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In need of spacers advice

Fraysa

Go Kart Champion
Location
Israel
Car(s)
2016 MK7 1.4TSI
Hey everyone.

I wanted to upgrade my stock 16" rims on my MK7 to 17", and my friend has an Audi A3 8P that he upgraded the rims on, so he gave me his "old" 17" genuine Audi rims which fit perfectly.

1602661933754.png


However, there's one issue. When I turn the wheels all the way to either right or left, I can hear a metal sound. I jacked up the car and noticed the inner part of the rim is touching the suspension arm, so I figured I'd need spacers.

Because I have no experience with spacers whatsoever, I did my research and found out the following differences between the old rim and the new rim:

1602661996953.png


So, I figured I'd need 10mm spacers, but I have a few questions:

1. Are the spacers required for both front and back? I assume front only, as this is a front-wheel drive vehicle, or you need to change all 4 anyway? I don't want the car to look weird.
2. What recommended brands out there? I know it's just an aluminum piece, but I want something good.
3. I assume I'd need longer studs. Checking ETKA, the P/N for the original studs is WHT-001-812. Which studs to get and how to know which?

Thanks a lot!
 

Ezekiel81923

Autocross Champion
Location
Royersford, PA
Car(s)
2019 Volkswagen GTI
With the added width and offset the inside of the wheel is almost an inch closer to the strut than the old set up. Going from +46 to +56 pulled it in 10mm and then the added 1/2" width of the wheel that is on the inside combine to cause your issue. On the flip side, the outer edge of the wheel is also 3mm out from the stock setup.

You'd need a 20mm spacer just to get that wheel close to stock clearance on the inside but that will push the wheel so far out you'd have some crazy monster truck fitment going on. I'd start with a 5mm or 10mm since you said you only hear the noise at full lock, it may just need a little bit of space.

You do not need spacers on front and back if you don't want to, it just might look a little funny. I have ECS spacers and they fit our hubs perfectly and like you said, it's just metal.

You would want longer lug bolts if the spacers you buy don't come with them. I'd get 10mm longer bolts if the spacers you go with are 10mm. Doesn't have to be exact but you want the same amount of bite that you had before.
 

Fraysa

Go Kart Champion
Location
Israel
Car(s)
2016 MK7 1.4TSI
With the added width and offset the inside of the wheel is almost an inch closer to the strut than the old set up. Going from +46 to +56 pulled it in 10mm and then the added 1/2" width of the wheel that is on the inside combine to cause your issue. On the flip side, the outer edge of the wheel is also 3mm out from the stock setup.

You'd need a 20mm spacer just to get that wheel close to stock clearance on the inside but that will push the wheel so far out you'd have some crazy monster truck fitment going on. I'd start with a 5mm or 10mm since you said you only hear the noise at full lock, it may just need a little bit of space.

You do not need spacers on front and back if you don't want to, it just might look a little funny. I have ECS spacers and they fit our hubs perfectly and like you said, it's just metal.

You would want longer lug bolts if the spacers you buy don't come with them. I'd get 10mm longer bolts if the spacers you go with are 10mm. Doesn't have to be exact but you want the same amount of bite that you had before.

Thanks a lot for the detailed reply, I appreciate that.

So to conclude what you said - 10mm spacers on the front only should do the trick to get somewhat closer to the original setup and get rid of the noise issue.

In theory, is there a difference if I went 10 or 20? Does it affect anything?

Also, which bolt should I get? I believe it has to be the same width as my old one. Are there any “VW” standards or anything would work?
 

Ezekiel81923

Autocross Champion
Location
Royersford, PA
Car(s)
2019 Volkswagen GTI
It'd be helpful to know how close to "flush" you are. How close does the outer edge of the tire get to the outer edge of the fender? It starts to look goofy when you tire is poking out beyond that and you don't want to start rubbing on something else once you add spacers.

My guess is 10mm would work. It's hard to know without measuring how close the wheel is to whatever it is hitting.

Stock lug bolts are 14mm x 1.5 and are 27mm long. If you go with a 10mm spacer you can find 37mm long bolts and you'll be good to go.
 

Fraysa

Go Kart Champion
Location
Israel
Car(s)
2016 MK7 1.4TSI
It'd be helpful to know how close to "flush" you are. How close does the outer edge of the tire get to the outer edge of the fender? It starts to look goofy when you tire is poking out beyond that and you don't want to start rubbing on something else once you add spacers.

