Wheel Spacers, they are a bad idea arnt they?
Discussion
Just need a reminder that i shouldnt even consider wheel spacers, on the front anyway. Dont they increase bump steer, well mess up the handling anyway?
Ive got some miglia arches which ive chopped down narrower so they sit just outside the wheel and cover it quite nicely, after all that is the point of that type of arch. But a mate seems to think that i need to space the wheels out a little. The wheels are 6x10 GBs. Could i get away with 1/4"?
Do spacers have an effect on the rear, is a little bit of spacing beneficial? I have got spacered rear drums.
Ive got some miglia arches which ive chopped down narrower so they sit just outside the wheel and cover it quite nicely, after all that is the point of that type of arch. But a mate seems to think that i need to space the wheels out a little. The wheels are 6x10 GBs. Could i get away with 1/4"?
Do spacers have an effect on the rear, is a little bit of spacing beneficial? I have got spacered rear drums.
The main reason for using spacers is to fit wider tyres than normal and prevent them rubbing on the bodywork when you've got full lock on.
Can't see why it would increase bump steer necessarily, but you'll have less thread on your hubs sticking through, so you'd have to consider how well your wheels are held on. I fitted spacers to a midget I used to have, purely because I had lower profile tyres on. It certainly didn't seem to have a knock on effect on the handling...
Can't see why it would increase bump steer necessarily, but you'll have less thread on your hubs sticking through, so you'd have to consider how well your wheels are held on. I fitted spacers to a midget I used to have, purely because I had lower profile tyres on. It certainly didn't seem to have a knock on effect on the handling...
1/4 inch spacers on the rear of the Mini were part of the 'Official' John Cooper handling kit. They are to ensure the 165/60/12 tyres clear the rear wheelarch under full bump.
Small 1/4 inch spacers shouldn't have significant issues (indeed some wheel offsets differ by greater amounts). Just ensure good thread engagement at all times.
Small 1/4 inch spacers shouldn't have significant issues (indeed some wheel offsets differ by greater amounts). Just ensure good thread engagement at all times.
Just make sure you get the "solid" type spacers. MiniSpares will be able to point you in the right direction and remember you will need the longer wheel bolts to make sure you have enough thread left after the rim.
Popular wheels and a very popular mod - so not really a bad thing to be honest.
Popular wheels and a very popular mod - so not really a bad thing to be honest.
Thin spacers used to ensure tyre clearance are fine. I have to run 4mm spacers on the rear of my car when running the Colway Knobblies as the reinforcing strips on the sidewalls rub on the dampers. The fronts are no problem though.
Wide spacers are a real 'no-no' as they do screw up the steering geometry on the front (it's well screwed up on the Sport Pack) and they do the wheel bearings no good on either end.
Wide spacers are a real 'no-no' as they do screw up the steering geometry on the front (it's well screwed up on the Sport Pack) and they do the wheel bearings no good on either end.
Spacers on the rear slightly decrease understeer, like a rear anti roll bar. On the front it just makes the steering shitty. I had some 6.5" JA Pearce wheels which are offset by about 3.5" offset. On S brakes. Great on a mirror surfaced track but terrible on the road. When I upped the power stupidly, it made it a nasty car to drive. (I don't mind things like LSD's or harsh steering) but kicking through the steering wheel, bump steer and ridiculous torque steer are not good. I'm sure you're not going this far and I'm a fan of fat minis. I'm going to run a set of maximum inset 5" wheels on mine when I up the power more (and an LSD). I don't like offset but if I did, I'd run some of those KAD 8x10 mags with cut slicks 
but they'd just make it horrible to drive on the road.
Keep 'em in as much as you can.
but they'd just make it horrible to drive on the road. Keep 'em in as much as you can.
haynes said:
Talking of KAD alloys, i was looking at these yesterday, 10x6, are they nearly £300 each or is that for a set? Thats each isnt it?!
£308 Each. I imagine my old JAP's were lighter as well.
You could get a set cast/machined up for less than that, I reckon. I know a guy with a foundry/machine shop......
i bought a set of banded std wheels on ebay last week.
7 quid the set.
we are going to throw all the crappy 13" rubbish fitted to my bro's ratter mini and go back to s discs. these banded wheels will be perfect for that mid 70's retro look. - i used to run a set on the same car 15 years ago and they look great.
it confuses the hell out of people, 6" wide wheels with hubcaps?
wtf?
makes a change from 6" minilights, sure people say they fall to bits, but the welding on these is perfect machine weld, and they must have been made years ago.
7 quid the set.
we are going to throw all the crappy 13" rubbish fitted to my bro's ratter mini and go back to s discs. these banded wheels will be perfect for that mid 70's retro look. - i used to run a set on the same car 15 years ago and they look great.
it confuses the hell out of people, 6" wide wheels with hubcaps?
wtf?
makes a change from 6" minilights, sure people say they fall to bits, but the welding on these is perfect machine weld, and they must have been made years ago.
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