Spidertrax on the highway

callaway · **Posted:** Fri Jul 13, 2007 4:08 pm

I read somewhere that the spidertrax spacers should only be used for offroad driving. Is there any danger in leaving them on all the time for city/highway driving?

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Fri Jul 13, 2007 4:13 pm

callaway wrote:

I read somewhere that the spidertrax spacers should only be used for offroad driving. Is there any danger in leaving them on all the time for city/highway driving?

As long as you check to make sure they are torqued correctly alot,which sucks then you need to remove the tire/wheel all the time to do that.I'm not a fan of spacers but others have had good luck with them,I believe in just getting different rims with the BS you need and then don't have to worry about 40 lugs,just 20.

Jeepjeepster · **Posted:** Fri Jul 13, 2007 4:49 pm

Its safer and easier on the front end to just get new rims with less BS.

scoobybri · **Posted:** Fri Jul 13, 2007 5:22 pm

I've several thousand miles on mine and have no problem. Spidertrax are hub-cenric so they line up correctly with both the hub and the wheel. No shaking and rock solid. Just make sure that they are torqued correctly everytime you rotate the tires and make sure you use a liberal amount of loctite when installed.

Fulltimer · **Posted:** Fri Jul 13, 2007 6:39 pm

I normally would NOT disagree with anything that TJKJ2002 says. But, scoobybri is 100% correct. I have had them for many miles and no problems of any type. When/if you get them go buy more loctite. They don't give enough. Be sure to torque them down, not just guess.

Terry

LiLredLibby · **Posted:** Fri Jul 13, 2007 7:06 pm

I'm with TJKJ2002,with the option of less lugs to take chances,and only having one seperation point,not two,I would(and did)go with the wheels.I had a set of Spidertrax on an 83 s-10 blazer 4x4,and I went thru all three colors of Locktite,and heard that clicking in the wheels on a monthly basis.If you got to use spacers,I'm sure they are probably the best you can get.........but do you got to use them?

Ron

pixeldzn · **Posted:** Fri Jul 13, 2007 7:28 pm

Jeepjeepster wrote:

Its safer and easier on the front end to just get new rims with less BS.

This is a statement based without anything to back it up.

Spacers and lesser BS rims will BOTH put more stress upon your axles, and I would bet the effect is similar with both.

I have spidertrax on my Rubicon and drove all the way to Moab and back - 2400 miles - without losing any torque on the lugs. I checked when I rotated my tires soon after we got back.

Any offroad mods we due will put more stress on the axles and suspension. It's just part of playing the game.

FreeJeep · **Posted:** Fri Jul 13, 2007 8:34 pm

I've had the spacers on for 30K+ miles, including lots of offroading and have never had them loosen. I used the spacers because I personally like the looks of my wheels and don't really want to change them.

DonC

2006 KJ · **Posted:** Fri Jul 13, 2007 10:54 pm

i second what free jeep said. i like my renny wheels! i've gone a steady 85mph for 5 hours with no problems.. and offroad for 5 hours at a time with no problems.. and have never checked them untill i rotated my tires and they were still perfectly tight.

callaway · **Posted:** Fri Jul 13, 2007 11:04 pm

thanks much for all the positive reviews on this

myjeepwalks · **Posted:** Fri Jul 13, 2007 11:13 pm

scoobybri wrote:

I've several thousand miles on mine and have no problem. Spidertrax are hub-cenric so they line up correctly with both the hub and the wheel. No shaking and rock solid. Just make sure that they are torqued correctly everytime you rotate the tires and make sure you use a liberal amount of loctite when installed.

I agree 100% I have about 4k miles on mine havent lost any torque. I like my factory wheels over the aftermarket wheels, that's why i didn't go that route besides the $$$ factor. Plus i wanted to stay with aluminum wheels. My MT/R's are heavy enough. :lol:

Spidertrax are one of if not the best wheel spacers out there.

Jeepjeepster · **Posted:** Sat Jul 14, 2007 12:57 am

I didnt really need to back it up.. tjkj did.. I was just agreeing with him..

Ive thought about this for along time and its kinda hard to explain. With the stock rims, the mounting point is right on the edge of the rim.. This creates a pivot point.. When you have a rim with less BS, then the load is focused towards the center of the rim, therefore taking some of that pivot point away.

