indicates wheel spacers are a great option.

Having owned 5 Land Cruisers, building and wheeling all of them I have formed my own set of opinions based on experience. Your experience and opinions will likely vary.

Your friendly 200 Series Forum Moderator

 

[Markuson]

I'm happy with Spidertrax, but I agree with everything you say here.

All of the mods to my 200 have been for functional reasons...EXCEPT the recent addition of spacers...which I admit are mainly because I didn't like how my tires seemed recessed within the well. Spacers can also add limitations at some tire shops and brake jobs. I recently had my rotors turned, and they had to remove & reinstall the spacers. It can be an extra step... They were OK with it and didn't charge for the hassle, but some tire shops won't work on spacer wheels.

 

[skyak]

I would quickly add that if you are going to add spacers, get hub centric and own a torque wrench covering the correct range.

 

[Markuson]

I would quickly add that if you are going to add spacers, get hub centric and own a torque wrench covering the correct range.

Ya. As it turns out, the place I bought my tires are OK with working on spacers like the Spidertrax. Bolted and centered and OK, while the cheapie, washer-like generics are really bad news and can be dangerously out of balance because they move around while mounting.

 

[Desert Nomad]

The H&R 35mm I put on were mainly for looks, when I swapped to the 5 spoke steel wheels they sat further in than stock. With any modification there are advantages and disadvantages best is to do your research and know what risks you'll be facing.

 

[Markuson]

I would quickly add that if you are going to add spacers, get hub centric and own a torque wrench covering the correct range.

Yes. 97 ft. lbs. for Spidertrax bolts with a bit of lock-tite on each.

 

[chilibit]

Toyota did not deliberately engineer bad wheel offset. They struck a very thoughtful balance. I like the 17" RW configuration just as it is. If your circumstances fall outside the Toyota engineering envelope then perhaps spacers are the answer. But I seriously doubt that Toyota made all the trade-offs and got it wrong. Ideally you would like your bearings as far out as feasible to reduce the lever load. It seldom happens that way in actual practice. Bearings have changed and improved in the last 50 years. The physics is unchanged. All IMHO of course.

 

[Atx Cruiser]

I had the spidertrax spacers installed to improve the "stance" and so far they've been fine. I am still considering going to a 18x9 wheel and new tires and losing the spacers. Thanks for your input @Romer.

 

[Angelo1]

I had the spidertrax spacers installed to improve the "stance" and so far they've been fine. I am still considering going to a 18x9 wheel and new tires and losing the spacers. Thanks for your input @Romer.

I'm having 18x9 installed this Thursday with either 275/70/18 or 305/65/18 KO2 and can post pics of before and after with a review of you'd like to see it. I am currently running an OME lifts with stock wheels on 285/65/18 KO with spidertrax spacers

 

[Atx Cruiser]

I'd love a before and after pic and your thoughts @Angelo1. What wheels are you going with?

 

[Angelo1]

I'd love a before and after pic and your thoughts @Angelo1. What wheels are you going with?

 

[KY Longhunter]

Any update ?

 

[Canyonero]

Yes. 97 ft. lbs. for Spidertrax bolts with a bit of lock-tite on each.

FWIW- the spider trax spacer instructions say to put the thread lock on, drive 50 miles... Then take your wheels off and re-check the torque.

Now it seems to me that applying a torque wrench to locked threads with lugs that were already torqued to spec is a dumb idea. It will break (or weaken) the locked property of the lug on the bolt.

I can't take credit for realizing this--I was actually chatting with Amory from Slee recently and he is the one who pointed it out. When I installed my spacers, I drove around per the instructions and checked my front spacers only--both were fine so I called it a day.

In any case, yes it is primarily an aesthetic "mod". But if it looks better and there is no real downside (at least none reported that I've seen) it seems like one that's worth doing if you like the look.

 

[Markuson]

FWIW- the spider trax spacer instructions say to put the thread lock on, drive 50 miles... Then take your wheels off and re-check the torque.

Now it seems to me that applying a torque wrench to locked threads with lugs that were already torqued to spec is a dumb idea. It will break (or weaken) the locked property of the lug on the bolt.

I can't take credit for realizing this--I was actually chatting with Amory from Slee recently and he is the one who pointed it out. When I installed my spacers, I drove around per the instructions and checked my front spacers only--both were fine so I called it a day.

In any case, yes it is primarily an aesthetic "mod". But if it looks better and there is no real downside (at least none reported that I've seen) it seems like one that's worth doing if you like the look.

Funny you mention that, bc that's /EXACTLY what I was thinking. Who wants to break the lock/seal?
I did check them, though, and they were all at least 97 lbs still--or at least they got the toque wrench to click without exceeding 97. I suspect the lock-tite would mean applying more than that to move them unless they'd broken loose. But anyway... Ya. Seems like once they are locked, you don't wanna break the seal.

 

[mcgaskins]

I ran 1.5" Spidertrax spacers, and I ultimately pulled them off for new wheels with proper offset due to the noticeably increased turning radius. It was driving me nuts how much wider the turning circle was, so they came off within about 4 months of putting them on. Fortunately people seem to love to buy used spacers for barely less than what they cost new

 

[KY Longhunter]

Are these spacers good to go?

4 Toyota Tundra Sequoia 4x4 or 2wd Wheel Spacers Adapters 1.5" 5x150

 

[gaijin]

Are these spacers good to go?

4 Toyota Tundra Sequoia 4x4 or 2wd Wheel Spacers Adapters 1.5" 5x150

No, but these might be: 4 Toyota Tundra Landcruiser Sequoia Wheel Spacers 1.5" 5x150 Hub Centric

But for just a little more, you can get the real deal: Spidertrax Toyota 5 on 150mm x 1-1/4" Thick Wheel Spacer Kit (Pair)

 

[fireball]

Any idea why spidertraxx doesn’t make 1.5” spacers?

 

[TLCLVR]

Just keep in mind that if you are mounting larger than stock tires--aside from fitment issues--if you want to maintain the factory scrub radius, you must decrease your offset by about 1/4" per inch of tire diameter. Otherwise you'll be running close to 0 scrub on a 33's (= squirm, poor steering feedback/feel, more steering 'kick' in the rocks), and negative scrub on 34's and 35's (don't want to know what this does...)

 

[iwashmycar]

Just keep in mind that if you are mounting larger than stock tires--aside from fitment issues--if you want to maintain the factory scrub radius, you must decrease your offset by about 1/4" per inch of tire diameter. Otherwise you'll be running close to 0 scrub on a 33's (= squirm, poor steering feedback/feel, more steering 'kick' in the rocks), and negative scrub on 34's and 35's (don't want to know what this does...)

This was one thing I was wondering about. Not just the larger tires, but moreso because of a lift. From my brief look into it, yes the larger diameter tire "wants" for it to be pushed out a little to compensate, but then lifting the truck really changes the angles and wants it out even further.