1.25" wheel adapters/spacers....pros and cons?

I recently got my set of 17" SVT rims installed on my explorer. I love the wheels look but i do not like how the offset has decreased the amount of "stance" the car used to have. The wheels seem to be further into the wheel well then before and i can already tell it's annoying me to look at. I thought it would be a simple solution to just get some 1.25" wheel spacers/adapters but i'm wondering what (if any) are the cons to using wheel spacers. Pretty much the only pro i can think of besides making it look the way i want is that it increases the overall wheel base width making it less likely to roll over.

Any reason i shouldn't put 1.25" adapters on the front and back?

Quick Edit: I'm referring to the 1.25" adapters that bolt up to the existing lug-nuts and then have their own individual studs that the wheel bolts up to. Did a search and saw a lot of negative flack being given for "spacers"...so just to clarify, i'm only talking about adapters.

i have 1" adapters on my explorer with the same wheels as you. it makes the wheels look so much better. i got mine of an ebay based store online and when they cam the hub size was a little to small so i had 25 thoulsands of an inch shaved off andthey fit fine. i am sure if u get yours from the right place you wil not have to modify them to make them fit right. i have heard that spacers wear out ball bearing and stuff like that which is true because you are putting more stress on them. other than that if youmake sure the spacers are on tight and check them after 20 miles or so then you should be fine. i havent had any problems yet (knock on wood) and hopefully i wont.

I ran 1" bolt on spacers on my ex... no probs....gave it that wide stance that I love.....only thing to consider is if the original bolts from the truck stick out past the "flush wall" of the spacer...you'll have to trim the bolts....unless of course your wheels have holes in back to compensate for this (my cobra r replicas did compensate)

im running 2" spacers in the rear with 22's no problems thus far other than some rubbing on one of the tires but i think my shocks are bad, but with my sub box in there i have no rubbing anymore

I'm gonna do some CPR and revive this thead,

Anywho, I'm in need of new tires but I was wanting to upgrade to some 20s maybe 22s this summer, but id rather just do it now rather than dropping 600$ for 4 tires, I've found quite a few pairs of rims I like with +70% tread matching tires. Some were 6x135 (F150 6 lug) style rims and I found a pair of adapters on CL for 140$. My qustion is this: you guys say it puts stress on the hubs and wears them prematurely....HOW much stress? Are we talking loosing 1000 miles off the hubs or somethin significant like having to replace them in a year (Mine are literally brand new, and about to have all 4 balljoints, tie rods, and uca's new too. Less than 50m on my hubs)

There is alot of user opinion in this option to run spacers. I have been told it will do many things that your not happy with ($ wise) down the road. That being said if you have replaced your parts with OEM expect that you will have a shorter life on your suspension as this was the not the intended setup by Ford. Same goes with lowing your vehicle, there is simply more stress then stock. With all that said, they are safe but be prepared to take your wheels off from time to time to inspect the spacers so you don't have a wheel fly off and race you down the highway. Also, with the whole hub life question, this depends on your ability to anticipate bumps, take it easy on short drive way dips, and counter the roads design flaws as needed to keep optimum life. With a stock setup the worry is not on you its on Fords engineering. As with the spacers (an aftermarket mod) the worry and ultimate failure of any front suspension in comes in direct contact is placed on your mind. So in short.

Yes: If you are mechanically inclined and plan to inspect your own tires and rotate accordingly (while checking the added spacers with studs as these are the only version you should consider).

No: If you think you can slap on an attachment that will make things fit without inspecting to ensure the safety of you and your future passengers.

I decided to skip on them. I'd LOVE a wider stance but it's just not worth it to me. Thanks for all that info though, I'm sure it'l help many more in the future.

I would just be worried everywhere I drive that somethings gonna fail on me

Not to beat a dead horse, but the chances of the adapters failing (spacer with attached studs) is all on your attention to keep the bolts tight. Now something I forgot to mention is that once you get them on some applications have you cut the existing lugs shorter so they do not come into contact with anything. A much more permanent "fix" if you ask me, though if you find yourself still wanting the stance go with the eibach spacers they are lug and hub centric but come with a hefty price.

I would also say make sure your rear wheels have an offset that compensates for the rear spacer.
0 offset rims and 50mm spacer = not good for tire wear or rear end.

I say this from personal experience from my last set of wheels and tires.

Though I have only driven my explorer 6 out of the last ten years I gotta say I have no problems with wheel adaptors, and on the rear I have adaptors over wheel spacers, no complaints here!!!

I'm running the same setup on my ranger. 17" SVT rims, but mine didn't clear my truck's hubs so I was forced to run adapters. I went with 1.25" and am probably gonna get some 1/2 inch spacers for the rear as well. Some have said it puts strain on your wheel bearings, but if that's the case then so would running wheels with a lower offset...

Pic:

Wow guys, I made this thread 6 years ago and forgot all about it until today when I decided to sell the spacers that I had my explorer all those years ago.

The 1.25" did fit fine - and my SVT wheels did have the holes bored into the back of them to fit the studs (I can't recall if they stuck through or not, I don't think that they did).

I've long since sold my Explorer (after crashing it, unfortunately) - but have had the wheel spacers for years. Time to get rid of them.

delussional77 said:

Wow guys, I made this thread 6 years ago and forgot all about it until today when I decided to sell the spacers that I had my explorer all those years ago.

The 1.25" did fit fine - and my SVT wheels did have the holes bored into the back of them to fit the studs (I can't recall if they stuck through or not, I don't think that they did).

I've long since sold my Explorer (after crashing it, unfortunately) - but have had the wheel spacers for years. Time to get rid of them.

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Do you still have the wheel spacers for sale? I know its been over a year but it doesnt hurt to ask.

Bumping this because I'm getting spacers, 1.25inch. Anyone have a brand they have been happy with?

Won't lie, I went with eBay on mine. But I didn't look for the absolute cheapest kind. They've worked well and with no issues for 2 years now.

I just bought some 1.5" off of eBay and didn't realize they weren't intended for stock wheels. Still deciding if I want to use them without my hub cap or just sell them.

Blacksheep Josh said:

Won't lie, I went with eBay on mine. But I didn't look for the absolute cheapest kind. They've worked well and with no issues for 2 years now.

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Knowing what I know now, I should've bought spacers as my first mod. lol

You can measure the distance between wheels and wheel hub assembly to determine what thickness of wheel spacers to install. I had BONOSS wheel spacers 20mm on my car for almost 21,000 miles, with no issues whatsoever.

They can customize the thickness and data that I want, so that I can install new tires with different data, and the customization time is very fast, just 1~3 days. Maybe you can try what I installed.

They have aluminum alloy 7075-T6 and 6061-T6 options. 7075-T6 will be more expensive but better in quality. In fact, 6065-T6 is good enough. Its tensile strength, yield strength and elongation can support our normal use. And its lugs are grade T10, studs are forged grade 12.9.

If you need it in the future, this is their case article.