tire and rims sizes????

adrean8j

adrean8j

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Hey fellas(and the few girls...uh ladies or whatever). I am not really a newbie but I figured this was the best place to post it since all the smart guys actually read these to help people out....so here goes:

I want to buy some new rims and tires for the spring/summer 2004. I have a 523i w/M sport package(pic below!!!). My current sizes are 235/40 ZR17 front and 255/40 ZR17 back. I want to get 19's (from what I have read and heard that is the biggest I should go without having to change shocks and springs and such). Ok now the question what are the exact sizes I should get rims and tires in???? I am more a words person than a numbers person....LOL
 
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epj3

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hey man i think 19's aren't going to look very good at all. They WILL slow your car down and probably make it feel kind of bad on the road. I'd say absolute largest you would want to go with are some nice and fat 18", like 18x9.5 in the rear and 18x9 in the front.
 
Kirby

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http://www.1010tires.com/TireSizeCalculator.asp

Put in your existing/factory wheel and tire info.

Then put in your planned size. It will tell you what will work as far as DIAMETER goes. You can also use the tread width info to figure out if you will have a rubbing problem, but you'll have to just measure, eyeball it and take your chance if you go tooooo wiiiiiddddddeeeee.
 
adrean8j

adrean8j

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Well I saw a Black drop-top E46 M3 yesterday with Chome double spoke 20's on it and it looked absolutely beautiful. I was kicking myself for not having my camera in the car....here is a pic of the rim he had:


If 20's look good on a M3 then why not 19's on a 5er? I already have a stiffer suspension than stock and the difference in speed in negotiable since this isnt really and AutoX car or drag racer(might get an E36 for that). With 9.5's would i need to roll the fenders? They are real sticklers at the TUV about things like that. Also what size tires would you suggest?
 
adrean8j

adrean8j

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Kirby said:
http://www.1010tires.com/TireSizeCalculator.asp

Put in your existing/factory wheel and tire info.

Then put in your planned size. It will tell you what will work as far as DIAMETER goes. You can also use the tread width info to figure out if you will have a rubbing problem, but you'll have to just measure, eyeball it and take your chance if you go tooooo wiiiiiddddddeeeee.
Click to expand...
Thanks Kirby. I posted at the same time as you so I didnt see your answer! [thumb]
 
tool fan

tool fan

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adrean, just my two cents bro' I would not go bigger than 18's without messing with your suspension, the ride quality diminishes by half with each size larger you go, hence the reason I stayed with 17x9 and 17x10.5 for my mustang, the ride would be unbearable with larger rims, yeah it would look cool, but not really worth the sacrifice in my opinion.
 
adrean8j

adrean8j

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Ok so I would mess up my suspension? There has to be a way to do something to put bigger rims on the car AND suspension mods to compensate to a certain extent right?

Also this is a 5er with 19" rims:

 
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hosagod

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Wow, you asked this 3 years ago...sorry for not helping! haha... [nono]

Since I've got upgraded wheels, let me chime in on behalf of my experience.

GO WITH 19"s ALWAYS! ... [:)]

I upgraded from the stock 18" wheels to my Breyton 19" wheels. The look is definitely nicer than that of the 18"s, 19"s fill the wheel well VERY nicely.

This is the reason most modded BMWs roll on 19"s or 20"s (yes 20"s, although I wouldn't even recommend that...)

The ride and suspension is not affected to any significant degree. My ride is exactly the same as it was with the 18"s, rough on some of the uneven roads and smooth like butter on every other road/highway. The vehicle also still handles and corners much the same, and is more stable due to the larger tires and wheels. Your acceleration is also not affected to any large degree, especially if you get very light 19" wheels. I have heavy Breytons and honestly, my car still speeds like it did with the 18"s. Ofcourse, when you look at the numbers, my car maybe now "0.3 sec" slower...who cares? Who notices? Seriously, the affect on acceleration and braking is VERY minute. People with supercharged M3s have 19" wheels, what would be the point? I hope my point has been made clear on that. [:)]

Ofcourse, going from 17" to 19" will definitely be a leap for you, and that decision is totally up to you. I am only trying to tell you that it won't be the worst decision ever if you do make that leap in size. On a side note, most people that upgrade to 18"s over the 19"s often regret not going with the 19"s.

You will not have to make any changes to your suspension/shocks, except most people do buy aftermarket springs to "drop" their car. Although, that is purely an aesthetic issue and is up to you. It is not necessary at all.

There is nothing more I can really say at this point, but if you have any questions I'll be glad to answer them. I am definitely happy with the decision I made, and most people are. Upgrading to larger wheels (specifically 19"s) is a very common mod in the BMW community, especially the one down here in Houston.

