8 replies to this topic

[scrapy]

Hey all,
i just got some new wheels and the offset on them is slightly different by about 10mm, so the new wheels are sitting closer to the car. Before the tyres sat perfectly and never rubbed and now they are really close. so i would like to get it back to the way it was :grin: Ive looked at getting some wheel spacers but i think i have one problem/question

If my memory serves me right the front wheel studs on my mini are shorter than the rear wheel studs, and all the kits i have looked at are all the same size replacement studs ?? is this right?? or do i need to increase the rear studs size by 10mm and the front studs by 10mm. (hope im making sense )

Any information would be a great help im keen to learn :smartass:

Many thanks scrapy

Doh sorry think i have put this in the wrong place
thanks for moving it :grin:

[miniman5]

hello i was advised not to put spacers on my mini as th ewear and tear is alot more and i was told my a guy at huddersfield spares that ile pop a ball joint ejery 2 months

[Jordie]

Thing is, is it better to change a balljoint or tyres and maybe wheels due to damage?

If you fit spacers, get the ones with the longer studs rather then the extensions.

[siggy]

More information needed.

What wheels what car????????????

The rear studs on the disc brake cars are longer, but this is to allow for the rear drums with the built in spacer

Siggy

[Guess-Works.com]

What size are you're wheels/tyres both new an old, and where do they rub

[scrapy]

I know it does increase strain on the car but as Jordie said id rather replace a ball joint than doing damage to my car and tyres. Besides 10mm wont increase it that much will it??

It’s a 1989 Mayfair with rear drums and front disk's.

The new wheels are 12x5 Minilight (from midland wheels) and they have yoko A539 165/60 on them
The old ones were 12x5 minstral's with the same tyres on, these were a perfect fit

Its rubbing on the rear not all the time but when i go over bumps and the suspension compresses

Cheers for all you help guys

[Dan]

All well and good providing the ball joint in question doesn't fail while you are on the motorway or a roundabout or something. There are dodgy balljoints out there, check back through the boards for threads about balljoint failures. There seemed to be a rash of them last summer.

Now I don't think that this combination should be rubbing really, maybe something is worn in the suspension or a bit bent. As has been said the rear wheels are already spacered quite a bit (an inch I think), and another 10mm might be a bit of strain depending on which bearings are fitted. You should have the timken bearings, but if they have ever been replaced you could have ball bearings instead so make sure they are the right type and preferably the post recall ones or at least some which are known not to be part of the dodgy genuine batch which was subject to the recall.
If you can get away with a 6mm spacer then this would be fine as they were fitted as standard to Sportspack rear wheels with no other modifications (except longer studs). You do still need to spacer the front as well since the front must be sufficiently wider than the rear, and the front is also already effectively spacered as well by the disc brakes but you probably knew all that.

Is it definitely rubbing on the body or just on the damper tube? If so you may be able to fix it with better (uprated) dampers

[scrapy]

Hi i will check all the suspension 2morrow to make sure nothing is damaged.
I didn’t realise you could get 6mm spacers i though 10mm was the smallest. its only just rubbing so 6mm should do the job. can you suggest a good place to get them?
Again id just like to query if i do get some spacers do the rear studs need to be longer than the front?(because all the spacer packages supply 16 studs all the same size) or maybe this is a better way of putting it how much thread do you need for the nut to hold the wheel safely?

[Dan]

An engineer would tell you that three threads is what you need. Your MOT inspector would disagree. I would say the threads need to be fully engaged. You should have longer studs at the back to allow for the thickness of the built in spacer in the drum. The sets of spacers you can buy have never been updated to allow for the built in spacer so the studs are all the same length. Find out how much longer your original rear studs are than the front ones and buy eight more that are that much longer again than the new ones. They are cheap and come in loads of sizes. Try Mini Spares Centre or Mini Sport. Also try them for the thin spacers.

What I would check at your rear suspension is that the radius arm mounting brackets aren't worn, allowing the arm to slop about. This happens fairly quickly if the arms haven't been regularly greased in the past.