I'm bringing Project JR up to Poly Performance this weekend to have the new suspension installed. Trouble is, all of my parts for the new 5x5.5 front axle haven't shown up so I'd got little, skinny stock tires on the front and nice 33x10.50s in the back. I had to make tracks and get this thing ready for transport - enter Spidertrax
This isn't the first time this '99 Cherokee has worn a pair of Spidertrax wheel spacers. Back in '03 when I first lifted it, I installed a set of 33x12.50R15 Mickey Thompson MTX tires on factory Wrangler rims. They rubbed the lower control arms badly, so I borrowed a pair of Spidertrax wheel spacers from Cappa to solve the problem. Now, I'm faced with trying to put 5x5.5-inch wheels on a 5x4.5-inch axle. Not to worry 'cause the Spidertrax wheel adapters, PN WHS-004 are just the ticket.
The wheel adapters are the same 1.25-inch thick, anodized 6061 T6 anodized aluminum pieces of art the company's standard spacers are, only they allow you to convert from YJ/TJ/XJ to JK, YJ/TJ/XJ to CJ, JK to YJ/TJ/XJ, or JK to CJ. Basically, they let you swap between 5x4.5, 5x5.5, and 5x5 patters either way up or down.
The machining tolerances are very good, so if you've got any rust scale you may need to tap the spacer over the center hub nub with the handle of a hammer or dead-blow. Once on, apply the supplied thread locker and torque the nuts to spec in a criss-cross pattern.
Here you go. You'll have to wait 'till the actual project installment issue in Jp magazine for the money shot showing the wheels/tires installed on the Jeep, but they look killer. While the rig was up in the air I also removed the factory Y-link suspension and reinstalled the Currie CorrectLync HD steering linkage I'd been running on this vehicle for the past 40K miles or so. Next time you see it the old, clunky 4-link front suspension should be gone for something a lot cleaner and quieter.