Now what -

I've got an '03 C4S with 20" wheels (yeah, I know, but, come on guys, 'dubs?'" Anyway I have put on three, yes three, different sets of 1/4" to 7mm spacers on it (with the right bolts) and I get a front end shimmy I feel in my steering wheel. The shimmy starts at 56 mph and goes to a light thumping (like an out of balance tire) at 68 mph. I have had the tire/wheels "Roadforce" balanced....no luck. I had them put on a Coats balancer with the spacers...still a shimmy. I had the car alighned....no luck. The first two sets of spacers came off ebay, the last from Tire Rack and are H&R's. I took them off last weekend for a 500 mile trip...no problems, no shimmy. What to do? If I can't get this solved, I going to have to send the H&R's back. Of course, I don't want to do this, I want the spacers in the front, BTW 5/8" spacers in the rear and no shimmy in my seat. Any idears

was it aligned with the spacers in .... there is a pretty big thread just resolved with the same sounding issue.. turned out to ba alignment even though he swore it was aligned that or get bigger wheels

Hey Ed, Yup, the spacers, the second ones I tried, were on the car for the alignment. They are hubcentric, but an ebay thing again. Thought I might as well get the H&R's and just solve the problem. But it still shook when I put those on. Now, it doesn't shake without spacers. Do you think that maybe I have gotten three separate spacers that were ALL out of balance? Could that happen? Strange things do happen to me, but....... I explained my problem to Damen (Darian?) at Tire Rack when I bought the last pair. He said that out of the 100's he sold, only one pair has come back. Boy, am I confused.

pics of the spacers? is it full of holes?

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ok we wont go there so here is a thought... find another p-car and put your spacers on it...see what happens...then put his wheels and your spacers on your car... see what happens... are there many p-cars in Elksnort I would be happy to help if I still had my 996... sure there must be someone out there

No one yet has to mention....lose the " twinkies"; try on some 19's.

DOOD...Theys dubs....ya know whad I mean? Like, teenies are soooooo 90's, dawg! No really, got 'em cheaper with the wheels and new Vereldistienesque (I think thats what they are) tires for cheaper than re-shoeing the car. So shoot me, but I kind of like them. The question is......what is going on when I get a shake WITH 7mm spacers (I've tried 3 different sets) and no shake w/o? Anyone

right on. then it may be the wheel bearings can't take that additional offset and will need some inspection. I gots those Vredilesque tires too! 235/35 295/30 ..19's tho..you know...Old skool...

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except me I made my recommendation

Id love to see what dubs look like on your car. Pictures?

They have a shimmy even after balancing. But you are using spacers on them. I think your problem is that there is play or gap between the spacer and the wheel, or the spacer and your hub. They have to be tight or the wheel will not center on the hub. Or the wheel wont center on the spacer. If you loosen the lugs till they just let the weight off the wheel, and you fel a drop in the wheel, then there is play and they arent centered. The lugs cant center the wheel, it has to center on the hub by fitment. This is all due to an incorrect choice of the right spacers, or cheap in accurate machined wheels or spacers. Feel the spacer on the hub and the spacer on the wheel. If theres open play, its wrong.

I am in St Paul as well and would be willing to try swapping wheels, spacers to see if we can pin down the problem. My car is a NB so I'm not sure if would work though.

look at that - the power of the interwebs has opened up an opportunity

I've balanced wheels for years, also build wire wheels and true and balance crank shafts. It's doubtful that even a severly out of balance spacer would cause the problem. The reason is it's too close to the center of rotating mass. It is critical the the spacer be hubcentric and concentric so that the wheel is on the same center as the hub itself. Another thing to consider is the quality of the wheels, many oversize wheels are horribly heavy and this can take a toll on bearings. Any bearing play will be more noticeable as wheel diameters and weights increase. If the wheels are cast or forged and not fully machined, the material thickness can vary causing light and heavy areas throughout the wheel. These irregularities should be picked by a qualifyed balancer, but not always. Static balancing is error free but may not be possible with this type of wheel. Consult a large and capable custom wheel seller in your area and have him look into your problem.

Thanks guys. Hey Zelp, shooting you a PM (private message). Plan is to keep trying.....It is not the end of the world if they don't work, but I still am confused as to why they shake. If (when) I figure it out, I'll let ya know. Hardback, I'll post some pics when I get back this weekend. It is time for me to learn how to do dat....I know Tim is grinding his teeth and may be planning a trip here to slap me along side the head. I believe it's time

Oops, Zelp...can't PM...buy a subscription here. It is a great place with lots and lots of knowledge.....or not. Well, some knowledge, okay, it is a fun place to be with little or no knowledge. Otherwise, I don't know, we could meet up somewhere, I don't want to give out my phone or email.....(it's that Tim thing) you figure it out. I have some extra spacers, a jack, and a garage. We can see what they look like on your NB.

I was always told and I even read this in a book about porsches' that 996's where only designed to be used with 17 & 18 inch wheels. 19's or higher would cause handling problems. The 997's work with 18's, 19's, 20's, etc.

Send me an email at zelpdsm at yahoo and we can set up a meeting place.

Is the shake after impact gun tightening or hand toghtening to the max? Not sure about p cars but other wheels and hubs will deform slightly and drive a guy nuts wondering where a shimmy is coming from when it was the tightening getting him. I know the lincolns would permanently deform the hub. Good luck. Try a girls touch so to speak. Yah good luck not torquing down harder than needed for satisfactions sake.

I think I know what your problem may be, check the bolts you're using. I got a set of spacers with "cone" bolds/nuts (I can hear ivange already... ) Of course I was told, "yes, yes these are for Porsche's"! Guess what... Porsche has "DOMED" bolds/nuts! I'll bet ya, that's whats causing your problem. Good luck Sid. Ps. where's the pics of your ride with those 20's and what size tire are you running?