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What Are Wheel Spacers? How Do They Work?

You might have often noticed that some cars have their wheels placed out of the frame of the vehicle. This is usually seen in bigger or custom-made cars. This is because of the installed wheel spacers in their vehicles. Now you must be asking yourself, what are wheel spacers? Wheel spacers are a set of components that are used to increase the space between the wheel and the wheel hub assembly.

Now, you might also ask that are they necessary? Or are they like any other extra accessory for the car? We will discuss all these questions in this article and give you complete information on wheel spacers.

What Are Wheel Spacers?

So, as mentioned earlier, wheel spacers are a set of components that are fixed over the holding bracket to increase the space between the wheel and the wheel hub. Installing wheel spacers push the wheels of your car a bit out of the mainframe, and this would avoid the wheels to touch the suspension components and the wheel hub. The wheel spacers are made of strong and durable materials like aluminum.

Each vehicle has its own set of wheel spacers, i.e you cannot fix any other car’s wheel spacers to your car as they would not match your car bolt pattern. Wheel spacers are most commonly used in bigger cars and custom-made cars.

Why Do You Need Wheel Spacers?

1. To Avoid Rubbing Of Wheels Over The Wheel Hub And Suspension Unit

In some vehicles, especially custom-made ones, the wheels rub against the lining of the wheel hub. This is not a good sign and could lead to damage to the wheels and the components near them. Wheel spacers are also beneficial for vehicles having larger or wider tires, as they might rub against the wheel hub or the suspension unit especially while turning.

2. Provide Better Traction Over The Road

Installing Wheel Spacers will give your vehicle better traction over the road, and hence the handling of your vehicle would be better. This is because when you install the wheel spacers, the wheels are placed a bit farther away from the mainframe. This would eventually increase the grip of your vehicle over the road due to increased surface area.

3. Gives Your Car A Better Appearance

The wheel spacers place the wheels of your car a little out of the mainframe. This gives your car a unique and stylish look. This look is very popular in bigger cars that have huge tires. Even custom-made cars look more stylish by installing wheel spacers on them. So, if you want to make your car look better, wheel spacers are a good option.

4. Allow You To Install Your Favorite Wheels

Yes, installing wheel spacers can allow you to install your favorite set of wheels that might not match your vehicle’s offset. Wheel spacers push the wheels a bit outward of the mainframe, this allows you to install some tires you might like that might not fix in the holding bracket or even rub against it.

5. Enhances The Off-Road Performance

If you want to increase the off-road performance of your vehicle, then wheel spacers are the key. Off-roading leads to a lot of wear and tear on the tires with the nearby components like the wheel lining, suspension, etc. Installing wheel spacers would keep the tires away from these parts and give you better performance with increased traction.

How Do Wheel Spacers Work?

You might think that wheel spacers would be having a complex mechanism to give your car so many benefits. But, it has quite a simple working principle. The wheel spacers are placed over the holding bracket of the vehicle. This creates an extra gap or area between the wheels and the wheel hub.

This is because the wheels are pushed outside the mainframe of the vehicle and avoiding collision with the nearby components like the wheel hub and the suspension components. This problem is faced mostly by cars having large tires or custom-made vehicles and hence, wheel spacers are quite common in these cars. In addition to this, wheel spacers are also popular for off-roading vehicles, to avoid collisions of the tires with the suspension and the wheel hub.

This mechanism also increases the surface area of the base of the vehicle, thus increasing the traction of the vehicle and giving your car a better look.

Are Wheel Spacers And Wheel Adapters The Same?

Wheel spacers are often been confused and considered the same as wheel adapters. The functions both the components do are the same, but the two are different in terms of their application. As you know now, wheel spacers are used to increase the clearance area between the wheel hub and the wheels. This is done by installing the wheel spacers over the holding bracket of the vehicle, pushing the wheels outwards from the mainframe.

The wheel adapter performs the same function. But differently. The wheel adapters change the bolt pattern that allowing you to bolt up wheels that would not match your vehicle’s bolt pattern. For example, if your car has a bolt pattern of 4*100, and you want to fix to it a set of tires that have a bolt pattern of 5*130, you would need the wheel adapters to be put on the hub of your vehicle.

Which Auto Manufacturers Offer The Best Wheel Spacers?

So if you have decided to buy wheel spacers for your car, these are some of the famous wheel spacer manufacturers you could trust.

  1. Novus
  2. Eibach
  3. H&R
  4. FK

Are Wheel Spacers Good or Bad on 4×4 Vehicles?

The further a vehicle wheel is from the wheel hub housing, the better its traction and grip, and hence  They are excellent for 4×4 trucks since they improve traction and grip.

What Are Floating Wheel Spacers?

Floating spacers are placed between the wheel and hub of your vehicle, but use the same factory wheel studs to secure the wheel in place. For this reason, they are usually used to accommodate minimal wheel extension.

What happens if spacers are not torqued correctly?

Spacers that are not torqued correctly, just like when wheels are mounted, may cause the assembly to completely fail, and your vehicle’s wheel may come completely off

What Is the Difference Between Floating Spacers and Bolt on Spacers?

Floating spacers are placed between the wheel and hub of your vehicle, but use the same factory wheel studs to secure the wheel in place. Bolt-on spacers are generally used for larger wheel extension.

How Much Do 4 Wheel Spacers Cost?

A high-end set of 4-wheel spacers will cost $80 to $125. Considering the aesthetic value, improper fitment purposes, and performance, it is good for the money.

Are wheel spacers a car warranty violation?

Installation of wheel spacers often harms the original car warranty, no maintenance and repair can be accessed from the manufacturers of the vehicle, and sometimes leads to violation of the warranty norms and discarding of the original car warranty.

How do wheel Spacers Affect the Ball Bearings?

Using the wheel spacers means breaking the contact between the ball bearing and the wheels. And, because of this sizing, the wheel bearing life may shorten or in the worst scenario, can lead to premature failure.

Final Words

So, we have discussed all the concerns you might be having related to the wheel spacers. We think now you understand what are wheel spacers, how they work, and why you may need them.

Apart from giving your car a unique look, they increase your car’s performance and traction over the road. We have looked at all the advantages and disadvantages of installing wheel spacers in your car and you should make your decision by knowing everything about it. Make sure you buy good quality wheel spacers that are made to fit your car.

If you like this article and have any queries, let us know in the comment section below.
Cheers!