H&R Spacer... Lip shaved/broke off?!
 

I have the H&R DRS 15MM spacers on the front. I noticed today when I took my wheels off, that the lip that goes around the inner portion of the spacer was "missing". I never noticed before, but then again, I didn't install them myself and I've never looked too closely at them until now.

I did find the lip, stuck inside the wheel. Both of my front wheels were like this. The rear wheels are perfectly fine and the lip is intact. One thing I noticed is that the edge where it "broke" off (???) is pretty sharp, but not a completely clean cut. Does this sound like the lip broke off, or was purposely cut off? I can't fathom why the shop would do this though.

It's been over a year since I had them installed, so going back to the shop to ask them probably wouldn't be worth the effort.

Also, you can see the lip on the DRM version, which looks the same as the DRS, here:
http://www.stillen.com/product_images/HR3065663.jpg

Thats a defect or design flaw and one problem the HR AND Eibach faces as they are similar in design and light materials used.

I would write to the manufacturer for replacement. But its good to hear ur studs didn't break off while driving!

I wrote Josh@Stillen a PM since I bought them through him (they didn't install them though). Hopefully they can just be replaced under warranty.

I think this is why I've been having some vibration in my steering wheel for a while. I thought it was the tires themselves, but now I'm thinking its the spacers causing the problem. I don't think there is much of a chance of the studs breaking off, since I think they've been like this since before I went to the track last year.

I'll probably just see if I can buy a replacement set minus the studs and then send in the defective ones for replacement, and just sell the ones they send me back.

:iagree:

I think rcz had the same problem with his spacer. I haven't had any problems with mine.

Wow, that's crazy. I wonder what causes this and what can be done to prevent it.

im no expert with metals but it appears the metal is too thin or brittle causing fatigue on the HR's.

if you use lug-centric aftermarket wheels you are minimizing the burden on that lip so you will probably not experience this ever. ive had Kics for 6yrs or so, never had a problem on both lug-centric and hub-centric wheel applications. i also have a pair of Eibach 20mm which are doing okay the last 3k miles of use. :)

Strange- any way you could post some pics?

I should of taken some while I had the wheels off still. It's not much to see though. Hopefully I'll get some replacements this week, and I'll post some pictures after that.

glad nothing bad happened to ya!

in the picture, it looks like a billet piece. not much room for material defect in billet machined parts. if it happened to one set, it will probably happen to another.

So unfortunately H&R doesn't warranty their spacers once they have been installed. Incredibly lame, since when else would you really need a warranty on a set of spacers?

Luckily Josh@Stillen was able to give me a great price, and ensure that I'll get the new spacers on Wednesday. :tup: to Stillen!

I can only hope now that this doesn't happen again with the new spacers too.

Now I'll have an extra set of studs if anyone is interested. :)

lol thats dumb.. if everyone did that..

"Hi, we will warranty your nissan 370z but only if you dont drive it ever or turn it on"

I totally agree, and normally I'd just say "Fuck H&R" but since their reputation for spacers is pretty good, and there aren't many choices, I decided I'll try again with them.

very odd. mine are holding up great!

WTF... that is by far the shittiest comment from a manufacturer!!

at least take the failed part, analyize it, find root cause, and then give the customer a new one if it was a defect or explanation why it failed so there is no repeat by the installer.

you were lucky none of the studs broke off while you were driving.
chances are the new one will fail again in a few months. :ugh2: not going to be buying HR spacers for me.

2 out of 4 have failed for me. I believe both failures have occurred in the front application. The ring simply doesn't appear strong enough in the 15mm DRS spacer for track/auto-x.

I'll be looking for another brand to use in that scenario.

Luckily mine won't be used on the track at all, so hopefully it can handle the street okay.

Josh@Stillen wasn't too concerned about me riding around with the hubcentric ring broken off like it is. Just that I should expect to have some vibrations (which I do, always thought it was my tires to blame).

I personally wouldnt be too happy if i was told that, hey buy this product, it may break but thats ok you can live with a few vibrations... but thats just me.

edit: not a knock at Stillen, but more at H&R for not taking care of this or trying to look into it. I understand that Josh is simply saying there isnt a safety concern with the H&R.

Note to self: don't buy H&R spacers.

I would put the broken one in the rear, the vibration should be less apparent. The stock lugs aren't lug centric so it is pretty difficult to perfectly center the wheel without a centering ring. Try to tighten gradually in the star pattern for the best results.

No, it wasn't like that at all. I asked him if he thought it would be okay if I continued to drive on the broken spacers until I got the new ones.

