cherokee wheel spacers

[northstar1958]

Anybody here use the billet wheel spacers i see on ebay? Been thinking about getting a 1.5 or 2 inch spacers just to widen the stance alittle.

Northstar

[fredjacksonsan]

I've never used spacers; keep in mind that if you install them, you'll change the geometry of your suspension and put a lot more stress on the bearings.

[sector95]

In a word, don't ...okay so maybe that's really two words. But like Fred J said, you'll put a *lot* of extra stress on the front wheel bearings and rear axle bearings. you can replace the front axle bearings fairly easy, but the rear axle ones are not so easy. The problem with the XJ is it was designed to use wheels with a very deep offset. The XJ also has relatively small wheel openings so if you go with the "wide-track" look, you may have some clearance issues. Wheel offset is the distance from the rims back edge to the back of the mounting face; you take a straight edge, lay it across the backside of the rim then measure down to the mounting holes. The stock XJ wheel offset is 5 1/2 inches; there are no aftermarket wheels that come close to that offset ...at least none I have found. Best bet, if you're running the stock steelies, is to checkout craigslist and see if you can score some factory aluminum wheels. That's what I ended up doing and scored a nice set of factory, 5-spoke cast wheels for $160.

Mike

[gregmondro]

Keep in mind that many of us who have XJs with lifts and aftermarket equipment which includes bigger/wider tires have been running wheels with different offset than stock for years. A common offset for Jeeps running 12.5" wide tires is anywhere from 4.5"-3.25".

I wouldn't hesitate to run wheel spacers anywhere in the range that you were looking at. The main thing I'd be worried about is clearance issues.

I personally run wheels with 4.5" of backspacing on my 99 XJ. It is however lifted 5.5" with a Rubicon Express kit, has 35x12.5" tires, and trimmed fenders.