Wheel Spacers, yay or nay

[rtpatter]

It my attempt to sport up my wifes old 07 GX 470 for my son, we are currently lifting 2" and putting on KO2 275/70R17.

I have seen some threads where guys have added wheel spacers to make the tires stick out a little more. Is the general consensus this is worth the investment or not. I was thinking something modest like 1.5" spacer but wasn't sure if this will impact the handling or ride negatively in anyway.

Thanks

 

[iwashmycar]

People run tens of thousands of miles with spacers. No problems so long as you buy QUALITY ones...like Spidertrax, Bora, ect. and install them correctly.

I decided to add some Spidertrax 1.25's to my FJC after getting "pizza cutter" tires on my stock wheels. Very happy with them.

As with everything, you are adding another link to the chain. If you or your son dont check them and inspect periodically, then you may be setting yourself up for failure. If you plan to just forget about them, or you dont do your own work, then look into lower offset wheels instead.

 

[rtpatter]

With the modest lift we are planning would it make more sense to try 285/70R17 tires instead of 275/70R17 or will those not fit and/or create rub issues?

 

[ArBrnSnpr]

Spacers are a common addition to a lot of modified cars. They will increase stress on the front wheel bearings. Rear axle is set up differently so it's less of a concern.

As was already said though, people run them for thousands of miles though.

I used to have 285's on a 2.5" lift. I had a body mount chop and some other clearancing mods done but I never rubbed.

 

[mustyGX]

With the modest lift we are planning would it make more sense to try 285/70R17 tires instead of 275/70R17 or will those not fit and/or create rub issues?

They'll probably create a bit of a rubbing issue, but some minor modifications to the wheel liner or fender are easy enough. I just removed my 1.25" Spidertrax because I'm upgrading to 33s or maybe even 35s with a regear. I'll add a link to the spacers. There's less than 5k miles on them. If you want them, I'd be happy to sell them to you at a discount. Otherwise, they'll be sitting on my parts shelf collecting dust.

Amazon product ASIN B00J9RTXPS

 

[Brake Weight]

Here is a pic having the front spaced and the rear not. Big difference especially when parked near another that is not. They will cause no more stress than running different wheels with a higher offset. These SpyderTrax showed up anodized blue. I'd suggest getting a can of spray paint the same color as your wheels and paint just the OD of the spacers, mask off the mating surfaces, so that they won't be as noticable.

View attachment 1488631

 

[trifenix]

I ran ebay spacers (T6 6061) for many years with no issues. just ensure you use blue loctite and run hubcentric spacers to prevent wobble. Brand names are of course better. It will just wear your bearings faster but no different than wheels with a bigger offset.

 

[NomzMatter]

I've run spacers for a couple years now on my GX. I live and play in Utah, so frequent ridiculous offroad trips happen as well as deep winter snows in the mountains. There's pros and cons. If my tires cleared my UCAs I wouldn't run spacers. Since my tires don't, I run spacers. It's great for clearing UCAs, but I had to trim some stuff and reform the fender liners to not rub. Also had to do a body mount chop so my tires didn't rub the body mount.

 

[Mrpinortiner]

Buy quality, and buy hubcentric.

 

[co4wheel]

Spacers add no additional stress to the hub then a higher offset wheel. Exactly the same thing. Properly installed spacers (read the directions and do it right) are very secure. It's loctited in place so it isn't going anywhere. They work fine used properly. I would only do the 1.25 version with Spidertrax personally. And that it what I have done for years.

 

[WaterGeo]

They'll probably create a bit of a rubbing issue, but some minor modifications to the wheel liner or fender are easy enough. I just removed my 1.25" Spidertrax because I'm upgrading to 33s or maybe even 35s with a regear. I'll add a link to the spacers. There's less than 5k miles on them. If you want them, I'd be happy to sell them to you at a discount. Otherwise, they'll be sitting on my parts shelf collecting dust.

Amazon product ASIN B00J9RTXPS

@mustyGX Do you still have these spacers? I just saw that my 255/75r17 KO2 are slightly rubbing against my UCA's. I didn't think I should get any rubbing with the RRO extreme UCA's, but here we go. I'd be interested in taking them off your hands. Thanks!

 

[mustyGX]

@mustyGX Do you still have these spacers? I just saw that my 255/75r17 KO2 are slightly rubbing against my UCA's. I didn't think I should get any rubbing with the RRO extreme UCA's, but here we go. I'd be interested in taking them off your hands. Thanks!

I've still got them. Message me and we can discuss price and shipping.