After hitting a stray shard of metal today, I discovered that the space saver spare that I bought from detroit tuning a while back doesn't clear my rear brakes. I upgraded to JCW brakes 1000 miles or so ago and completely forgot to verify that it was able to fit (which I now see is clearly spelled out on Detroit Tuned's site). It turns out the weld around the outside of the hub portion of the wheel drags against the center of the caliper on the back. I only pulled forward a foot or two before I noticed the issue so, fortunately, no damage appears to have been done aside from some scratching of the powder coating.

Anyways, I'm wondering if there's any way to get this wheel that I already have to fit over these brakes. I've seen a couple of posts here and there indicating that it should/could fit with 10mm or 15mm spacers, but haven't been able to locate any posts where someone reported that they had successfully done it.

Is a 15mm spacer enough to fit these things on? They're so close to fitting that it seems like they would, but spacer kits are pretty expensive so I'm hoping someone can confirm it before I buy anything. It seems likely, as others have noted, that they'd fit with a tiny amount of spacing. In fact, they were so close when I bolted the wheels on, that there wasn't any sign that anything was amiss until the car started rolling. The variation in weld thickness was enough for it to fit in some portions of the radius but not in others.

--Matt

 

Try asking that question to Way at Waymotorsports.com

I would think a 10mm spacer would work. You can get longer wheel bolts so that you can use a spacer and still be able to bolt on the wheel, I don't think the OEM bolt will be long enough.

 

The OEM bolt probably won't be long enough. Time to move to a stud conversion

 

Most of the spacer kits that require lug bolts seem to include them. I bought it from Detroit Tuned, so maybe they'll know.

--Matt

 

turnermotorsports.com has extended length wheel bolts of various lengths for specific spacer depth. The bolts look like the original, just longer, sold individually.

 

Call Way...

 

I contacted both Way and Detroit Tuned. One said it's likely to four with a 15mm spacer, the other said it's likely to fit with a 10mm spacer. Neither has tried it so far.

--Matt

 

Seriously, if you already have the spare wheel the quickest way to know is to put some 10/15mm whatever material spacers between the hub and the wheel and check it out. As long as the suspension fit, you don't need to drive to see if it clears the calipers. Just put some well measured piece of wood or else material between the hub and wheel, put the wheel, tighten just to hold it and spin it. You may have to take both front wheels off the ground to spin them by hand.

 

You'd have to get 15mm spacers. 10mm spacers don't work on a MINI because that's about the same height as the centering flange on the hub, and there wouldn't be any center hub left sticking out to center the wheel. It's the reason you don't see 8-12mm spacers sold for MINI. That's assuming the spare wheel has a center bore that fits on the hub (it may just rely on the lugs for centering).

 

That's a very good point to investigate.
You'd have to make sure lugs are long enough as well. Some rule of thumb I've eared is 6 thread of engagement or the same length of thread as the diameter of the lugs. That's said I'm more use to lug nuts so this might be different with lugs.

 

It'll definitely bolt on and clear the caliper with that much backspacing, but don't I have to be concerned about some amount of flexing?

--Matt

 

When you add a large spacer, it changes the suspension geometry and puts extra stress on the hub. However, I wouldn't worry about it for short temporary use until you get your tire repaired. There are people who actually use such spacers on their regular daily car.

 

15 mm is harmless.. Even for long term use.

 

I was referring to flex on the wheel. I was under the impression that there's some amount of flexibility in stamped steel wheels when you're turning and going over irregular surfaces but, after googling around a bit, it seems like it may have been an old wive's tale.

I guess I'll pick up a set and try em out! Anyone have any recommendations for brands or retailers? This seems to be the most reasonably priced set I can find:
http://www.pelicanparts.com/More_Inf...30%38%2D%20%29

--Matt

 

I just went ahead and ordered the 16mm Racemax kit w/Bolts from Pelican Parts. It seems to be the cheapest possible way to get this much spacing from one place. I like the look of Way's spacers, but they don't have longer lug bolts and I'm not wanting to convert to studs while under warranty.

I guess we'll see how they go. $100 shipped isn't too bad.

--Matt

 

Good news everyone! The 16mm spacer was sufficient for clearing the interference point that the caliper had with the wheel. It's really close, probably only 3-4mm, but there's enough clearance for the wheel to fit and not cause any trouble. After going for a drive with it on, I found no scratches on my caliper (original scraped area corrected courtesy of testors model paint). It even all fits in the boot completely invisibly with a tiny amount of foam trimming.

 

more pics

 

I've been running 15mm fronts/20mm rears for a while... No probs and looks far better until I buy new wheels.