Wheels and spacers
08-06-2002, 05:42 PM
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Wheels and spacers
My newly acquired '86+ 928 came with 17" ATP wheels installed over the stock 20mm spacers, and carrying 255mm rubber on the rear. I have had some light interference with the inner part of the fender sheet-metal. I decided to pull the spacers and see if there would be inside edge interference or brake-caliper interference, and there is none (apparently). The problem is that the long studs bottom in the lug-nuts before they are tight against the wheel.
So, I have 2 questions:
Can I, safely, machine off some of the spacer thickness? How much?
Can I get open-ended lug-nuts that will work safely, without any spacer? (the local tire shops say that the lug-to-wheel interface is of the "radiused" type and not generally available except through the dealer) Our dealer's parts guy isn't very knowledgable about this and just offers the stock (capped) lug-nut as all that is available for the application. <img src="confused.gif" border="0">
So, I have 2 questions:
Can I, safely, machine off some of the spacer thickness? How much?
Can I get open-ended lug-nuts that will work safely, without any spacer? (the local tire shops say that the lug-to-wheel interface is of the "radiused" type and not generally available except through the dealer) Our dealer's parts guy isn't very knowledgable about this and just offers the stock (capped) lug-nut as all that is available for the application. <img src="confused.gif" border="0">
08-06-2002, 06:25 PM
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Brian: There are factory steel lug nuts that are open so the bolt goes through, allowing you to see actual amount of thread engagement. I can recommend only the factory lug nuts because those are sure to have the correct shoulder shape (I assume the ATE wheels have the proper shoulder fit for the factory lug nuts). I ordered some non-factory lug nuts for my car once and they did not have the proper shoulder shape, although they were supposedly for my specific car and factory wheel.
I can only speculate about machining down the spacers. I assume it can be done, but it would need to be precision work. You'd need to have it absolutely flat and even thickness all across the mounting face (just as it should be now). Otherwise, you'd probably experience a noticable wobble immediately, or uneven wear around the tire eventually as an uneven spacer would essentially produce variable camber as the tire rotated.
I can only speculate about machining down the spacers. I assume it can be done, but it would need to be precision work. You'd need to have it absolutely flat and even thickness all across the mounting face (just as it should be now). Otherwise, you'd probably experience a noticable wobble immediately, or uneven wear around the tire eventually as an uneven spacer would essentially produce variable camber as the tire rotated.
08-06-2002, 09:50 PM
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I have open ended wheel nuts on my 951. They are available from <a href="http://www.paragon-products.com" target="_blank">www.paragon-products.com</a> for around a buck apiece.