How to Center a Wheel Spacer
Installing a set of wheel spacers on your car can improve the stance of the car, allow you to use wider tires and even allow you to use a wheel that may not have been intended for your car. There are several types of spacers available, but the most common are machined aluminum adapters that contain four or five holes to slide over the wheel studs and then have four or five new wheel studs set into them for installing the wheel.
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Things You'll Need
- Jack
- Jack stands
- Lug wrench
- Wheel spacers or adapters
- Anti-seize compound
- Torque wrench and socket
Instructions
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1
Jack up the vehicle and secure it on a set of jack stands. Make sure that the stands are set on solid ground that will not shift or sink while you are working under the wheel wells.
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2
Remove the wheel and tire from the vehicle. Save the lug nuts so that you can reuse them when you reinstall the wheel.
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3
Apply a coat of anti-seize compound to the wheel studs before installing the spacer. This will allow for easier removal of the spacers should the need arise in the future.
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4
Slide the wheel spacer over the wheel studs so that the spacer fits flat against the brake drum or wheel hub. Install the new lug nuts that came with the spacers on the wheel studs and carefully tighten them. The wheel spacer should have a bevel or reverse cone shape to the base of the holes where the studs come through it.
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5
Tighten the nuts evenly using a crisscross pattern allowing the nuts to center the spacers as they tighten into the cone. The spacer should center as you go. If it isn't centering, loosen the nuts slightly so you can shift it as you tighten the nuts.
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6
Turn the hub or drum and watch the spacer to see that it is running true is not wobbling. The spacers can now be tightened completely.
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7
Torque the nuts to the specifications from the manufacturer of the spacer with a torque wrench and socket. If there are no specs from the manufacturer, use the torque specs from the vehicle manufacturer for the wheels.
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8
Reinstall the wheel on the new wheel studs in the spacers and torque the lug nuts to the required specifications. Turn the wheel and be sure everything clears and it runs true around the axis.
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Tips & Warnings
The wheel spacer will center on the studs if you work slowly and use the crisscross pattern. Tightening one nut more than the rest can throw the spacer off, so go slow and watch your progress as you tighten them down.