The decision is yours to make, 18" or 19"?

To help you along, here are the wheel/tire sizes you will need with whichever decision you should decide to make. [thumb]

You will NOT have to roll your fenders with these sizes!
 
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hosagod

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1999 523i/525i/540i w/ Sport package (same as M-sport package in Europe, I believe)...

For 18" wheels:

Front - 18x8.5 wheel = 245/40/18 tire
Rear - 18x9.5 wheel = 275/35/18 tire


For 19" wheels:

Front - 19x8.5 (or 19x9, depends on the design of the wheel) = 245/35/19 tire
Rear - 19x 9.5 (or 19x10) = 275/30/19 tire

Wheel offsets can be anywhere from roughly +16 to +21. These vary from wheel to wheel. An offset of +16 would be considered an "aggressive offset" because the tires/wheels will stick out and line up with your fenders. An offset near +21 will not stick out as much. The picture you posted above of that modded 5er definitely has wheels with an aggressive offset (+16). I hope you get what I mean. [|)]

Bolt pattern needs to be 5x120. All BMWs have this bolt pattern.

Start shopping! :)
 
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epj3

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hosagod said:
Wow, you asked this 3 years ago...sorry for not helping! haha... [nono]

Since I've got upgraded wheels, let me chime in on behalf of my experience.

GO WITH 19"s ALWAYS! ... [:)]

I upgraded from the stock 18" wheels to my Breyton 19" wheels. The look is definitely nicer than that of the 18"s, 19"s fill the wheel well VERY nicely.

This is the reason most modded BMWs roll on 19"s or 20"s (yes 20"s, although I wouldn't even recommend that...)

The ride and suspension is not affected to any significant degree. My ride is exactly the same as it was with the 18"s, rough on some of the uneven roads and smooth like butter on every other road/highway. The vehicle also still handles and corners much the same, and is more stable due to the larger tires and wheels. Your acceleration is also not affected to any large degree, especially if you get very light 19" wheels. I have heavy Breytons and honestly, my car still speeds like it did with the 18"s. Ofcourse, when you look at the numbers, my car maybe now "0.3 sec" slower...who cares? Who notices? Seriously, the affect on acceleration and braking is VERY minute. People with supercharged M3s have 19" wheels, what would be the point? I hope my point has been made clear on that. [:)]

Ofcourse, going from 17" to 19" will definitely be a leap for you, and that decision is totally up to you. I am only trying to tell you that it won't be the worst decision ever if you do make that leap in size. On a side note, most people that upgrade to 18"s over the 19"s often regret not going with the 19"s.

You will not have to make any changes to your suspension/shocks, except most people do buy aftermarket springs to "drop" their car. Although, that is purely an aesthetic issue and is up to you. It is not necessary at all.

There is nothing more I can really say at this point, but if you have any questions I'll be glad to answer them. I am definitely happy with the decision I made, and most people are. Upgrading to larger wheels (specifically 19"s) is a very common mod in the BMW community, especially the one down here in Houston.

The decision is yours to make, 18" or 19"?

To help you along, here are the wheel/tire sizes you will need with whichever decision you should decide to make. [thumb]

You will NOT have to roll your fenders with these sizes!
Click to expand...
i bet your car is more than .3 sec slower, and "light 19" wheels" dont exist.
 
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hosagod

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epj3 said:
i bet your car is more than .3 sec slower, and "light 19" wheels" dont exist.
Click to expand...
And you would know because?...oh that's right you don't.

Please don't start something you can't finish, you have a bad tendency to do so.

Adrean, it will be less than a second at best, 18" or 19" it is your choice.
 
adrean8j

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hosagod said:
And you would know because?...oh that's right you don't.

Please don't start something you can't finish, you have a bad tendency to do so.

Adrean, it will be less than a second at best, 18" or 19" it is your choice.
Click to expand...
Never thought I would be taking advice from a Longhorns fan [nutkick] , but I guess I can make an exception [:D]

Yeah to be honest I was really thinking about 18's in the past year until I saw Jurgens(the guy whose car is in the pic above). That made my mind up on the spot to try for 19's.....
Sorry Epj3 I just dont think the difference is going to be great enough to warrant me going with 18's over 19's....that is unless you factor in price! I am already riding on Bilstein Sport Stossdampfer and FK Automotive Sport Springs, all installed within the last year so I dont think the suspension will have that much trouble.....
 
H

hosagod

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Hey, hey, hey...Never thought I'd be advising an Aggie. [;)]

I'm glad you're going with 19s, you won't regret any second of it.

Keep us posted! [driving]
 
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