My guess is 10mm would work. It's hard to know without measuring how close the wheel is to whatever it is hitting.

Stock lug bolts are 14mm x 1.5 and are 27mm long. If you go with a 10mm spacer you can find 37mm long bolts and you'll be good to go.

C6CADFD8-31C4-4720-BD9F-B27D9DA1E272.jpeg

F665D64A-08AC-4CD6-9078-0B1EF07D1F49.jpeg

169CF260-278B-496B-83F0-BEBF97E66265.jpeg


Took some pictures, hopefully you can see something.

What does each of the numbers in the bolt size you wrote mean?
 

Ezekiel81923

Autocross Champion
Location
Royersford, PA
Car(s)
2019 Volkswagen GTI
Looks like you have room for 10mm spacers.

The head of the bolt is 17mm (you need a 17mm socket to turn it), the thread pitch is 1.5 (1.5mm between threads) and the diameter of the shank (the threaded part) is 14mm. And if you're buying 37mm long bolts then the shank is 37mm long.
 

Fraysa

Go Kart Champion
Location
Israel
Car(s)
2016 MK7 1.4TSI
Ah. That makes sense. Thanks a lot.
I’ve read somewhere online about DAP, and they have a kit that comes with the bolts and they got good reviews but they mention something about the fact that you can’t fit 10mm on the rear, because of how the centric hub is too thin so you must go 15 at least. Is that true? Also, should I go 10 both or 15 read and 10 front for a nicer look?
 

Ezekiel81923

Autocross Champion
Location
Royersford, PA
Car(s)
2019 Volkswagen GTI
10 will fit on the front but not the rear, according to DAP. And yes, it is because of the hub depth. I think you were referencing these...

https://www.shopdap.com/make-model-...acer-set-w-ball-seat-bolts-5-x-112-black.html

The easiest way to figure out what you need for a clean look is to put a flat edge (2x4, level, etc) on the ground straight up and down against the fender. Then measure the space from the wheel face to the flat edge. This will show you how much of a spacer you would need to make the wheel flush with the fender.

I think 5-10mm will at least solve your rubbing problem on the front but if you want a flush look on front and back I'd do that measurement technique on front and back and see what you get.
 

Fraysa

Go Kart Champion
Location
Israel
Car(s)
2016 MK7 1.4TSI
Does the 10mm rule apply on the DAP kit only, or all kits?

Any more recommended brands I can buy kits with bolts from?
 

Ezekiel81923

Autocross Champion
Location
Royersford, PA
Car(s)
2019 Volkswagen GTI
I have spacers from ECS Tuning. They are the only ones I can speak for firsthand, but they fit great and the bolts are plenty long enough.

I'm not sure if it applies to every spacer, it depends on how they are manufactured. If you wanted to go with something 10mm or smaller in the rear I'd consult whoever you are looking to purchase them from directly. My guess is DAP wouldn't make a 10mm spacer that doesn't fit in the back if other companies were making one that did fit in the back.

My rear spacers are 17.5mm so they are plenty big enough to fit
 

swcrow

Autocross Champion
Location
Virginia
Car(s)
7.5 GTI
Advice:

DO NOT RUN 10mm spacers in back. The "lip" will shear off due to not having enough of a shelf for the wheel to rest on.

Ask me how I know.
 

GTI Jake

Autocross Champion
Location
Charlotte, NC
First off, Audi wheels won’t be hub centric anyway since the hub bore is 66mm vs VW 57mm.

Reputable spacers from H&R or BFI would be my recommendation, but if you want to take it a step further you can have one off spacers made that have a 57mm inner bore and 66mm outer bore so it’s still truly hub centric...however with a bit of competence on your end that’s not in any way required.

I highly recommend buying wheel studs vs new wheel bolts, which will future proof your purchase as they can be longer for your most aggressive wheel/spacer combo without any issues swapping to a least aggressive scenario.

Here’s how you measure, the same technique can be applied measuring you factory wheel lip to suspension clearance at full lock then apply that know clearance to the measurements of your new Audi wheels.


https://www.willtheyfit.com/
 

ginsy

Ready to race!
Location
Boston
Advice:

DO NOT RUN 10mm spacers in back. The "lip" will shear off due to not having enough of a shelf for the wheel to rest on.

Ask me how I know.

Can you elaborate on this? What "lip" are you referring to? Im exploring spacers and was about to run 10mm in the rear.
 

swcrow

Autocross Champion
Location
Virginia
Car(s)
7.5 GTI
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