 | Home > Maintenance & Modifications > Spacers - are there any benefits from having them |
 
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| wyvern Member Since: 14 Dec 2009 Location: Cornwall Posts: 2127   
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Just found out that my latest 110 has got wheel spacers fitted to it and was wondering what, if any, benefits they have to normal wheel mounting.
I agree that they look nice with a slight wider stance but not sure if that is the only benefit. Theoretically I can see that a slightly wider stance may improve stability at speed, but was wondering what else would be improved. I was also looking at the negatives, such as extra wheel nuts to be checked and possible issues of stress on the axles etc.... any thoughts ?? Poppy - TDCI (Puma) 110XS 2.2 - Camper conversion - see the build here - https://www.defender2.net/forum/topic56530.html Elgar -TDCI(Puma) 110XS Dormobile - now sold Devon & Cornwall 4x4 Response - DC126  |
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23rd Sep 2017 3:23pm |
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| bankz5152 Member Since: 02 Feb 2017 Location: South London/North Kent Posts: 2210  
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As long as they are hubcentric, quality and torqued up properly youll have no issues.
I ran them on my 90 for 5 years with no issues. |
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23rd Sep 2017 3:51pm |
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| Lightningtweeds Member Since: 16 May 2017 Location: Fintry Posts: 461  
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Quite a few fails on youtube.
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23rd Sep 2017 4:28pm |
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| grafty99 Member Since: 15 Aug 2012 Location: North Devon Posts: 4801 
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I ran them for a couple of years until I got offset wheels.
Advantages are: Increased lock (reduced turning circle), Wider track (cornering stability), And in my opinion better looking. I had no issues with mine at all and probably did circa 40,000 miles inc towing etc. Disadvantages are: Increased dirt from tyres up the sides of the vehicle, 20 more nuts to be torqued, Increased unsprung weight. 2002 90 Td5 Station Wagon 1990 Vogue SE Triumph Tiger Explorer 1200 Td5 90 Thread http://www.defender2.net/forum/topic50767.html Tdi 110 Thread https://www.defender2.net/forum/topic69562.html RRC Thread http://www.defender2.net/forum/topic54492.html Instagram http://www.instagram.com/george_grafton |
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23rd Sep 2017 4:40pm |
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| SonicFields Member Since: 11 Jul 2017 Location: Somewhere Else Posts: 124 |
Another, less obvious disadvantage relates to insurance problems, as their fitting must be declared to your insurer and in turn your insurer may require that any modifications made are approved by the manufacturer of the vehicle.
Failure to declare such modifications such as wheel spacers to your insurer, could make your insurance void, something you would not wish for in the case of an accident. I believe that certain countries/ states ban the use of wheel spacers. |
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23rd Sep 2017 6:52pm |
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| benniferj Member Since: 20 Oct 2016 Location: Basingstoke Posts: 361 
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I'd always go for replacing wheels with something with your required offset. Less bits to go wrong and nice and simple to bolt up. Good offset modulars don't cost much. Many alloys have different offset versions...
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23rd Sep 2017 7:53pm |
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| JOW240725 Member Since: 04 May 2015 Location: Suffolk Posts: 7918 
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I ran spacers for a year primarily to improve turning circle, which makes a vast improvement. Declared and made no difference to insurance premium. No issues at all with them. James
MY2012 110 2.2TDCi XS SW Orkney Grey - http://www.defender2.net/forum/topic43410.html MY1990 110 200TDi SW beautifully faded Portofino Red - https://www.defender2.net/forum/post743641.html#743641 MY1984 90 V8 Slate Grey - https://www.defender2.net/forum/post744557.html#744557 Instagram @suffolk_rovers |
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23rd Sep 2017 9:01pm |
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| Pickles Member Since: 26 May 2013 Location: Melbourne Posts: 3793  
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Spacers are illegal in Aussie.
Pickles. |
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23rd Sep 2017 10:15pm |
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| Bluest Member Since: 23 Apr 2016 Location: Lancashire Posts: 4262 
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If I recall correctly from when I used to read Racecar Engineering, increasing the track width reduces the effective roll stiffness. The contact patch is further from the roll centre giving the wheel more leverage over the spring and arb. So there should actually be small reduction in stability with spacers fitted. I'd imagine in truth the effect is pretty small. 2007 110 TDCi Station Wagon XS
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23rd Sep 2017 10:45pm |
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| LandRoverAnorak Member Since: 17 Jul 2011 Location: Surrey Posts: 11324
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This is one of those subjects that comes up on a regular basis and the outcome is always the same. Some will claim that they're a bad idea for various reasons, usually including increased wheel bearing load or something about the steering geometry. There will also likely be a post about how they read/heard/had a mate that claimed they knew somebody who's wheel fell off but can never quite find the original source of the story. Others will chip in that they've run them for years without any problems.
The reality is almost certainly somewhere between the two: yes, there will be marginal changes to forces on bearings and steering geometry but it's only likely to be significant or noticeable on a smaller 'ordinary' car. On a Defender, the former is well within the capabilities of the bearings (and no different from wheels with a greater offset), and the latter is undetectable give the relatively crude steering and suspension set up. As for wheels falling off, the only reason why this would be a problem on a Defender with bolt-on spacers is if they haven't been installed correctly. That may be different if using bolt-through spacers, but they're really only suitable for road cars anyway. Darren 110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia |
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24th Sep 2017 9:12am |
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