Saturday, April 16, 2011

There are a few options for the Audi A4 and one of the most widely used come from

H and R. They are lightweight aluminum and very good quality. Each set comes with two spacers, so you will need two sets. On the 2011 Audi A4 with the Sport Package, the factory 18” wheels are inset 14mm in the front from the fender edge and the back wheels are 21mm. I decided the best spacers to go with would be 15mm front and 20mm back. Your car may differ so either see what others have done or measure yourself.

You also need new wheel bolts as the factory ones will not be long enough. DO NOT use the factory bolts.

All four spacers, one per wheel. They look identical from the top so pay extra attention when installing them to put the correct ones on each wheel.

From the side, you can see the rear spacers are considerably thicker than the front. Most cars, especially FWD cars, have the front wheels pushed out a bit further than the back. Going with slightly thicker spacers on the back overcomes that which gives a sportier look.

Stock wheel lug nuts vs new front and rear bolt. The stock 2011 Audi A4 bolts are 27mm in length. Depending on the spacer size you go with, add the thickness of the spacer to the bolt length and that is your new size. Audi uses ball-seat type bolts as you can see here, make sure you get the correct ones. Many wheel shops can source these for you.

You can see the length of the bolt that will screw into the hub once the wheel is off. My new bolt is 1-2mm longer but that is fine in this case, there is a little +/- room to play with but not much, be careful here.

Stock wheel with no spacer, the wheel bolts directly to the hub.

Start by removing the stock wheel bolts. If you have plastic covers on each bolt, use the Audi removal key, it makes life a whole lot easier than trying to use a need-nose plier or other tool and does not damage the plastic caps.

Once the wheel is off, clean off the hub of any dirt and/or rust. You want the surface clean, free of any debris and flat.

Test fit the spacer making sure if fits flat all the way around. Any imperfection could lead to vibrations at higher speeds.

Bolt the wheel back on using the new wheel bolts and you’re set. Make sure you tighten the bolts in a star pattern. Repeat for each wheel and when done, tighten the wheel bolts to 90 ft/lbs using a torque wrench.

Before and after with no spacers on the front and with 15mm front spacers and 20mm back spacers. The spacers give the car a sportier and aggressive stance with the 18 inch Sport wheels.