Well, I'll be getting the replacement ones tomorrow, so I just need to drive home from work today, and then it'll be sitting until I swap out the spacers tomorrow evening.

Anyone want to buy a couple of busted spacers? :rofl2: :shakes head:

yeah I understand, i edited my post after i re-read it.

sell them on a forum where the cars don't need hubcentric rings.

Good idea. I'm sure someone would be interested in the spacers + new lugs.

Gotcha, yeah... I'm going to contact H&R directly and state my displeasure. I don't expect them to do anything, but I'll bitch at them regardless. I just needed to get replacements ASAP, as even though I've been running this way a while and everything has been fine, now that I found the problem, I'm super paranoid that something bad will happen.

Do we have any other good options for spacers besides H&R and Eibach (which share the same design)?

:icon14: i would be very concerned if im running hub-centric wheels (ie: stock wheels)...

if im running aftermarket wheels that are lug-centric, i would careless.

Kic's. ive been using them for 5-6yrs now on my various cars, never had an issue.

the Eibach's ive used on my Z's fronts are 20mm (built-in stud type) and no issue so far. i agree with ChrisSlicks that it probably has to do with the thickness and reinforcement (or lack of) on the 15mm.

oh boy... just installed H&R drs spacers yesterday.... day late and a dollar short! Wish me luck! lol

Interesting, for the Project Kic ones, the hubcentric ring is optional (sold seperately), and removable. Well, if these don't work out, I'll give those a try.

Meh, well they withstood an HPDE event, and probably 8-10k street miles.

yah, most people run lug-centric wheels so you dont necessarily need the rings. but for our hub-centric wheels the ring is required.

ichiba's are the same way and their rings are actually the same dimension as the Kics. but the biggest difference between ichiba's and kics was that ichiba's overall craftsmanship is low and there's too much play in the ring making them near useless for hubcentric wheels... that's probably why a lot of folks were getting vibrations using ichiba v2 type on the fronts. their tolerance is too wide making it a hit or miss.

im currently using (i should say testing) 20mm ichiba's on the rear of my G35C running lug-centric aftermarket wheels with no issue for the last 2k miles. i would not use them for the Z's front using stock wheels.

Stupid spacers! :(

I definitely like the idea of the ring just being removable, as long as it doesn't cause vibrations.

i think in HR's case they make their spacers with tight tolerances and with the wheel and spacer metals flexing at a different rate it's bound to snap. perhaps unless you're using heavy materials (something stronger than the wheel's metal) you need some level of 'give' and that's achieved with different materials such as the rings Kics use.

again, im no metal expert and im sure there's a better explanation which HR should provide after doing an full analysis on your failed spacer.

To be fair to HR, it does say via a sticker on the spacer packaging that the warranty is voided if they are installed.

So they are a decorative piece for your garage? :icon17: that is the stupidest warranty of all time.

Actually what it says is that they cannot be returned if they've been installed. I don't think they mention anything about a warranty to begin with. :ughdance:

VERY few auto parts can be returned after installation. its life. its like that because 99% of the time, a failed auto part is caused by installation or misuse/abuse.

there is no expressed warrenty because most people will try and screw them over. however, just because there is no guarentee on the part, doesnt mean they wont replace it for you or help you.

have you actually contacted H&R regarding this? since you are bashing them for this and all, without even knowing why it failed and it could very well be your own fault... perhaps you should ask them for their take on it? it seems logical.

you gotta think man, that is an aluminum part, and its inside diameter must be what it is, and its outside diameter must be what it is. those dimensions cannot change or it will not fit the car/wheel. so you can call it a design error all you want, but the design is the only way it can be. therefore, the only way to make it stronger would be to use a stronger material, such as STEEL, which is what your OEM hub is made of.

I wouldnt be surprised at all if H&R says that these spacers are not meant for use with hubcentric wheels due to the loads it will transfer to that thin *** aluminum lip. what do you expect? i can only assume that the removable KICS ones are removeable because they are steel inserts? i dont know.

That sux...mine held up on both 350z's for well over 20k miles and no issues. Have about 10k miles on both 370Z's and no issues. Hopefully the mfg will want to inspect the spacer for the cause of failure.

Did the front wheel ever take an impact that would cause it to weaken and eventually break? Is tracking the car gonna gonna play a role in the failure? Josh@Stilen comes thru again! It's not often a vendor steps up to plate to take care of a member when the mfg will not. g\l on finding the root cause. Does aluminum match up well with steel?