Moppet52

Hello all,

I had Koni coilovers installed about a month a go and had them set to about two finger gap. I also had new wheels and tires installed. Almost immediately I went to get dent fixed and the I was unable to put the suspension through many miles. Plus I travel during the week for work so I didn't get to do much except drive the car home.

Now, the problem. The wheels are 18x8.5 and have a really high offset of 32. I was told that I didn't need spacers. However, I noticed this weekend when I finally got a chance to do a little spirited driving along Kelly Drive in Philadelphia (great road btw). I noticed on sharp turns at decent speed I heard what I am pretty sure is rubbing from the tires.

Because the offset is so high(?) I think the inside of the tire is rubbing on sharp turns. So the question: Does anyone know where I can get spacers for these wheels that might help solve this problem? Or is there another solution? TIA

DocWyte

An 8.5" rim is really wide. You probably need to raise your car up some. No doubt you're rubbing because the wide wheel and offset aren't adequate to give enough clearance with the amount of lowering you've done...

Moppet52

I figured raising might be an answer. However, I know I have seen other A4's with 18x8.5 wheels that are as low at least as my car is now. Now, the offset is a problem because it is so high. I was just wondering if there was a way to put spacers on the wheels so that i wouldn't have to raise it (more money - AWE-Tuning will have to take the wheels and the coilovers off to adjust height on all four corners). So does anyone know about spacers for this wheel or in general? Pros, cons?

Sharon

At ET32, I'd guess your rubbing the liner, if not the fender on the outside...adding a spacer will make things worse.

WClark

I am running 18x8/35mm wheels and 225/40 tires which is pretty close the Moppet52. I can rub on the top of the wheel well lip/liner in a sharp turn where there is a bump or coming out of a dip.

If the rubbing sound is akin to a toy machinegun, then it is probably the tread on the liner or lip.

Moppet52

I though with the offset higher (32), essentially the mounting point closer to the center of the wheel that more of the wheel would be pushed in towards the center of the car and thus the rubbing would occur there. If it is occurring on the outside, then is rolling the fenders or raising the only options?

Also, WClark what did you end up doing to avoid this problem?

Thanks for the info.

WClark

Your 8.5" width wheel is offset out 2mm more than mine (not much) so your wheel is about 7mm further out and 4mm further in than mine. There is a FAQ on things like offset at tirerack.com.

This makes you more likely to rub both outside and inside than mine, but much more likely on the outside.

My rubbing problem isnt severe or frequently occurring. I pretty know where it is likely to happen and I just slow down before getting there - not a terrible idea when turning sharply in an area you are not familiar with anyway.

The most common solution, other than raising the car (a 1/2" may make all the difference) is to have the front fender lips rolled along the top of the opening (this isnt really visable from most vantage points around the car, but a possible undesirable byproduct can be the paint along the bend in the lip coming off due to the increased bend).

Moppet52

WClark- Thanks for the advice. Just will arrange to do one of the two.