Rims and Tires Dilemma

[Ramzi]

Now before you all start bashing me how I should replace my rims and get the originals plz give me the chance to say that I think the originals look old in terms of style IMO and I'm in love with these rims and my friends agree and gf too:ohthedrama:

This is a low res pic of the rims; I will post full high res photos for the whole car soon I promise as I'm still doing some bodywork detailing etc.

The Problem:

The back tires are 225/40R18 same as the fronts and the previous owner told me that they do rub the back fenders if u have 2 people in the back especially. I've had the car for 10 days and had no rubbing but then again I had no people in the back seat yet. The previous owner also informed me that the problem might be because the back shocks have gone soft (issue confirmed by my mechanic) so the whole car is bouncing a lot on every bump causing the rubbing.

The deal is, the 225 in the back r just too small and the car simply cannot be controlled with such a setup and i definitely need to get wider tires in the back to plant the power down which i am unable to do now first 2 gears, I believe the stock E36 M3 comes with 245s in the back but I'm not sure if these rims can take 245s without any rubbing. I'm gona change the shocks and install Koni adjustables soon and I plan also to fix the inside of the back fenders which are now slightly dented from the inside cos of previous rubbing, but how can I know if this will solve the issue and I can drive normally wit 245s in the back? I'm willing to do anything needed to keep my current rims at this point cos I'm failing to like anything else. Even the sexy E46 M3 rims dont look that wow on an E36, again IMHO.

[Bruno]

the e46 m3 rims are only good on the e46 m3 period... your rims (i'll try to be gentle) are even fake-ier than the ones sold in sharjah. no offence but they look sooooo wrong.


ramzi don't buy any rims... i have a set in lebanon. pm your beirut cel number.

[M_Powerholic]

Nothing more than what Bruno said ! :)

[Haissam]

AFAIK the E36 M3 came with 235 width on the rear..

the width is not the only factor in your case, you can easily fit 245 or maybe more if you have the right offset rims..

P.S. i also don't like ur current rims & trust me a good clean set of OEMs is the way to go! if not, try to sort out some BBS or the cheaper version ASA ;)

[Wazif]

+1 to bruno and hash...

thats the way to go Ramzi...

[Ramzi]

Okay...........:hide2:

I'm willing to pay anything for a good set of original rims but my issue is that I'm very picky wit rims and E36 OEM rims dont do it for me..Sorry they look from the 80s no offense to anyone who has them.

How can I know about my rims' offset and know whats the width I can fit?

Offtopic:Thanks for the very generous offer and phone call bruno, I'll ask around for an engine for you this week.

[Haissam]

E36 M3 owners can help (pathfinder, lutfi, SimonX.....)

someone called me?

yalla here we go

Wheel/Tire fitments for the E36 M3

After a great deal of trial and error, I have a few empirical findings on the fitment of aftermarket wheels and tires on the E36 M3. I would appreciate any other findings, or ideas.

The stock wheels on the 94 and 95 M3's are 17 x 7.5, with a 41mm offset (ET). They are fine for a 235/40, but probably too narrow for anything much bigger. A 245/40 will fit, but an 8 or 8.5" rim would be better. 17x7.5 works ok with 235/45 R1's, but both the R1's and the stock tires would fit even better on an 8 or 8.5" rim. My conclusion is that one should always use at least an 8" wide rim, unless stock rules require the use of the OE 7.5" rims.

A 17 x 8 rim, with a 38mm offset fits perfectly. It gives a slightly wider stance, and more clearance for the spring perch in the front, especially important if you are using a lot of negative camber. I have adjustable spring perches on my H&R's, which are much smaller in diameter than the stock perches, yet they still rub when I crank in 3 degrees or more negative camber, *and* lower the car to near the lowest setting.

A 17 x 9 rim with a 46mm ET will work on the rear, but requires a fender lip roll. Now that I have done it, it is no big deal; it can be done by any competent body shop for $100 to $150. I mounted a 17 x 9 rim with a 255/40/17 Pirelli P-Zero, and the rear fit perfectly. In the front, it rubbed on the struts, so I installed an H&R hubcentric spacer, 15mm per side, and the fit was perfect. One more perameter....my car has an H&R coilover suspension on it, which takes the rear .75 to 1" lower than stock, and the front was set with the adjustable spring perch set at about 1/2" below the top, which would mean the car was about 1 to 1.25" lower than stock. I am not sure what affect lowering the spring perch would have on fit.

A quick note on spacers (this is a whole other topic): H&R has a vast assortment of sizes, ranging from 10mm per side, to 25mm or more per side. The really big spacers require their own studs. The others must be ordered with longer studs, that go thru the spacer and into the original wholes in the hub. The H&R's are *hubcentric*, which is absolutely necessary for vibration and safety. I think that shaving the wheel hubs for fit is okay for small clearance problems, but if one needs to bring the wheel in a *lot* to clear the fender well (say, the wheel has a 32mm ET, and needs to come in a half inch or more to clear), I think that it is better to get a wheel with more offset, say a 41mm, so that the fender clears, and then use spacers on the front if spring perch clearance is a problem. Also, shaving the hubs on the rear, and not the front, leaves you with "front and rear" wheels that can't be rotated or interchanged.

An 18 x 8.5 rim with a 38mm offset will work with 225/40/18 P-Zeros, but does require the rear fender lip roll. I also believe that a 235/35/18 would work, but they were not yet available when I bought mine. I have BBS RS II's. They are absolutely beautiful, and make the car look ultra aggressive.

I do not think that either the 17" or the 18" rims will work in any width unless the offset is *at least* 38mm.

Conclusion: If you want to go to the biggest rim possible, I believe that the 17 x 9 with a 46mm offset is the ticket, as long as you use 15 mm hubcentric spacers in the front. The problem is a big one: 46mm ET would not give you as much inside clearance as you might need if you go to AP brakes, which is my next step.

I am set on the BBS RC for a race wheel. It is ultra light, very attractive, easy to maintain, and very strong. It is a one piece wheel. Unfortunately, the wheel is only available in one 17" size that will work on the E36 M3: 17 x 8. (they don't make 18" R1's), with a 38 ET. The 17 x 8 will be perfect for the 235/45's , but a little narrow for the 255/40's, which is the size that I would really like to run this year. I will try out the wheel with a pair of 255/40/17's that Bob Tunnell was kind enough to ship me, and let you know how it goes. Incidentally, the RC's have been in the news for months, but have not been available until very recently. The finish was to be a polished alloy, with clearcoat, but there were problems. They have, instead, opted to powdercoat the polished wheels in a champagne color, and then clearcoat. They call them "Motorsport" wheels.

source: http://www.unofficialbmw.com/e36/tir...eel_tires.html

[Ramzi]

Very interesting and useful....Thanks pathfinder

[Nabil]

OEM or BBS...close thread

OEM or BBS...close thread

+3

[M_Powerholic]

+4

[springz]

+1000 OEM And BBS are the best indeed for the E36

BBS


OEM