Grinding off tabs on hubs

I just paid a lot to get my navi 18's drilled to fit the mazda pattern, i see constant debate on grinding off tabs to make them fit, but i also see lots of people saying dont bother its not safe, has anyone had success? has anyone had problems? let me know

when they talk about the tabs is most the time for chevy wheels. cause the lug pattern is the same just the center hole is to small but the Navi wheels don't even have the same lug pattern. If you had the Navi wheels re drilled then you should be safe.

I wouldn't grind down the tabs. I have seen some people say that they didn't have any probs after doing it, but then I have seen some people say their truck vibrated after doing it. I haven't heard of anyone having any problems with boring out the centers instead

on my first mazda i grinded them down to put a set of escalade wheels on, never had a problem, no vibrating, nothing, and daily drove it, on my second mazda i bought a set already bored out

I have my tabs grinded for my chev wheels and I have no problems at all. The truck was aligned after I put the spindles and wheels on and it drives straight with no vibrations. As far as I can see, the tabs are only there to center the wheel and nothing else. But they are useless because the lugs do that.

I have 4 runner rims on my truck for who knows how ling..over 7 years and the center whole is way bigger then the tabs. from what i understand as long as you have tapered lugnuts you wont have any problems becuase they will center the wheel.

Exactly, if you have the right lug nuts it will center holes so the rim will alwyas go on properly, ya ever see a car with those tabs? no they dont vibe

You SHOULD have the wheels bored out to match the tabs on the hubs...they are hubcentris tabs and are there to center the wheels when you put them on....The lugs are tapered and will center the wheels if torques right, but you should have the wheels bored out. And the weight of the vehicle is supported by the friction of the wheel on the hub, which is created by the lugs, but the lugs do not hold the weight of the vehicle directly...


GET THE WHEELS BORED.

mazda's are hub centric wheels which means that the wheel is centered by the hub. chevy on the other hand is a lug centric wheel (centered by the lugs) so if you use a chevy style lugnut in the mazda thread pattern then it is just like they are bolted to the chevy hub. the z71's that are on my truck have been on there for the last 5 years last 2 owners and myself never hand a problem with the tabs ground down.

i knew when i saw the title that this was gonna cause a good debate.

yep the mazda are hub centric, and yep you can buy buldge style lug nuts to help center the wheel, but if you will notice, when you buy a wheel that is lug centeric, if it is a reputable dealer, they will provide you with a centric ring to help keep the wheel in it's proper position along with a cone/buldge type lug nut set, this serves the same purpose as the tabs on the mazda.....best bet is if you can't buy the wheels with the correct centerbore, to have them machined if they were too small, and if they are larger than the mazda's tabs (i think they are 108mm) then buy centric rings and some cone/buldge style lug nuts that correctly match the angle of the surface that they will be in contact with (some wheels are made for cone style l/n's, some for buldge, and some for flat), this will ensure that the wheel is in proper position and will not cause any vibration or extra stress on the lugs or wheel, which could, if not mounted properly break and cause damage to the wheel or vehicle, or even worse cause you to have a wreck and trash your ride....