Help on 2004 LX470...Wheel Spacer or Not?

[Travis Bickle]

I've got a set of 1" Bora spacers from motorsport-tech, there is pretty much no downside. Installed with no thread locker, no modification to studs. People that have problems with spacers are overwhelmingly due to improper install and not checking torque after driving on them a few miles.

I'm still on stock size tires as well, eventually when I go to 285's I think it will look perfect. These trucks without spacers look goofy.

 

[Mauser]

If you ever want to run snow chains on the front tires you have to use spacers.

 

[mtman222]

If you decide to get spacers, I have a set (from Slee) for sale that were only used for a short time.

Would love to discuss this option...can you DM me?

 

[JT4runner]

Slee or Bora are two of the best options. There are others as well.

I've got 1.5" spacers on mine. Not only do I not regret them for any reason, they've actually been a huge benefit off road. My truck has avoided body damage where other 100s took some, all because I was able to push myself away from an obstacle with the extra clearance.

If you're only looking into them for aesthetics, I wouldn't hesitate at all. I could see being more reluctant for off-road use but in my experience, there is zero down side.

Which brand did you go with? I want to also get spacers but unsure on which brand. I probably want to go with the BORA 1.25" wheel spacers.

 

[mtman222]

Which brand did you go with? I want to also get spacers but unsure on which brand. I probably want to go with the BORA 1.25" wheel spacers.

I ended up going with Slee...I found a set someone was willing to depart with as they are illegal where he was from.

 

[tarpaigh]

One issue not mentioned is turning radius is slightly affected by the spacers. I only noticed in tight parking lots. Also agree with the downside mentioned of potential for catastrophic failure. I had a wheel come off while on the interstate at 75mph. The spacer turned the wheel riding on the inside of the rim until I somehow stopped. I am still shocked the wheel didn't come off and become a 75mph missile on the interstate. My wife and I definitely believe it was a miracle.

 

[mtman222]

Wow! Glad to hear that you were safe! What brand of spacers were you using? Did the have shorter lugs? Did you use anything like locktite on them?

 

[abuck99]

The one and only issue I have with spacers is in trying to remove the front wheel hubs for trailside repair where they must come off to access the front flanges. If you prep them right, and you're able to easily remove them trailside, ok. But typically they tend to freeze to the hub, the nuts should have locktite and those can be tough to get off. This can make for some extra time issues if you're not prepared- especially if you're blocking a trail. If you don't want to invest $1,000 in wheels with a +18 to +25 offset (equivalent to 1.25" spacers), spacers are your next best option to poke the wheels out.

 

[mtman222]

Which brand did you go with? I want to also get spacers but unsure on which brand. I probably want to go with the BORA 1.25" wheel spacers.

I ended up getting a pair of Sleep spacers...waiting for them to arrive before I can put them on...

 

[suprarx7nut]

One issue not mentioned is turning radius is slightly affected by the spacers. I only noticed in tight parking lots. Also agree with the downside mentioned of potential for catastrophic failure. I had a wheel come off while on the interstate at 75mph. The spacer turned the wheel riding on the inside of the rim until I somehow stopped. I am still shocked the wheel didn't come off and become a 75mph missile on the interstate. My wife and I definitely believe it was a miracle.

View attachment 2515717

Whoa. Did all the lugs come loose? Or did some studs fail?!

 

[ls6]

One issue not mentioned is turning radius is slightly affected by the spacers. I only noticed in tight parking lots. Also agree with the downside mentioned of potential for catastrophic failure. I had a wheel come off while on the interstate at 75mph. The spacer turned the wheel riding on the inside of the rim until I somehow stopped. I am still shocked the wheel didn't come off and become a 75mph missile on the interstate. My wife and I definitely believe it was a miracle.

Wild, glad everyone was ok. Can you provide some more detail on the setup that failed? Looks like the spacer's stud sheered from that one picture.

