1990944S2

Hey Folks, So i've been reading a few posts referring to spacers not fitting over front hubs. So I'd like to give this topic one last shot at getting a better understanding of my options. I purchased 4 1" billet alum spacer/adapters for my 1990 S2 as my Cup II wheels sit inside the wells too far for my taste. Anyway, the rear spacers fit perfectly but the front spacers do not clear either the dust cap or the width of the hub, I'm not quite sure but they will not seat correctly (hub cent seems too small.) Can someone explain this enomoly to me and/or relate why these spacers are sold as fitting all wheels 1989 thru 1991 944 (front and rear) on most retail sites ie. H@R, Eibach, RiggedUp etc. Is there a solution like having them machined or? Cheers!

pontifex4

I think it's probably the dust caps on the front bearings. You can likely have the spacers machined to clear that cap, but I worry that you're overdoing it on the spacers with a late offset car: what is the width and offset of your front wheels?

1990944S2

I was hoping you wouldn't ask me that!lol I have no idea. I just bought the car a month ago with the 17" Cup II staggered wheels as part of the deal, so I took off the stock 16" alloys, bought new tires for the Cups and threw them on. The only thing I'm sure of is that the tire is well over an inch inset from the fender edge so I was thinkin' 1" spacers. Do you think 17mm or even 10mm would be better for late offset? You might be able to see in my profile photo that the rear are nicely close to the quarter panel edge but the front are way inside the fender. (I need to learn this stuff so I appreciate your input) Thanks!

pontifex4

The offsets and widths should be stamped on the wheels in a place that's visible without taking the wheel off. As an example, "7 45" refers to a 7" wheel with an ET45 offset. Just an example.

Beautiful car, by the way. Do you want to bring it to Kingston this Saturday?

Link: https://rennlist.com/forums/924-931-...-944-meet.html

86 951 Driver

I bet you got some replica wheels with the wrong offset.

1990944S2

Family barbecue at my place on Saturday so I'm stuck for the Kingston meet but it would be cool to meet guys that actually know these cars... I'll check the wheels for authenticity and specs today and log back in tonight. Cheers

Eric_Oz_S2

I have found the same with H&R spacers I have. The dust cap must be removed to clear or the outer lip machined. The inner face where it sits on the bevelled hub face also seems overly tight, to the point where I think it actually was starting to affect the wheel bearings clearance. I ended up removing mine (I think they are 15mm) as they caused wheel shimmy. I'm contemplating getting some 6mm shims instead.

Tedro951

Did you measure the bore on the hub centric area to see if its correct? In other words...is it a machining problem with the adapters, or some oddball deal with the hubs? My Adaptecs fits snug on the hubs, but not to the point it took a mallet to get them on.

Lizard944

I bought some hub centric adapters and had the same problem. You have to mill down that inner lip about 10mm so it will clear the bearing dust caps. I thought this would be an easy job for any machine shop, but I went to nearly every one in town and they all looked at me with a blank stare and said they were too backed up with work, or wanted to charge me $100 dollars and schedule me two weeks down the road. Fed up, I went to Lowe's and bought a 70mm (2 3/4") hole saw and chucked it into an angle polisher/sander. I sprayed WD-40 on the lip to act as a cutting oil and ground away. Took about three to four minutes to cut 10mm down then I had to cut out the leftover ridge with a Dremel cut off wheel. Worked perfectly. Just make sure it sits flush without any wobble before you bolt it up. If necessary, remove a little more material. ---Lizard

1990944S2

You'd think that at least one of the manufacturers of aluminum spacers and adapters would simply hone out a slightly larger hub centric for the 89-90 944 hub.

mytrplseven

On the later cars (85.5 and up, I believe) the hub needs a spacer that will fit the hub where the spindle portion fits the flat plate area of the hub. That point is rounded and requires a spacer to allow for the champher. I put 17 Cayman wheels on my '87 and without the 1/4" H&R spacers the wheels wouldn't seat properly. You may be running into a similar situation and make sure the spacer fits flat on the flat part (plate area) of the hub. If it doesn't then machining the shoulder of the hub will solve it (assuming the wheel sits properly in the wheel well. The offset number for after market wheels is commonly stamped inside. It sometimes says, "et 45 or just the number by itself. Another thing to keep in mind: If you get thicker spacers, You'll need longer studs for the wheel lug nuts. There won't be enough bite otherwise and you'll lose a wheel for sure. At one inch spacer, it's already stretching it for my taste. Oh, yeah, use anti seize on the threads.

1990944S2

Thanks mytrplseven, I'm slowly getting all this. I'm contemplating the purchase of a style of wheel that will better fit the look I am trying to accomplish rather than figuring out how to bring these front wheels out an inch. Cheers