Spacers... :(

[kricci]

I was out for a cruise on a gorgeous afternoon in my Bronco and disaster struck!

I was turning left onto the highway on ramp and all of a sudden... I'm missing a wheel! The funny thing is, I didn't notice any difference in the ride before the wheel fell of which is shocking. Luckily I was going about 10mph and not 70 like I would've been about 2 mins later.

After investigating I believe all the lugs on the passenger front came loose and the wheel fell off when the last lug gave. I had no idea the rig was running spacers but I've never been a big fan of them at all. I just believe in properly offsetted wheels as I've seen and read way too many horror stories and now I can add my personal experience as well... Had I known the rig had spacers, I would've paid a lot more attention to the lugs to ensure proper torquing...

Had her towed to a shop and will try to get her fixed soon, but I'm not looking forward to this repair.

On to the pics:

 

[larryejoh]

Realy nice Bronco. It looks like it needed longer lugs installed and there probably wasn't a lot of threads holding them on.

 

[kricci]

Thanks... Yep my thoughts exactly.

Wish the PO had told me there were spacers on and I could've avoided this issue.

 

[matts460]

Wow close call at least you didnt roll off a cliff in a ball of flames like when antime a new car happens to have a problem! LOL Better sue the PO too. Just kidding, but realy glad to hear no one got hurt. Looks like a pretty easy fix mech wise, to bad body got a little roughed up. Spacers arent to bad to use but only when you just need that little extra, no need for thick ones then you end up with lug issues like this. Youd be supprised how much just a 3mm thick spacer will open up some clearance!

 

[blubuckaroo]

I have spacers but they aren't mounted like that. http://www.ezaccessory.com/Billet_Wheel_Adapters_s/25.htm?gclid=CN2roZis_7YCFWQ6Qgodvw0AYA
Nice Bronco. The repair should be pretty easy.

 

[kricci]

Very true Matt!

Looking at the pics, the dust shield is shot obviously. Replace the rotor and fixing the fender flare are the big things I see, along with a little paint... Anything else I should check?

 

[burntfish]

Glad you where not hurt. I had the same problem a few years back. My tire went for a 1/2 mile ride over the edge of a cliff and then some. 2 hours of hiking and rooling a real heavy crawler she was back on the road. Good luck. I still run spacers just better ones.

Sent from your moms bedroom using tapthat 2.

 

[bmc69]

I have spacers but they aren't mounted like that. http://www.ezaccessory.com/Billet_Wheel_Adapters_s/25.htm?gclid=CN2roZis_7YCFWQ6Qgodvw0AYA
Nice Bronco. The repair should be pretty easy.

Exactly. Those are what I run on the '76 now and others over the years.

IMHO, the insert spacer style should not even be legal to sell.:-X

 

[Apogee]

Exactly. Those are what I run on the '76 now and others over the years.

IMHO, the insert spacer style should not even be legal to sell.:-X

There are plenty of issues with bolt-on spacers/adapters, just as there are with loose spacers. The reality is that there is no one right way to mount a tire to a vehicle, however it is important that regardless of the method, it's done as well as it can be done. Most new applications use slip-on rotors...so does that mean they should not be legal? A slip-on rotor is essentially a 1/4" to 3/8" thick spacer. Done properly, it can be a very reliable setup. Done poorly, disastrous results can happen as shown by this thread.

Glad everybody walked away and a little carnage on the rig was the worst of it. EB's can be fixed and brought back from the grave...people not so much.

 

[broncnaz]

Spacers are kinda like running aluminum wheels you should recheck the torque on them after the first 100 miles or so. Of course its best not to run spacers but sometimes you cant get around it. Glad the damage was minor.

 

[matts460]

Hmm I could almost see (just because) replacing the rotor hub assy and at the very least, ALL new lug studs. And of course take off the dust sheild and straighten it or just replace it they can be straightend out pretty easy using hammer and dollies/vise, etc.. Hope your rim lug holes arent to wollerd out might need a new rim! I would also just peek all over the rest of the front axle and just do a thouro inspection all over the truck to see what else the PO might have installed. Dont be afraid to lay on a creeper and roll under truck and hang out there for 20 mins just looking at stuff Youd be suprised how much you might find not quite right or overlooked. I had to ziptie or reroute wires/lines etc and all sorts of other fun stuff.

