i just got a new set of tires at discount tire for my motegi rims, unfortunately the rotors in the rear are too thin. I just put these rotors on from autozone today.. is it possible that after market rotors are made thinner than oem? I am on my way home now to compare, but if they are the same thickness I'm not sure what to do. Basically the wheel barely doesn't fit flush with the rotor. If the tire guy didn't spin the wheel to show me i wouldn't have been able to tell.

 

that sounds like a problem with the rims.. If you turn the rim it kind of wobbles?

 

Yeah, I just got done measuring the rotors and they are exactly the same size (as I expected them to be). The front rims fit on just fine, just on the rear ones the circular metal thing around the nut is literally a couple hairs too far out and it's not letting the rim fit flush against the rotor.

I had these rims from my 1992 Maxima (which they fit perfectly), the guy at discount tire said I could just sand down the metal part that is protruding on the car and they should fit just fine. I have attached pictures, let me know what you guys think.

This is the part on that protrudes....


This is the spot on the rim that it hits

 

Would wheel spacers in the rear be a good solution to fix the problem?

 

Gap is about 1.5mm, so I'm guessing I would need a 2mm spacer if I can find something like that.

 

That looks like a new hub assembly........did your OEM rims fit? Are the hubs OEM? If the hub "pilot" is even only a thou oversize then that'll prevent the rim going on. The rotor appears to be seated mind you. Did anybody think to measure the OD the hub pilot of the fronts and the rears and compare them? A spacer is NOT acceptable to fix this problem. Machine the rim pilot bore a thou larger than the hub.

 

The reason the hub looks different is because they had to remove the dust cap that was on there originally for the rim to even come close (the hub is OEM). I just put the dust cap back on for the OEM rims (they fit just fine).

What is a hub pilot and OD?

Is the rim pilot the inner circle of the rim I was talking about in my picture?

 

Yeah......I didn't initially see the hub rust through the jackscrew holes. That center raised lip is part of the hub (the pilot). The rotor as you can see slides over the hub pilot and is centered by the hub pilot......not the studs, and the wheel rim center bore (the inner circle as you called it) also should engage the hub pilot. The clearance is minimal.......you don't want a lot of slop there.

 

Thanks for clearing up that terminology for me and also for your advice. I called my dad and he said he could sand/grind down the wheel rim center bore so it is 2mm deeper. Hopefully that will fix the problem. I'll update this post once it is done, probably won't be until Monday though.

 

Different rims or spacers are your only option. Pep Boys carries two different thickness spacers for around $7.99 a piece that would probably fix your issue easily.

 

I heard that those aren't hub centric spacers so they would make it hard to get the wheel balanced. Putting that aside, do you disagree with the grinding down of the rim so it fits properly?

 

Not at all but I would venture to say the best way to grind it down properly would be with a drill press and the proper bit...

Good luck...

 

Excellent, I think he does have a drill press. I'll ask him about it on Monday, thanks for your input

 

That seems to be the best idea

 

Well my original plan to have my dad grind down the rims actually got changed. I was talking to a friend at work and he suggested a local machine shop that he went to all the time for various jobs. So I brought my rims down and the guy did all 4 rims for $100. He shaved off about 3mm using a lathe and made sure not to affect the original hub diameter. He did this by using a lathe to cut below the part of the hub that was already deep enough, so if he went in a bit too far it wouldn't affect the mounting. Here is a picture to show his work, I added two arrows since it was hard to tell what you are looking for.
EDIT: Actually I just had a second look at this, the part where he used the lathe on is above the light ring my arrows are pointing at.


Here are a bunch of random pictures of my car with the new rims mounted; some are hard to see as I was taking these at night with my phone but you get the idea