this issue can happen with any spacer and is not the fault of the spacer manufacturer

Actually, my years of selling and servicing wheels and tires makes me think that it IS the fault of the spacer manufacturers. If the mounting surface and hub on the car does not have a bevel at the base of the centering hub, the spacer shouldn't have that either. Poor R&D in my mind. The end user should not have to modify their factory wheels to use a spacer.

 

The problem, as mentioned in the video, is that there is no standard for that interface so wheel and spacer manufacturers are free to do whatever they want. Some put a big bevel and others put no bevel (and everything in between).

 

So... now the expensive factory wheels have been modified to fit only with a spacer?

 

The wheels still work just fine without the spacers.

 

On of my rules is that I will never* modify an expensive Porsche part in order to make an aftermarket** part fit. If the aftermarket part can't be easily "clearanced" to fit then it goes back to the manufacturer. I will modify a cheap-ish and easily replaceable OE part, but not something expensive or something that should be expected to last more-or-less forever.

* Unless "racecar."
** Or a replacement Porsche part. And yes, as 718 parts get schlepped over to the Porsche Classic division over the coming two decades we can all look forward to cheaper-quality Porsche replacement parts some of which won't fit right.

 

just had this issue conversation today with a friend. we were talking about the sale, and subsequent closing, of pittrace instead of planning our events for there next year. was a sad conversation.

he wants to get new wheels for the track (wider) for next year but was considering using wheel spacers instead. bad idea. get the proper equipment for the job and do it right the first time.

On of my rules is that I will never* modify an expensive Porsche part in order to make an aftermarket** part fit. If the aftermarket part can't be easily "clearanced" to fit then it goes back to the manufacturer.

amen!

 

I run Rennline 10mm front and 12mm rear spacers on my 2018 Cayman GTS with 20" wheels (the brand of spacer is not important....

The conversation so far indicates that maybe the brand is important.

Were these the spacers you installed?

Rennline Wheel Spacers (Pair) - SKU# LS24

www.rennline.com

 

The point <-----------------------------------------> all of you

 

I'm not so sure about that. You brought to our attention the fact that some (many? most?) aftermarket spacers can interfere with the proper fitment of some wheels, including factory equipment wheels. I am very happy that you did so, pointing this out was a real public service.

Where we disagree is on whose responsibility it is to verify fitment, and whether it is proper to require the end user to modify something to make them work.

In my mind, if a manufacturer is going to offer a product as a specific fit for a given vehicle, it should be either designed to fit said vehicle and fit and work properly with any normally fitted equipment, or note that fitment is not guaranteed. In the case of wheel spacers, I wouldn't expect the manufacturer to guarantee blanket proper fit with any aftermarket wheel one might have, but the spacers should fit properly with any factory equipment wheel for that car.

If the manufacturer doesn't want to put out the minimal research and development work to ensure the product fits correctly, they should plainly note that fitment is not guaranteed, and it is up to the buyer to make any needed modifications. (In which case I personally would be looking for a different brand. One which cares to do it right and safely.)

 

I think the point is to not modify the expensive wheel but replace or fix the relatively inexpensive aftermarket spacers that don't fit. Kinda common sense

 

The other point is that "field expedient" fixes add up over the years. I get to see the cumulative effect of decades of "just make it work" and then have to explain to my clients why some repair or restoration work is now twice (or more) as expensive as it should be. Or just impossible because the expensive part modified for the cheaply-engineered after-market part is no longer available (or has to be salvaged from a junkyard - and not by me.)

 

My spacers from Flat6 fit perfectly.

 

Spacers=bad idea.

 

Uninformed opinions = bad idea

 

Interesting. Would torquing it down when mounting it correct that small difference and make it flat?

 

No

 

While I believe just about everything everyone has said here about spacers is true, I think the OP, being past that and probably learning a lesson as a result, is just giving us a heads up. I'm sure there are any number of owners who wanted to use spacers, believed the manufactures, didn't do their homework, etc., who could find themselves with this same problem. The original post is helpful for a number of reasons.

 

I have always been against spacers for safety reasons. But truth be told, I never looked into them seriously until recently when I learned that Porsche says they can be used safely when applied correctly. I have 7mm on my rears now. But of course now I'm freaked out by this video.

I guess one needs to remove the wheel and spacer to check this. I wonder if there's a tolerance involved where one combination of parts might be ok, but then mixing those parts (like by rotating wheels left to right) could have different paper test results.

 

There are no legitimate safety concerns when spacers are used intelligently (i.e., don't stack 2 inches of spacers). My original plan was to use the spacers only on the street, and remove them for track use "for safety". When speaking with my local indy shop, which has a TON of racing experience and has won pretty much every Porsche-related championship there is to win, they had no concerns with running spacers on track.

 

Porsche has a long history of option M415: "widened rear track" aka wheel spacers.

Nothing wrong with spacers on the rear.

Nothing wrong with spacers on the front. Of course decreasing front wheel offset will increase bump steer, rut following, etc. Whether noticeable or not will be due solely to butt-o-meter sensitivity.

In most of the world AFAIK (EU definitely) regulations strictly disallow any - even a smidge - of "poke." And non-approved add-ons (or even replacement parts) are illegal. Thus, the obsession with "poke" is uniquely American I think. 🤔

 

There are videos being tested to determine if the spacers are good or not. Not all spacer batches are created equal, nor are the wheels. simply, the test involves with a piece paper placed between the spacer and the hub. if you can pull that piece paper out on that hub, its no good. keep testing them till you find a mated spacer onto your hub. Racers uses them, but, they test them!!

 

if you can pull that piece paper out on that hub, its no good. keep testing them till you find a mated spacer onto your hub.

Does Porsche use something like the paper test to match wheels to hubs? Or does the need arise only when spacers are added to the mix?

Are all spacers, by all brands, equally suspect? Are there no brands known to always be flat? I've not gleaned from this thread whether it is one brand, or more than one brand, that have been shown in fact not to fit flat. IOW, an industry-wide alert, or a more specific warning?

 

I doubt actual racecars use spacers because why would a vehicle dynamic's engineer add unsprung mass and mess with kinematics they worked so hard to achieve

 

Actual racecars position their wheel to the edge of the fender.
Road cars does not.

 

If anyone bothered to watch the video I posted in the OP, you would see that it is, in fact, an actual race car and it is using (GASP) spacers! Oh, the horror!!!

 

I appreciate the info you shared. It was helpful and I did learn something to pay attention to should I go down the space road. Thanks!

 

Let me clarify, not a street car for the track. Do what you want, doesn't matter your car. Want to do it for aesthetics sure go ahead.
Cars used in a racing series with technical regulations, strong competition, and tons of sponsors and money on the line are not using spacers. It's an extra point of failure and vehicle engineers are most likely coming with their own modifications to keep unsprung mass down and maximize the performance within the regulations.

 

It’s all about aesthetics. Even if spacers gave some finite, calculable performance improvement, no one on this forum, no one, would be able to drive his or her car to the level where this theoretical improvement would be noticeable beyond the car with the factory specifications.