Do you create problems if use wheel spacers?

[rocsteady]

I have it in my head that using a wheel spacer is a bad thing, and I don't know why. I plan to run a 19x11 wheel and 305s all around at some point, for track only. I'm told it can be done with spacers up front and sounds great UNLESS I will be causing some other issues. Importantly: car is my daily and will only see a track day, maybe two, per season at this point. Thanks for any information/experiences. -Dave

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[luc]

Slip on spacers are fine
Depending on the wheels offset and if you want to be able to rotate tires, you could need a 1” spacer in front and therefore longer studs

 

[rocsteady]

Slip on spacers are fine
Depending on the wheels offset and if you want to be able to rotate tires, you could need a 1” spacer in front and therefore longer studs

I was told 19x11 50et wheels with a 25mm spacer for the front wheels. Longer studs wasn't mentioned...

 

[shogun32]

longer studs is non-negotiable! You can buy a loaded front hub from FP via the usual e-commerce sites. Or you can buy the studs and press the new ones in.

'bolt-on' spacers are da Devil. Do NOT use.

If you are going to a road circuit then camber plates are also a must. Budget for both.

 

[luc]

I was told 19x11 50et wheels with a 25mm spacer for the front wheels. Longer studs wasn't mentioned...

Well, if you want to be able to put nuts to torque your wheels down, you need longer studs… period

 

[NightmareMoon]

Right, longer studs and slip on spacers are ok. Bolt on spacers OTOH introduce a bunch of issues - 2x additional points of failure, can’t easily check torque, lower torque, questionable fastener quality, etc.. Bad news.

Slip on spacers are just sandwiched securely between the wheel and hub via longer studs and dont really add any complexity or problem areas. Plus the common ARP studs are at least as good or better than the factory studs.

 

[Jasonb543]

Bolt on spacers are fine … JFC… been rocking ‘em since the 90s.

people being too smart and technical worried about the end of the earth. Better chance of being bit by a shark than a problem with a bolt on wheel spacer

hundreds of thousands of happy customers
Want to be extra safe … don’t road race with them… that’s it.

 

[boB]

Do some reading on"kingpin inclination angle" to see what effect this will have on the steering before you do this on a daily.

 

[Egparson202]

As already stated by track veterans, hub-centric slip-on spacers with extended wheel studs is the ticket for track days. I personally wouldn’t touch the bolt-on spacers. They’re at the root of too many failures.

 

[Ewheels]

Do some reading on"kingpin inclination angle" to see what effect this will have on the steering before you do this on a daily.

This is related to total wheel offset in gerenal, not specifically to spacers.

The concern at hand is are slip-on spacers OK compared to equivalent offset wheels.....the answer is yes.

 

[NightmareMoon]

Bolt on spacers are fine … JFC… been rocking ‘em since the 90s.

people being too smart and technical worried about the end of the earth. Better chance of being bit by a shark than a problem with a bolt on wheel spacer

hundreds of thousands of happy customers
Want to be extra safe … don’t road race with them… that’s it.

well, the OP said he was gonna track on this setup, so that's a "no" to bolt on spacers by your own advise, right?

 

[Howitzer]

I was told 19x11 50et wheels with a 25mm spacer for the front wheels. Longer studs wasn't mentioned...

I very recently did the modifications to run 305 square. You will absolutely need longer studs. I went the route of getting the Ford Performance front hubs that have ARP extended studs already in. They state they are 3" studs - that is 3" from the hub face so they are 1" longer than stock. If you get separate ARP studs, they may be measured from the stud head - which should measure about 3.5".

25mm slip on spacer with 11" wide wheels ET50 - fitment is perfect with some camber. Have already ran them on track - no problems. You may wear the wheel bearings a bit more due to putting the load slightly further out, but...meh.

 

[mavisky]

I run that exact setup OP. Extended studs a most and grab some open end lug nuts while you're at it. That way you can take the spacers off and go back to street wheels and tires too if needed.

Street on top without spacers, track on bottom with spacers.

25mm Spacer with longer studs

 

[Bulutt]

Bolt on spacers are fine … JFC… been rocking ‘em since the 90s.

people being too smart and technical worried about the end of the earth. Better chance of being bit by a shark than a problem with a bolt on wheel spacer

hundreds of thousands of happy customers
Want to be extra safe … don’t road race with them… that’s it.

What he said. Had them for years with ZERO issues.

 

[mustanghammer]

As other have mentioned you need to move the wheels out 25MM to clear the strut on the front of your car. If you do slip on spacers, you will need the spacers, longer studs and open end lug nuts. Here is what I bought for my car to do the same thing:

Spacers: https://www.modularmotorsportsracin...n_page=product_info&cPath=87&products_id=1487

Studs: https://lmr.com/item/M1107C/15-17-mustang-ford-performance-wheel-stud-kit-m-1107-c

Lug Nuts: https://www.americanmuscle.com/frpp-open-lugnuts-black-5-1517-mustang.html

I installed the studs my self using a Lisle wheel stud installer - https://www.lislecorp.com/specialty-tools/wheel-stud-installer It was pretty easy to do using an a cordless impact. The studs listed above fit the OE knurl. There are a number of YouTube videos that show how to DIY this.

If you don't want to mess with any of the above, look for 10" wheels or run a staggered setup with 10s on the front and 11s on the rear.

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