Spacer Failure

[KarimS3]

Gents,

Bought 12.5 mm ECS tuning spacers (front and back) with 40 mm bolts for my dad's S6 (with OEM 19s).

He took it to the dealership to get them installed, but they refused to do so stating that spacer/bolt failure would be catastrophic.

It got me thinking, has this ever occurred?

Thanks

[soslower]

The potential is always there but it's usually user error not using proper bolt size or not torquing them to spec... I've seen more wheel failures than spacer failures

[JB616]

I have been running the 12.5/15mm ECS spacer kit (ones that came with specific length bolts for OEM wheels) since March without any issue. I did use the proper length bolt and torqued them to spec, and also had them torqued again after a few miles. I could see a dealership saying there could be a failure due to the parts being aftermarket and they do not want to be held responsible if something does happen. Like ECS website says, the bolts should have 7.5 full threaded turns into the hub.

[CreoSTi]

I could see a dealership saying there could be a failure due to the parts being aftermarket and they do not want to be held responsible if something does happen.

+1, which is why I have aftermarket parts installed at a reputable tuner/independent shop.

[lv2000]

anything can happen regardless but if you bought a good product and use the right bolts i highly doubt a issue if you look at porsche cars you can order from factory with wheel spacers i have had spacers on my old car for years and never had a issue . discount tire will freak out too about them just a fyi need to go to small independant wheel shop or diy

[KarimS3]

anything can happen regardless but if you bought a good product and use the right bolts i highly doubt a issue if you look at porsche cars you can order from factory with wheel spacers i have had spacers on my old car for years and never had a issue . discount tire will freak out too about them just a fyi need to go to small independant wheel shop or diy

You are right. I checked the Porsche catalogue and they offer 5 and 17 mm spacers.

[hayasa]

I've seen this happen before - during a track outing, a guy driving an E46 M3 had spacers put on right before the event. He did a few laps pretty well until a front wheel completely sheered off all the lugs and sent him off the track. Luckily no one was hurt and the vehicle as towed back to the paddocks with the front end off the ground. However, it took a while to get the remainder of the bolts out of the hub. He pretty much missed most of the track day if I remember correctly.

[NeunElf]

You are right. I checked the Porsche catalogue and they offer 5 and 17 mm spacers.

All spacers are not created equal.

Where are ECS spacers made?

I've used H&R spacers on 2 Bimmers for years with no issues.

[ECS Tuning-Audi]

All spacers are not created equal.

Where are ECS spacers made?

I've used H&R spacers on 2 Bimmers for years with no issues.

Our spacers are made in the US.

Jason

[KarimS3]

Our spacers are made in the US.

Jason

Thanks for the reply Jason.

They are Aluminum right?

What happens when the wheel hub (steel) gets hot from brake thermal energy conductively radiating to the spacer?

The hub and spacer are of different materials, so they have different coefficients of thermal expansion. I would assume this would overly stress the spacer..

I might be overthinking this, but better be safe than sorry.

[moosehead1]

I opened this thread thinking there was an actual failure.

HR and ECS make solid products, not to be confused with eBay cheapos. Coupled with proper lug nut length, bolt head shape and size, and installation torque, there have been few if any issues.

Some dealers think very wide spacers put more torque on bearings accelerating wear, but we're taking small variances.

[VVG]

Gents,

Bought 12.5 mm ECS tuning spacers (front and back) with 40 mm bolts for my dad's S6 (with OEM 19s).

He took it to the dealership to get them installed, but they refused to do so stating that spacer/bolt failure would be catastrophic.

It got me thinking, has this ever occurred?

Thanks

Find a dealer where someone has a brain larger than your average walnut

[ECS Tuning-Audi]

Thanks for the reply Jason.

They are Aluminum right?

What happens when the wheel hub (steel) gets hot from brake thermal energy conductively radiating to the spacer?

The hub and spacer are of different materials, so they have different coefficients of thermal expansion. I would assume this would overly stress the spacer..

I might be overthinking this, but better be safe than sorry.

Our spacers are made out of T6 6061 Aluminum. We've yet to have or heard of any issues with the spacers being over stressed. Other examples of aluminum and steel working well with each other is with 2-piece rotors. The rotor hat is typically made from the same material which is then bolted to a steel rotor ring. Thus allowing the rotor to expand and contract at different rates.

Jason

[MLee]

on my 4 cars, i have a mix of ecs, h&r and bimecc spacers, all using bimecc (Italian company, who supplies bolts to HRE, tirerack, etc) bolts. for years and many miles, having driven the cars hard and at speeds of up to 140-150 mph, no failures and or problems. i have seen cheap spacers, like the ebay/Chinese ones, the hubcentric part of the spacer, breaking off, but it only falls off when you take the wheel out. as for bolts, you should only use the ones that are marked 10.9, ive seen cheap chrome/Chinese bolts actually break off from driving. why don't you install the spacers yourself. it very handy to have your own floor jack and easy to do. i also have a cordless snap-on impact gun and torque wrench so changing wheels takes me maybe 5 min to do all 4.

[justforfun]

what's the torque spec for longer bolts?

[JB616]

what's the torque spec for longer bolts?

http://bd8ba3c866c8cbc330ab-7b26c6f3...rs_Revised.pdf

i did mine to 100 ft/lbs

[NeunElf]

I opened this thread thinking there was an actual failure.

HR and ECS make solid products, not to be confused with eBay cheapos. Coupled with proper lug nut length, bolt head shape and size, and installation torque, there have been few if any issues.

Some dealers think very wide spacers put more torque on bearings accelerating wear, but we're taking small variances.

The wife's 2007 3 series wagon has 30mm spacers on the rear axle and I had both wheel bearings replaced last year, they were howling up a storm! Maybe the dealer is onto something?

[KarimS3]

Our spacers are made out of T6 6061 Aluminum. We've yet to have or heard of any issues with the spacers being over stressed. Other examples of aluminum and steel working well with each other is with 2-piece rotors. The rotor hat is typically made from the same material which is then bolted to a steel rotor ring. Thus allowing the rotor to expand and contract at different rates.

Jason

Yes, but in this case the spacer is not allowed to freely expand as it is sandwiched between the brake hub and the wheel.

However, I think since the spacer is thin and is made of aluminum, it will effectively conduct the brake heat to the wheel, resulting in low temperature gradients - and thus lower thermal stresses.

[KarimS3]

Our spacers are made out of T6 6061 Aluminum.
Jason

Cast or machined billet?

[ECS Tuning-Audi]

Cast or machined billet?

All of our spacers are machined. And you would be correct, the spacer will dissipate the heat into the wheel.

Jason

[OrlandoM]

Gents,

Bought 12.5 mm ECS tuning spacers (front and back) with 40 mm bolts for my dad's S6 (with OEM 19s).

He took it to the dealership to get them installed, but they refused to do so stating that spacer/bolt failure would be catastrophic.

It got me thinking, has this ever occurred?

Thanks

Dealers usually don't do custom jobs as it is a liability for them. Go to a major shop that has warranty for their work, they will do it with no problems. Will probably charge you more but you will have peace of mind, also share any specs and installation instructions with them, they will follow it and install them how you want.

Share some pictures if you get it done, I am interested to see how it works out!

Good luck