Schraderade,

Thanks for the warning. Mine also have the embossed lettering on the bolt heads that does extend beyond the spacer mounting plate surface.

Back they go to Motorsport Tech.

 

How much are you looking for mate excluding shipping as it in the UK

 

Hey Midlife, I'm too lazy to deal with shipping But if you're in San Francisco area I'll give you a great deal!

 

Thanks for the write-up and the visual's,that really helps me a lot.

Well after reading what you wrote,I finally pulled mine out of the box and unwrapped them,they do have the studs with the lettering that do stick out just a hair.

I called Lenny and he said they were getting in new studs when these went out,normally the numbers are engraved rather than embossed but they stick out so minimally,I suggested that I just take a dremel or a sanding disc and just slightly remove the numbers and Lenny said that's all that is really required and that's what they would do anyway.

He offered for me to send them back and they would handle that for me but really,it's so minor and would only take but a few minutes that I'll just handle that part here and hope mine are like Schraderade's and won't need the wheel studs massaged...we'll see.

 

No hint of tire rub with the spacers front or back? (Question is for both the 19" and 20" rims)

 

I bought a set, but haven't mounted them, and may not. VIC55 spec-ed them out at 15mm, and he reports no rubbing front or back with the 20" OEM wheels and tires on his R coupe. His car is also lowered.

Only one other person from the group buy has so far reported mounting them and also reported no rubbing. There are a couple of other relatively minor complications, which were discussed above, potentially making them not just a simple bolt on. They do appear to be high-quality pieces.

 

My understanding is that a bit of the hub studs need to be ground down (or cut off) to allow the wheels to properly seat against the spacer, but not beyond where the threads start, so easy enough to do with a grinder or cut-off saw. If you do choose to do this, I would suggest first screwing on a standard nut with the proper thread down to a point where only the material to be removed is exposed. That will protect the threads and also serve as a thread chaser when taken off if for some reason a thread is damaged.


The purpose for that unthreaded section at the end of the stud is to line up the lug nut for easy threading in the middle of the night while you're trying to balance a 75 lb wheel set on the end of 5 bolts. No reduction in strength, but certainly ease of wheel changing is compromised. That said, for the past ten years my spare tires have consisted of a cell phone and a triple-A card. Compact and light weight.

 

Yes, you're absolutely correct. It's not a big deal, and it's certainly no fault of the spacer manufacturer.

My issue is that a lot of tire is already exposed with a straight OEM set-up, given the way the body is flared. On my white car, there's plenty of road debris deposited on the body as it is, and I'm not sure I want to add 15mm more. I'm pretty happy with the way the V6 convertible sits OEM, and it's doesn't seem too tucked in to me. It also seems to sit a little lower than R-coupes.

 

I was wondering about that. I've never looked at the back of an F-type and thought the wheels needed to sit out further. On the other hand, I do feel the paws should have a much wider patch. Back in the day, my '84 Vette had 275s in frnt and 315s in back. The F-Type needs that kind of footprint but the available 20s are too narrow for that much rubber.

 

The 15mm spacers would give you room for more rubber, but they would then protrude beyond the upper fender lip. They were spec-ed to be flush with the stock 20" wheels.

 

So the clearance issue is on the inside rather than at the fender lip? Makes sense. I would still be concerned if the tire placement is beyond the fender whether the lip would catch the tire under full g turning conditions. I had that happen on a Mustang once and the sharp lip created miles of black spaghetti streamers. Bye, bye tires.

 

Has anyone actually installed these spacers yet? A number of things to keep in mind if you are still planning on this.
1) I bought a set (unused, still in box) secondhand from one of our fellow forum members and decided to grind down the bolt markings myself rather than try to fool with getting the supplier to rectify something he sold to someone else. Turns out, not only do the numbers and letters need to be ground down, but an additional ~1mm of bolt head does as well to allow the spacer to sit flat against the rotor.
2) the wheel studs need to be ground down a different amount based on the wheel you are using. For example: for 19" Propellers, the studs need to be ground 2mm. For 20" Gyrodynes, 3mm.

So far, I have the rear set installed and the front spacers have been ground . I still have to grind down the studs on the front rotors.

 

Please post pictures when you are done. Thanks

 

Will do.

 

I sold my spacers to Unhingd at a 50% discount. As I said in an old post above, I intended to return them to the company that made them, and they agreed to send me a new set with no raised lettering on the bolts, at which time they said I could return the originals. They never sent them, and I didn't persist because I decided not to use them.

I figured if I ever changed my mind, I'd take try it myself, and if the hardened steel was too tough, I'd take them to a machine shop which has industrial strength grinders.

The need for stud shaving, depending upon which wheel was a known issue, and I think that's why few if any who purchased them installed them.

I'll refund your money, Unhingd once you get finished making them fit . . .

 

Foosh, no complaints at all. Thanks much for the offer, but no need to refund. Quite happy for the opportunity to save a bit of money, and happy as a clam to be working on my car. Just warning others that they can't just grind off the lettering and expect the spacers to fit properly.

Given the fact that you are not inclined to lower your car, I believe you made the right decision not to install the spacers. They accentuate the huge space between the tire and the wheel opening in the fender.

When I get back from my trip to Argentina (early Dec.), I'll finish this project and post pics. Then I'll install the H&R springs (1.2" lower) and see if I can live with the ride & ride height. If not, back to square one.

 

Mine are still sitting on the shelf, I'll never install them...if anyone is interested, PM me.

 

That would be quite a road trip. Just avoid everything related to Top Gear...

 

If Mexico weren't between here and there, I'd be tempted.

 

Ok...finally wrapped up this project today. Grinding down 20 hardened bolt heads by .003" and 20 hardened wheel studs by 2.5 mm is one heluva lotta work. The 15 mm spacers certainly do make a difference in appearance, but as said before, accentuate the excessive wheel arch gap above the tires. I'm a lousy photographer, but you might get a hint of what it looks like.




Foosh, thanks for hooking me up with those spacers.