 

[kricci]

There are plenty of issues with bolt-on spacers/adapters, just as there are with loose spacers. The reality is that there is no one right way to mount a tire to a vehicle, however it is important that regardless of the method, it's done as well as it can be done. Most new applications use slip-on rotors...so does that mean they should not be legal? A slip-on rotor is essentially a 1/4" to 3/8" thick spacer. Done properly, it can be a very reliable setup. Done poorly, disastrous results can happen as shown by this thread.

Glad everybody walked away and a little carnage on the rig was the worst of it. EB's can be fixed and brought back from the grave...people not so much.

Agreed. I'm thankful!

Spacers are kinda like running aluminum wheels you should recheck the torque on them after the first 100 miles or so. Of course its best not to run spacers but sometimes you cant get around it. Glad the damage was minor.

Very true, had I known they were on I would've been more diligent about it.

Hmm I could almost see (just because) replacing the rotor hub assy and at the very least, ALL new lug studs. And of course take off the dust sheild and straighten it or just replace it they can be straightend out pretty easy using hammer and dollies/vise, etc.. Hope your rim lug holes arent to wollerd out might need a new rim! I would also just peek all over the rest of the front axle and just do a thouro inspection all over the truck to see what else the PO might have installed. Dont be afraid to lay on a creeper and roll under truck and hang out there for 20 mins just looking at stuff Youd be suprised how much you might find not quite right or overlooked. I had to ziptie or reroute wires/lines etc and all sorts of other fun stuff.

True, I never checked the wheel to see if the holes were destroyed... Ugh I hope not! I guess if I need new wheels at least I could get the proper offset and toss those spacers!

 

[Amac70]

meh, i would have just bent the shield back out of the way slapped wheel back on and drove home. Had the same thing happen with out spacers forgot to tighten lugs after installing a lift went to get some food when i finished pulled into restaurant as tire went down highway. just stole a lug off the other three wheels. nothing wrong with spacers as long as you stay on top of them.

 

[taipeichris]

Wow! Close call, I'm glad you're ok and nice Bronco! Did you find the missing tire?

 

[bmc69]

There are plenty of issues with bolt-on spacers/adapters, .

And those are?

 

[kricci]

Wow! Close call, I'm glad you're ok and nice Bronco! Did you find the missing tire?

Yep, it's in the back of the bronco in the pics

 

[1973steve]

I’m glade to hear no one is Hurt.
There are plenty of issues with wheel spacers/adapters.
No wheel spacers or adapter will pass any State’s Safety Inspection

 

[kricci]

I’m glade to hear no one is Hurt.
There are plenty of issues with wheel spacers/adapters.
No wheel spacers or adapter will pass any State’s Safety Inspection

It passed Texas's last may. In hindsight, I wish it hadn't.

 

[Apogee]

And those are?

Failure to check and recheck wheel torques periodically until the torques remain constant from one inspection to the next.

Failure to maintain clean mating surfaces between the wheel, hub, and spacer surfaces and introducing additional runnout into the system which can lead to vibrations and subsequent wheel stud loosening issues.

Poor adapter design, especially the lack of torque rings/pockets around the wheel studs or bolt circle to aid in maintaining proper wheel stud torque/preload. If you want to see a well designed wheel adapter/spacer, refer to H&R Trak+ spacers.

Poor wheel spacer design and/or materials. Wheel spacers with multiple wheel patterns marketed as "universal" tend to also be die-cast from the least expensive aluminum and are prone to breaking due to unequal wheel torque, overloading, etc.

Lack of maintaining hub-centricity in applications where that is important...EB's not so much, however performance, high-speed applications tend to fall into this category.

The issues above tend to be the most common, however there are other issues like the use of press-in wheel studs with inadequate under-head surface area for use with aluminum, low-quality studs, etc that can also come into play. Properly designed, installed and maintained, I don't see any issues with the use of spacers or adapters, but that's true for so many of the modifications we do to our rigs.

Tobin

 

[Rustytruck]

Never met an aluminium spacer I would ever run. For me just the wrong place for aluminium. Hard enough trustin aluminium wheels to stay tight. If I ran spacers they would be steel.