How wide can I go (Rims)

[330itis 15]

Im looking for new rims at the moment and I was just wondering how wide I can go with the rims.

Im looking at 19s at the moment and im not sure if 19x9.5 will fit on the back. I have 17x8.5s on at the moment and there is only about 5mm gap between the tyre and the guard (the tyres 235x45x17)

Would it be possible to fit the 19x9.5 with 225x35x19 tyres, and rolling the guards? (doesnt look like guard rolling will do much)

or even with a 215 tyre or a 30 profile tyre??

Also my car is lowered.

Thanks!

[330itis 15]

ah oops I meant 235x40x17 in the back... I have 215x45 on the front so I got confused.

I want to go with a skinny tyre because I quite like that drifter look where they strech the tyres out to pop onto the beads. quite a lot of my mates have this on their japanese rice boxes. looks quite good as it brings the profile of the tyre down and it looks like there are no tyres on the car.

If I go with a 225 I wont be decreasing the amount of tyre in contact with the road because the car originaly had 205 tyres. but you do have a point.

Just wondering how much I will gain by rolling the guards?

Im not woried about going fast as I dont hav the need for speed.. I like to go slow (but not too slow) hehehe

Defienetly appreciate the words of wisdom 3pedals thanks

But so you reckon just go for a 19x8.5 rim??

Who has put really big wheels on their car before? how big and how was it done?

[318isCoupe 0]

Almost 100% sure you wouldn't fit a 19x9.5" wheel on unless you wanted to spend crazy money, and even then.. you couldn't get it to handle very succesfully.

I have an 18x8.5" wheel and I definately wouldn't want to go any bigger without endangering my front guards and such.. and they've got tyres stretched on also..

[330itis 15]

haha sweet as thanks guys

well the wheels I have in mind are staggered. 19 X 8.5" front & 19 X 9.5" rear

In my judgement the car will still roll around on all 4's so that means it should function as a normal car. The handling should be sweet because I dont ever make use of the limits of the handling on my lil 318IS.

hmm.. how do I add pics on here?

[330itis 15]

hehe oki doki

Edited January 20, 2007 by grinding low bimmer

[rolls_on_19 0]

hey dude. I've got 235/35/19's on my 318is and they fit no problems.

It's also lowered on a/c schnitzer springs but i had to roll the guards with a baseball bat.

It's easy enough to do yourself. Just heat your guards with a heat gun and the paint shouldn't crack

I have problems with tire rub on the inside of the front guards but only in the last 10 degrees of steering before full lock.

Rear end has no problems with any clearance whatsoever.

Only problem was when i fitted 20mm spacers. Rear end would guard rub when compressed to bump stops and the front needed some serious guard rolling,

which was done with a pair of soft jaw pliers. I don't suggest it be done that way lol.

Handling is fantastic. Better than standard.

Acceleration is poor as expected but fuel economy is a lot better when cruising.

Camber wear is shocking. Getting front camber plates and crash bolts in the rear to try fix this.

Or may end up just ditching the bling for something a lot sportier

Hope this helps you a bit

[yalden 0]

For a start you have the wrong size tyre currently. Should be 245/40-17 for correct gearing and fitting to 8.5 inch rim

235 was spec'd for 7.5 rim

Pah! I have 205/40/17's on my 8.5's and 225/35/17's on my 9.5's... stretching your tyres will give you much more ability to get your car low on wide wheels, although it's an aquired taste and I'm not sure if the 'euro' style has taken residence over there!?

[kerrynzl 3]

Pah! I have 205/40/17's on my 8.5's and 225/35/17's on my 9.5's... stretching your tyres will give you much more ability to get your car low on wide wheels, although it's an aquired taste and I'm not sure if the 'euro' style has taken residence over there!?

The Mexicans have been doing that for years.

Stretching some skinny crossply's over a set of 'Tru-Spokes' on their low riders!

[330itis 15]

Shot thanks guys!

Rolls on 19s, How wide are your actual rims? and are your tyres 235s on the front aswell? you reckon 215s will rub as much? Does the big rims affect the acceleration that much?

some good info. this is what I wanted to hear.

Thanks!

[318isCoupe 0]

Pah! I have 205/40/17's on my 8.5's and 225/35/17's on my 9.5's... stretching your tyres will give you much more ability to get your car low on wide wheels, although it's an aquired taste and I'm not sure if the 'euro' style has taken residence over there!?

The Mexicans have been doing that for years.

Stretching some skinny crossply's over a set of 'Tru-Spokes' on their low riders!

Badass, mean handling advantages.

[rolls_on_19 0]

Shot thanks guys!

Rolls on 19s, How wide are your actual rims? and are your tyres 235s on the front aswell? you reckon 215s will rub as much? Does the big rims affect the acceleration that much?

some good info. this is what I wanted to hear.

Thanks!

My actual rims are 235 wide. So that's 7.5 inches or so??

Front and rear are 235 wide tires. I think that reccessed tread you get on the lip if you stretch a 215 wide tire onto a 235 wide rim would give enough clearance to stop rubbing.

I also found that simply cutting out sections of that plastic inside guard stopped some of the audible rubbing but it still chassis rubs on a small section. Not sure it's really favourable or legit.

The size increase didn't affect acceleration a dramatic amount. Cars that i used to keep up with at traffic light drags are still right there beside me.

If you live in chch i can let you try my rims on for size. Don't think you do though.

[rolls_on_19 0]

also if you look at the pics of my ride you can see roughly how close the outside of the guards are. This is with it lowered too

http://www.bimmersport.co.nz/forums/index.php?showtopic=5502