H&R spacer install for X2 and Scoupe rear drums

[pucci]

the X2 & Scoupe have an extremely narrow rear track width in comparison to the front. this is fine for stock rims & tires, but when stepping up to wider meats you need more room on the inside of the tire.

with 205/50/15 tires on 7" wide +40mm rims I had mad rubbing against the shocks. I was so stoked to get my new stuff I threw them on as soon as I got the chance. before I even got halfway down the block I heard something out back & smelled burning rubber. pulled the rears off & saw this:

total buzzkill :disappointed:

spacers have a bad rep, but there's no way around it for these cars. the best possible spacers are the hubcentric type that bolt to your hubs and have new studs anchored into the spacer. however, these are only made for much wider sizes & usually only fit to disk brake hubs.

the next best thing is a hubcentric spacer with longer studs.

H&R makes these in a variety of sizes, I went with 15mm which equates to a hair over 1/2". this is enough to clear the shock but keeps the tire from sticking out of the body.* it also makes them about equal track width to the front.

H&R TRAK+ type DRS part #30646717:

listed for X3 & Sonata but fits all 4x114.3 lug Hyundai cars.

first step is to clean all the rusty crud off the mating face of your drums & particularly around the hub lip. the spacers are a tight precision fit and any junk will not allow them to seat properly. I used a small wire brush & drill & it worked great, took about 30 secs per drum:


make sure you leave the cap on to keep junk from getting into the bearings, and be smart & put some safety glasses on. if you can, hold your breath & don't inhale any of that crap. wipe it down with rubbing alcohol or spray with brake kleen.

pop the hub cover off & remove the 30mm nut that holds the hub together:


nows a good time to repack your bearings & check out the brake shoes.

[pucci]

once you pull the drum off, put the dust cap back on to keep any other stuff from getting in there while you change the studs. stuff a clean rag or paper towel into the inner bearing to also keep it from getting contaminated.

place the drum flat on a piece of wood & grab a hammer. it doesn't take much muscle, just 2 or 3 sharp blows dead on:


think of Karate Kid & Mr Miyagi sinking the nail in one shot & visualize the stud popping out. :chinese:

and there it is.

repeat for the remaining studs.

you can see how much bigger the new ones are compared to the stockers:


also note the ends of the original studs are not damaged at all & are still completely usable. save them so you can trade them for beers when your friends snap their old studs & need replacements.

[pucci]

time to put the new longer studs into the drum. I smeared a little anti-seize on the splines as a lubricant, & if I ever need to remove them in the future they should break free without much drama:


push it through the inside of the drum & tighten a lugnut down onto it to pull it up into place. be sure to use a washer between the lug & the drum face to prevent any gouging:


check on the inside of the drum to make sure it's fully seated:


repeat as necessary.

once all the new long studs are in test fit the spacer to make sure everything is kosher. here is the backside of the spacer & the drum all ready to go with the new studs:

mmmmm, precision machining.

drop it on:


if all is good you can reinstall the drum & bearings. make sure you get new hub nuts and torque to spec. I went with 130 ft lbs & then used a spring scale to make sure the preload was within range ( <4.8 lbs ).

all ready for wider rim & tire installation:




*even though my 205/50 15x7 +40 combo with the spacers fit within the rear fenders, the outermost of the tire tread made contact with the inside lip of the sheet metal and dug into the tires during suspension compression. this calls for "rolling" the fenders or other such action. I'll be addressing this with a die grinder to completely remove that inner lip & solve the problem - I'll post up after I get it done.







[Edited by pucci on Feb 26, 2006 7:34 PM]

[X3Jason]

umm... wheres the pix of the end result? wtf? :hmmm: :bandit:

[zeroindigo]

STICKY? nice... very useful...

[pucci]

[body]umm... wheres the pix of the end result? wtf?[/body]

umm... that last photo has a pic of the spacer & studs installed on the drum, and the drum installed onto the car. :hmmm:

re-read the title & purpose of the thread - it wasn't "hey look at me show off my awesome wider rims & tires".

[BOR]

Great job.
I am waiting for final photos and info about operation "fender lips cutted".
Please.

[pucci]

i ended up using a Dremel tool and going through a bunch of cut-off wheels to trim off the inside fender lip, then hit with a grinding stone to smooth the edges. it worked out well and the rear tires tuck under compression without contact. i'll post shots as soon as i can.

[BOR]

Ok man.
I am waiting patiently for photos.

[BOR]

Pucci, I am still waiting for photos
Greetings