With a spacer, it moves that pivot point even further away from the mounting surface.

I could be thinking about that totally wrong.. Im just thinking out loud here..

LiLredLibby · **Posted:** Sat Jul 14, 2007 8:14 am

pixeldzn wrote:

Jeepjeepster wrote:

Its safer and easier on the front end to just get new rims with less BS.

This is a statement based without anything to back it up.

Spacers and lesser BS rims will BOTH put more stress upon your axles, and I would bet the effect is similar with both.

I have spidertrax on my Rubicon and drove all the way to Moab and back - 2400 miles - without losing any torque on the lugs. I checked when I rotated my tires soon after we got back.

Any offroad mods we due will put more stress on the axles and suspension. It's just part of playing the game.

In Blake's defense.....If you need something to back it up pixeldzn,as mentioned in Callaway's opening statment,when you buy these it states on the packaging and installation instructions,"Not for highway use" or "For offroad use only".
In my opinion, if the company thought there was no risk of loosing up.....then they would not put it on their package,thus giving no one doubts about buying them.

In your second paragraph......I did'nt really read of anyone comparing the amount of stress on the axles,but your right,anytime you make the stance wider,your probably adding a little more stress.

But to sum it all up......I do believe that you had good luck with yours on your trip to Moab,cause I don't think you have no reason to lie.And if I had'nt found a wheel that I liked with the proper backspacing,I would still consider using them.But as TJKJ2002 said......you need to keep a check on them for torque often,just to be sure. :wink:

Ron

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Sat Jul 14, 2007 8:54 am

Not that I care but just some info,no major motorsports event(NASCAR,NHRA,and so on) allows wheel spacers due to safety issues.If the spacers are working for you by all means use them,just like I said check the torque on them often.

CD · **Posted:** Sun Jul 15, 2007 6:02 am

Spacers are flat out illegal in Australia, got to be a reason for that. It's the only reason I'm getting Soft 8's shipped over to me.

2006 KJ · **Posted:** Sun Jul 15, 2007 12:00 pm

they're also illegal in PA but i think that's aimed mostly toward real big spacers or bolt pattern adapters... the 1.25 inch spacers i dont believe are a big deal.. i like my wheels so i got them.. if i didn't the first thing I'd do is buy new wheels with a larger backspacing.. to each his own

Joe Jeeper · **Posted:** Sun Jul 15, 2007 12:36 pm

Spacers over 1/4" are illegal in Pa. I have 5mm spacers (3/16") after you torque them about 5 times they stay tight. Gave me a little releif. Joe

myjeepwalks · **Posted:** Sun Jul 15, 2007 2:55 pm

CDKJ wrote:

Spacers are flat out illegal in Australia, got to be a reason for that. It's the only reason I'm getting Soft 8's shipped over to me.

They're probably illegal here in nj also along with the front window tint i got. :lol:

The way i look at it is; what are the chances of getting pulled over for a wheel spacer inspection

Stupid lawmakers.

unixxx · **Posted:** Sun Jul 15, 2007 3:59 pm

I've been running Spidertax 1.25" spacers (WHS-002) for 10,000 miles without any problems and haven't re-torqued the spacer lug nuts. Re-torquing them will probably break the Loctite and cause loosening. Spacer lug nuts, especially in conjunction with Loctite, shouldn't loosen any more than regular lugs nuts. How many drivers actually check their lug nuts or even rotate their tires? The spacers are only illegal due to the difficulty in legally differentiating safe (hub centric) and unsafe (lug centric) spacers.

Almost every vehicle modification has the general "for off-road use only" disclaimer to protect the manufacturer, even the factory roof-mounted lights on the Renegade. This disclaimer sounds just as reasonable as the "Caution: HOT" labels on coffee cups. Of course, it's up to the driver to determine what is safe for their vehicle.

tommudd · **Posted:** Sun Jul 15, 2007 4:22 pm

Pu t my spidertrax spacers on ran over to Boston and back over 1600 miles total never loosened up at all and that was with pulling a 6X10 enclosed trailer fully loaded coming back! Just did over 600 over the weekend with the same trailer in tow and no problems at all. If you look at a lot of stuff we put onour Jeeps it states For off road use only, thats because we have 10, 000 too many Lawyers in this country with nothing to do!

Spidertrax on the highway

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