Words by Trevor Klassen
It has now been a year since I purchased my Toyota Tundra and I have finally burnt off the original rubber. Now is the time to go big. But how big can I go with the stock offset rims….? The answer is not big enough! If you are like me and would like to install larger tires but maintain the factory wheels, spacers may be the answer for you.
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Before
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After
Wheel spacers are not an item you want to cheap out on. Wheelspacers.ca uses nothing but the finest materials to manufacture their spacers and as such are machined from a solid block of Canadian aluminum, utilizing Raybestos and Dorman studs. No fillers, flakes or Chinesium. These are the best of the best!
Fitting the standard 35”x12.5x18 is just not feasible on the Tundra unless you do some major modifications, including cutting and relocating the front body mounts and removing a good amount of the fender liner. I already installed a 2”-1” Truxxx leveling kit (installation article in issue 21.5 of 4WD magazine) and now chose to go with the Firestone Destination MT-2 in a 295/70R18. These run at 34.3” tall and are 1.5” narrower than a standard 35” tire. Unfortunately, this size still creates a few issues and requires a couple small modifications in order to get them to fit.
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1.5” Wheelspacers.ca wheel spacers
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Start by blocking your tires, jack up the vehicle and place jack stands under the axles
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Remove the wheel you are working on and clean the rotor face and studs with a wire brush removing any corrosion and debris.
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Place the spacer onto the rotor face, apply blue thread locking compound and torque the spacer nuts to the factory specified torque. The easiest way to torque the spacer is to apply the brakes while tightening the nuts. (Do not use air tools! This will void your warranty)
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Move the front fender liners forward as far as they will go. These easily slide forward once you loosen off the bolt. You get close to 1” extra clearance.
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Warm up the fender liner with a heat gun and …
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Mold it forward using a softball to get a bit more clearance.
Now reinstall the wheel and torque to factory specs. Very important! Spacer lug nuts must be retorqued after 500 kms. Remove only one lug nut at a time. Re-apply blue thread locking compound and retorque to factory specification.
I couldn’t be happier with how these modifications turned out. The extra ground clearance gained by the larger tires is invaluable when driving off-road and the wheel spacers give the truck a much more aggressive stance while also providing the clearance required to avoid tire rub on the front sway bar.
Find wheel spacers for any application by visiting Wheelspacers.ca