Is a Wheel Adapter a Wheel Spacer

Installing a wheel adapter or wheel spacer is a simple change that can have profound effects on the way your car looks and handles. This combination of ease and payoff makes wheel adapters and wheel spacers perfect for beginnings. Before you shell out tons of money on a car modification you should know if you enjoy it as a hobby, right? People just getting into after-market modification of their cars are often confused on the subject of wheel adapters and wheel spacers. Either of these car modifications make a great way to get into after-market mods, but they’re not quite the same.

What a wheel spacer does

A wheel spacer is a fairly simple thing. The metal disc attaches to your car’s axel and hubcap. This offsets the wheel placement on your car. The thicker the wheel spacer, the more profoundly different your tire placement will be.

There are many advantages of a wider wheel placement. The first is purely aesthetic. With the tires pushed further out, the car is closer in appearance to race cars or very high end sports cars. The outward tire placement makes the car actually look “faster” to the casual viewer. While you probably won’t be tagged for going over the speed limit just because you’ve moved your tires out a bit, it does help your car make a big statement when it’s parked next to the curb.

In addition to looking slick and smooth, wheel spacers will help your car handle a little better. A wider stance through the tires will improve your turning capacity and make the car more sensitive to steering. How pronounced these improvements will be depends on how wide the spacer is. It also depends on what you’re doing. When you’re driving city streets or commuting, you might find the improved handling no more than a mild perk. If you’re tricking out your off-road vehicle before a tournament or race, the difference will be a lot more noticeable—and useful.

A wheel adapter spaces and more

So, is a wheel adapter a wheel spacer? The short answer: yes, and more. All wheel adapters act as wheel spacers. They move the tire out to sit further away from the body. However, acting as a wheel spacer isn’t a wheel adapter’s primary purpose. Instead, the wheel adapter takes things a little further. Wheel adapters let you change what tires you can take.

What tires you can put on your car depend on a variety of factors. The most commonly important ones are the number and spacing of bolts along the hubcap. These bolts hold the tires on your car. If your car’s standard gear is built to hold tires with five bolts, you can’t use a wheel that requires six bolts. It wouldn’t be stable. It wouldn’t handle well, it would definitely wear out almost immediately, and it would be unsafe.

Likewise, if the spacing of the bolts doesn’t match between tire and car, there’s no way to use it. It literally couldn’t be put on the car. Wheel adapters are built to allow for all kinds of tires and hubcaps to work with all kinds of axels and cars.

Wheel adapters work as wheel spacers, but they do so much more. Wheel adapters allow you to fit your car with the tires and gear you want. Wheel spacers only improve the handling.

Four Reasons to Try Wheel Adapters

Why use wheel adapters? Simple. Wheel adapters offer a great level of flexibility to your vehicle without requiring a lot of risk. Whether  you want a specific result with your car’s handling or look, or you’re just looking to wet your beak in the world of aftermarket car customization, wheel adapters are the best place to start.

1. Customize your look

When it comes to customizing your look with wheel adapters, know that hubcaps matter. The first thing women notice about men are their shoes, and the same is true of your car. The first thing people will notice about your car are your wheels. Wheel adapters allow you to customize your hubcaps and the actual tire itself. It's impossible to customize your car with a hubcap that isn't compatible with your car’s manufacturer. Thankfully, wheel adapters can change the spacing and number of holes in your set up, allowing you to add whatever kind of tires you’d like.

2. Take it off road 

Changing your hubcaps and wheels doesn’t just change how your car looks. You can change how the vehicle handles as well. While anyone can benefit from smoother handling, many people who want to take their cars off road look to wheel adapters to smooth the ride. Why use wheel adapters to go off road? Your car will have a wider stance as the wheels are placed further out of the wheel well. This gives you finer control whether you’re on the street or tearing up an off road setting.

3. Start getting into car customization

Why use wheel adapters? They’re a quick, easy way to tell if car customization is really for you. The process of putting in and using wheel adapters is a good test to see if you really want to be the one doing the work on your car yourself. Buying and installing wheel adapters is a fairly easy step in car customization, but you have to get it exactly right. There’s a lot riding on a safely of wheel adapters on your vehicle. If you find the process of buying, installing, and testing wheel adapters doesn’t appeal to you, that’s fine. You didn’t find out that you don’t want to be your own customization mechanic after you sunk more time and money in.

4. They’re completely safe

Properly installed wheel adapters are completely safe. This is one of the most important reasons why you should use wheel adapters. Wheel adapters let you safely use your preferred hardware on your car. Regular maintenance and good installation allows you all the benefits of different hardware without a significant risk. That’s another great reason to try wheel adapters on your car.

Why use wheel adapters? If you’re looking for a new hobby in after market car customization, wheel adapters are the best place to start. It’s possible to install them yourself. They’re very safe when used properly. Whether you’re looking to change your car’s look or your car’s handling, you absolutely can get the performance that you want. These are some of the reasons to use wheel adapters.