Also, the copy of the FSM i have indicates lug nut Torque should be: 103 N·m (1,050 kgf·cm, 76 ft·lbf) Is that what you had all your lugs torqued to?

 

[tarpaigh]

Wild, glad everyone was ok. Can you provide some more detail on the setup that failed? Looks like the spacer's stud sheered from that one picture.

Also, the copy of the FSM i have indicates lug nut Torque should be: 103 N·m (1,050 kgf·cm, 76 ft·lbf) Is that what you had all your lugs torqued to?

We heard a loud noise, the vehicle dropped in the back and then the brakes went out but later came back. It seemed the lugs came off and the spacer stud sheared as the tire came off the spacer studs. I took the picture of the spacer resting on the detached wheel after we stopped on the side of I90. There was locktite on the Bora spacer and it was still attached. This occurred after I had it in 2 different shops where this wheel was taken off.

 

[GTV]

If someone isn’t willing to be personally responsible for their spacers it’s in everyone’s best interest that they avoid them.

 

[OEMGUY0720]

Many would say it’s overkill, but on my Bora 1.25” alum spacers I still used Loctite “red” 271 on 3-4 treads on the hub bolt to secure the wheel spacer, on top of torquing it to FSM specs. I also had developed a habit of checking the lug nuts after every long trip say 300+ miles or more to see if there any signs if the wheel nuts slightly or significantly loosened, so far that hasn’t occurred yet.

 

[skiwpk]

Looks like OP found a set. Anyone have used fronts/rears for sale? Ideally looking for 1.25 inch.

 

[vjpkrmnc]

Surprisingly, they don't seem to negatively affect the ability to "tuck" during compression at the normal thicknesses I saw when researching this (1.25-1.5"). They do make rubbing a little worse on the front wheels by moving the rotation circle of the front tires outwards and into the fender liner.

Tuck-wise, all good, though. Toyota was pretty conservative on the stock wheel offset.

I overcame internal hangups about function over form and put the slee/spidertrax 1.25" on after I got new (265/75/18) tires. The "space" made it look just right imo. Before photo, then the last two are after install.

 

[sportsbriefcase]

Agree with 1 inch is the best for 285s. IMO 1.25 is best for 275s. I'm running slee spidertrax 1.25s with 285 tires with 2" lift. Love the look and that's the only reason for me.

Recently, someone posted a bora wheel adapter failure on a facebook page. Said lugnuts on adapter loosened on a rear wheel and totaled their LC100 on freeway, of cause with photos of the truck but not much on the failed components. That's good example of a failure, a catastrophic failure, even can be deadly. Which probably caused by a negligence of the installer or tech did a repair on that wheel/tire. Yes, its another thing can fail, huge safety issue, also can easily missed when buttoning things up because those lugnuts are hidden under the tire. Its hard to catch compared to, unenlightened wheel lug nuts, or forgetting to put coolant after coolant system repair, or no oil in the engine after a oil change. Yes, these silly mistakes happened and happens at dealerships as well as at trusted mechanics.

Because of these reasons, I take care of tire rotations, and DIY maintenance. I verify lugnuts of adapters on every time I pull a tire. Most importantly, I'll make sure those are tight in case someone touches those. These are the important things to consider and inconveniences of having adapters. I will never use adapter if I trust and depend on dealerships or other shops to do tire rotations, maint, etc.

Here is mine next to a non lifted twin with 285s, twin has ugly fender flares though. Hope this helps to make your decision...

View attachment 2513807

Nice stance. If you didn't have the 2" lift, would your 285/65/18 tires rub? I want to add KO2s with 18"Tundra wheels and 1.25 spacers. I don't want a lift though.

 

[Asanka]

Nice stance. If you didn't have the 2" lift, would your 285/65/18 tires rub? I want to add KO2s with 18"Tundra wheels and 1.25 spacers. I don't want a lift though.

I had tires go first, then lift, and later installed spacers. Had tested each setup at big bend, confirm no rubbing on each.