Sponsored by The Tire Rack

[hankcah]

Hey guys,

So I have rear spacers (maybe 12mm) on my 335i and questioning how safe it is...

When going over 80mph on the highway, it feels as if I'm steering a boat rather than a german car anymore. I use to take it up to 110mph, but anything near 80+ I don't feel as safe, especially while changing lanes. Feels as if there is snow on the ground in between lanes.

Is it because I have spacers on the rears and not on the fronts? Should I install front spacers as well to make this awkwardness go away? It has a slight "fishtail" feel when changing lanes on the highway.

Does the camber have that much of an impact in which only the inside of the tires are having less contact when increasing speed?

I also have Yokohama S drives on now. Would it be because of softer sidewalls?


Any thoughts or experiences would be appreciated.

Thanks
Henry

[Lankster]

+1

[BMW_Jaeger]

I would be delighted to hear more on this as was considering spacers myself

So, wait...did you put new tires AND spacers on at the same time? If so, it's probably just a "feel" of the new tires sidewall that you aren't used to. Easy way to eliminate the biggest variable though is to just remove the spacers all together and drive it to see if you notice a difference.

[hankcah]

I put on spacers about halfway through the life of my previous tires. But the "fishtailing" is about the same as on my new tires. No I've put 1000 miles on my new tires so it's not the "newness" of the tires. Where the first 200-300 miles have that weird rubber feel.


Could my already staggered 8.5 rear wheel setup + my 12mm spacer be too much of a setup?


I may go with the front spacers to try and even it out again. But it's so uncomfortable driving sometimes.

[EYE4SPEED]

Would it be the same only at lower speeds? For instance, if you were under 40 mph, but felt nothing over 70 mph? Same setup.

[MRRwheels]

if all was perfect before the spacers and the only thing you have done differently is to add the spacers then the problem is ( drum roll....) the spacers.
this happens all the time, spacers are sometimes machined in house and is sometimes a human error in either the machining of the spacers being off by a MM or so.
if you removed them and the drive is back to normal then consider checking those spacers. good luck.

[Hybrid For Life]

I'd check the torque on the bolts. Just to eliminate any possibly issue with the spacer/wheel not being properly mounted to the hub.
Also what brand are the spacers?

[VTECaddict]

No such issues with my 12mm rear spacers.

[hankcah]

Originally Posted by Hybrid For Life

I'd check the torque on the bolts. Just to eliminate any possibly issue with the spacer/wheel not being properly mounted to the hub.
Also what brand are the spacers?

I purchased these from Turner Motorsport.

[hankcah]

Originally Posted by MRRwheels

if all was perfect before the spacers and the only thing you have done differently is to add the spacers then the problem is ( drum roll....) the spacers.
this happens all the time, spacers are sometimes machined in house and is sometimes a human error in either the machining of the spacers being off by a MM or so.
if you removed them and the drive is back to normal then consider checking those spacers. good luck.

My question was more of, is this a known issue with spacers in general or that I just had them on my rears. Of course the problem would go away, if I removed them. But that doesn't solve any thing. I may as well sell the car then, problem solved right? Does it happen all the time?


I love the rear spacers, and I may try another brand, but I don't have any crazy setup/suspension on my car.

[CUTigers]

Sell the car. See ya then... People are just trying to help and asking if it's the tires or another factor.

[hankcah]

Originally Posted by CUTigers

Sell the car. See ya then... People are just trying to help and asking if it's the tires or another factor.

Don't take my jokes the wrong way. It's just struck me funny to just get rid of it. if I had that mindset my entire life, I'd have nothing.

[itbettergofast]

I have ebay 20mm rear spacers and felt no difference from stock.

[E92335ILAU]

Are they Hubcentric?

[beskone]

I was running 10mm spacers in front and 12mm in the rear of my e92

No noticeable difference in feel at highway + speeds.

[michaelalex17]

why dont u just remove the spacers and see if it fixes the problem?

[EYE4SPEED]

Do you have 10's or 12's. You might be running into a problem if they are 10's and you will need to step up to at least 12's or 15's because of the lip.

[freshwater]

I know its an Old post but what was the final result, you sold the car or fix the problem.

I am going with Macht Schnell Spacers E90 335i Sports 18mm on the Rear only.
I was thinking it will give more stability to the Car with wider looking wheels in the Rear and may be some under steering.

[Moony]

I put 10mm front and 15mm tuner motorsports spacers on my 193m staggered setup and everything seemed to be fine. I hit 125mph on the highway to test any fishtailing or any disturbances the other day. Make sure your bolts are secured and you used extended lugnuts

[freshwater]

yep I will get the extended lugnuts with the MS spacers.

[VMRWheels]

Originally Posted by Verve

I put 10mm front and 15mm tuner motorsports spacers on my 193m staggered setup and everything seemed to be fine. I hit 125mph on the highway to test any fishtailing or any disturbances the other day. Make sure your bolts are secured and you used extended lugnuts

Originally Posted by freshwater

yep I will get the extended lugnuts with the MS spacers.

Exactly. Also, make sure your hub is clean by brushing off any rust. I also recommend driving around for a couple miles and re-torque the lugs. I always do this, with or without spacers.