Just purchased 02 S8 -what's with the wheel spacers?
 

Hi, just purchased an 02 S8 and am trying to get it sorted out.
Here's what I have:
1. A horrible juddering when braking (worse when turning)
2. A speed related bumping/uneveness from the front right, but NO bearing play in the wheel or split CV boot. Tires look new.
3. No heat
And I notice that there are approx 12mm H&H wheel spacers all round. I assume that wasn't standard, right?
Looking at the front suspension, everything looks remarkably clean and corrosion free.

Mark

nice, welcome to the club. I just bought a '01 S8 which had most of the same issues =)

My juddering was due to 2 things, one was a tire that was not balanced at all and the other was an upper control arm bushing that had completely torn itself apart. Do you have any squeaking? That's a tell-tale sign of bushing issues. FWIW this also caused a speed-related shake at certain speeds from the wheel vibrating back and forth


Mine came with aftermarket rims so I can't say for sure, but I don't think the wheel spacers are OEM



And yeah, it's all aluminum so it holds up well to corrosion. Have fun with the pinch bolt for the upper control arms though, it took me about 6 hours to get it out (I ended up using a drill press)

No. wheel spacers are not OEM to any car I've ever heard of...definitely not yours.

What kind of wheels are on it? OEM? Not sure? ...post pics.

I would start buy removing the wheel spacers and test driving...some wheel spacers (many badly and imprecisely made) can cause such problems.

Edit - misunderstood what I read

Pinch bolt and juddering when braking
 

Last night I began installing new rotors and pads. The spacers had a lot of anti-seize goo all around the hub so I'm not sure how accurate the fit was. Unfortunately I forgot to take a good look at the wheel to check for damage. It's the 6 spoke original, I think.
I did notice the rear upper control arm joint was split where it joins the pinch bolt, but I find it hard to beleive that, that could cause the juddering or rotational bumpiness. I started on the pinch bolt but I'm a bit scared. I don't want to shear the bolt head off. I doused it in PB blaster and maybe I'll use some heat on it tonight. If anyone has some good removal tips I'd like to hear them. On an A4, I drilled thru the bolt lengthwise but ruined the whole arm.
The strange thing, is that the bolt and housing looks so clean and uncorroded.

If Pblaster can't do it, you'll probably need a plasma torch to cut it away.
(Kidding. Maybe.)

I think Loctite makes a freeze spray in a can, the product seems to come and go, but if you pack the parts in a slush of smashed dry ice and alcohol, wrapped in some rag to keep it together, you can usually cold-soak parts to get them unstuck. With no danger of detempering them.

Apply the slush, pack it around, give if ten minutes to bring the temperature ofd the metal down. Then heat it, or let it come back to room temp, and repeat 3x. I've never seen two stuck metal parts resist that.

Usual cautions: Dry ice can give you instant frostbite on the skin. Alcohol loves to burn with invisible flames. So, good ventilation and careful handling are needed but nothing exotic. If you have a spare CO2 extinguisher...it may cost $30 to refill but that also can "ice" down parts very rapidly. Stick the horn over them, squeeze until you see frost.

But with PB and a long handled tool...that's usually all you need.

Dry ice? I never heard of that technique.
I only had about 10 mins last night. I hit it one end with my air hammer and then tried the impact wrench on the other. Nothing moved at all. I did see 2 techniques on line:
1. They were using a $600 tool to remove one from a Passat. Looked easy.
2. With the suspension out on the bench. Simultaneously one mechanic attacked the bolt head with the impact wrench from one end while the second one smacked an air hammer punch into the other.

Yes, dry ice. It is "the same" as using a torch, you are changing the size of the two metal parts by heating or cooling them. On some aircraft, a similar technique is used to join pipe fittings, by contracting one side (with nitrogen) and then slipping it into the other. As it comes back to room temperature, the joint seizes up solid.

Cans of propane, etc. are very shelf-stable. Sometime explosive, sometimes fires start, but mainly stable, so that's pretty common. Dry ice is sold in southern supermarkets to keep coolers cold and in case a fridge fails, harder to find in the north although ice cream stores usually know where to get it. And since it is "perishable..." not so easy to find at the hardware store.(G)

Liquid nitrogen also works, and that's actually common in dermatologist's offices (they spot-freeze skin growths with it, instead of burning them off) and telephone and cable companies (they pressurize longlines with it to keep moisture out) but in liquid form, that can make metals (and fingers) cold enough to shatter. So, that's typically too dangerous to work with.

Totally off topic, but my 1984 928S has factory 22mm rear spacers. They are the only ones I have ever seen on a production car.

Interesting...I had an '84 928S, but already had aftermarket wheels when I bought it, so no spacers.