Hubcentric spacers or not?

[Andehh]

Hi guys,

I have some nwinter wheels on it trying to out on, initially I bought a 10mm hubcentric spacers I bought off eBay but it didn't fit over the massive lip on my octy's hub - not even close! Something thatnever even ooccurred to me. Now I need to find out if I can return said spacers, but in the meantime I am looking at the Halfords generic 10mm spacers and wondering if it is a huge risk to use them? The garage didn't think it would be an issue with correct radius'd longer bolts.
 
The wheels are off a VW Sharan so right stud pattern for my skoda octavia vrs, but catch on my front brakes so a spacers are required. I would also like the wheels not quite so deep within the wheel arches.
 
Cheers guys

[FRMATT]

Just get some 57.1mm bore flat spacers, if there is enough hub lip to poke through them and mount the wheel on you won't have an issue.

I'd imagine it's a bit of a pain to get a universal spacer bolted up centrally on the hub

[Andehh]

Garage said they'd be able to get it close, but again still didn't see to what the fuss was. But they did say they didn't see it very often though, but if Halford sell it how bad can it be? That bit made me smile!

[Andehh]

Can anyone comment? Cheers

[406highlander]

I'm told hubcentric spacers are what you will need.

Flat shim-type spacers, if they do obscure the hub "lip", will mean that the weight of the vehicle is only being supported by the wheel bolts. Bolts can shear under load or if you hit a bump, and you really don't want to lose a wheel if you hit a pothole at speed on a motorway.

If you get hubcentric spacers, which will sit on top of the hub "lip" and will then have their own "lip" protruding from the middle, then the weight sits on the hub again, not the bolts.

Whether it makes a huge amount of difference in real life, I don't know, but I went for hubcentric when I fitted my aftermarket wheels. Call it peace of mind.

[205jsy]

Personally I would just wait to get some hubcentric ones that fit.

[Fattyfat]

I think H&R list a few different variations for VAG cars in 10mm. Worth a look?

[s p a c e m a n]

Bolts should only provide a clamping force, the weight of the car should be held by the lip on the hub. It will probably be fine driving around normally, but if something happens outside of the bolts tolerance then you at least destroy the brakes disk, wing, bumper etc and could quite easily end up in a world of st. It's not even slightly worth chancing it, I've seen more than a few cars bent from bodging wheels on.

[FRMATT]

The hub lip doesn't support the weight, the friction between the wheel and the hub face is what supports the weight, it's provided by the bolts clamping the two faces together.

The hub lip only helps make sure the wheel is centered on the hub

[TallPaul]

FRMATT said:

The hub lip doesn't support the weight, the friction between the wheel and the hub face is what supports the weight, it's provided by the bolts clamping the two faces together.

The hub lip only helps make sure the wheel is centered on the hub

+1 but dont underestimate the importance of the wheel being central on the hub! Its possible by carefully tightening the bolts but is much easier with a lip on the centre bore.

[Andehh]

Thanks for the comments guys, bolts are radiused and the alloy wheels I have are the correct VAG spec to seat the bolts properly so will think about trying small 5mm spacers on the front to clear the brakes, with longer bolts and tightening it carefully/in sequence.

Don't think I'll bother with a spacer on the rear, esp as it would be just for aethestic reasons.

[Andehh]

Can anyone comment? Cheers

[TooLateForAName]

I'd just get wheels that fit.

[rigga]

TooLateForAName said:

I'd just get wheels that fit.

^^^^^^ winner.

[Andehh]

Yeah, lesson learnt for future. Not going to go down this route again, next winter will do it properly from the start. Last winter with this car so trying to make do.

I presume two spacers per wheel is totally out of the question? The generic Halford spacer lifts the Hubcentric one just clear of the hub lip allowing it to fit, and engage with the winter wheels. Not best practise but hearing conflicting reports of spacers everywhere I look!

[iridebikes]

This is all bks, i know at least 10 people that run non hub centric spacers that haven't had wheels snap off/kill anyone/cause global warming.. their are also millions of people on the internet that are doing exactly the same thing.

Stop being a bunch of fannys

[TooMany2cvs]

Andehh said:

I would also like the wheels not quite so deep within the wheel arches.

How far out's the offset compared to wheels that actually fit? Remember, the further off it finishes up, the shorter your wheel bearings will live.

[Ozzie Osmond]

FRMATT said:

The hub lip doesn't support the weight, the friction between the wheel and the hub face is what supports the weight, it's provided by the bolts clamping the two faces together.

Errm, no.

"Structurally, the empty space inside the center bore is one of the most important points on the wheel. This hole fits over the end of the axle when the wheel is bolted on. It is this fit between the axle seat and the center bore that truly holds the weight of the car, as lugnuts only serve to keep the wheel on the axle. For this reason, OEM wheels are made to fit closely on the axle seats of their designated cars. When buying aftermarket rims, care must be taken to ensure that the center bore is the same or larger than the OEM size - large enough to fit over the axle. Most correct aftermarket wheels will have center bores that are larger than the OEM size, and so the gap between must be filled by “hub-centric spacers” to avoid damaging both wheels and lugnuts."

http://tires.about.com/od/understanding_wheels/a/W...

[V8Ford]

I bought a Mondeo that someone had fitted crappy alloys to, it used to vibrate a lot on the motorway. Had it balanced etc to no avail, someone recommended the spacers, bought a set on eBay and it rode smooth after that!

[FRMATT]

Ozzy, the plastic spigot rings I have must be some kind of super plastic then, as according to you they have taking the weight of my car since April, until I put my winters on in November, without breaking...