17" Steel Spare Wheel Replacement

[LeeMajors]

Looking to replace a spare wheel that went missing on my wife's 2007 after a workday tire rotation last year at Firestone (don't get me started). It's got the 17" alloy rims.

I found a steelie replacement for a 2007 FJ Cruiser with the same bolt pattern but apparently the offset is different?

Will that have any deleterious effect using it purely as a spare? I imagine it . may effect balancing, but I'm not looking to keep it in rotation or anything - just a full-size spare.

 

[radlynx]

i'm more interested what happened with the lost wheel. lol!

Looking to replace a spare wheel that went missing on my wife's 2007 after a workday tire rotation last year at Firestone (don't get me started). It's got the 17" alloy rims.

I found a steelie replacement for a 2007 FJ Cruiser with the same bolt pattern but apparently the offset is different?

Will that have any deleterious effect using it purely as a spare? I imagine it . may effect balancing, but I'm not looking to keep it in rotation or anything - just a full-size spare.

 

[LeeMajors]

i'm more interested what happened with the lost wheel. lol!

Actually, now that I'm thinking about it, it wasn't a rotation--she took it over to Firestone for a flat repair while I was at work. Then next time I did an oil change and rotation a couple months later (I'm not under the truck every day) it was missing. They feigned ignorance and basically told me to go **** myself when I pressed them and I had no proof because it was months later.

 

[swampdodo]

Someone with more knowledge/experience can chime in here, but from what info I see...the 4th gen 17in alloy wheels had a 30mm offset.

The FJ 17in steel wheel has a 15mm offset (same as 5th gen). This means that the wheel 'sits' out further from the hub...they will stick out less than an inch more. It is like having 15mm wheel spacers.

BUT, are you going to carry a spare set of lugs nuts as well...because the lug nuts used on the alloy wheels are completely different than the lug nuts used on steel wheels. From my experience steel wheels usually use the conical or acorn style nuts.

But do your research...

 

[LeeMajors]

BUT, are you going to carry a spare set of lugs nuts as well...because the lug nuts used on the alloy wheels are completely different than the lug nuts used on steel wheels. From my experience steel wheels usually use the conical or acorn style nuts.

But do your research...

Good info on the offset stuff, but I'm not sure if this part makes sense to me.

My old 3rd gen had alloy 16" wheels with a steelie spare stock and I didn't need additional lug nuts to change into it--not sure why I'd need different lug nuts for a steel wheel.

 

[swampdodo]

It all depends on how the lug seat (holes) are made on the wheel. There are alloy wheels that have lugs nuts that will work on steel wheels.

Maybe the lug nuts that came with your alloy wheels will work with the steel wheel, not sure. But it is best to make sure.

I believe if your search around the FJ Cruiser forums, there might be some info there.

 

[swampdodo]

One thing you might do is call some wheel shops and see what they say...also, Google is your friend.

You can find info like this:

lug nut - Do I need steel lugnuts when using steel wheels - Motor Vehicle Maintenance & Repair Stack Exchange