E36 Wheels - BMW Forum

morph · 03-23-2005, 05:49 AM

Hey there. It's been a lllooonnnggg time since i posted on this forum, but i have a favor to ask of some of you wonderful E36 owners.

I am maybe buying some 17" BMW wheels from a friend of mine who has an E46 330. Here's the deal:

Sometimes people put wheels on their bimmer and make it look ghetto. I don't want to do that. If you can do this for me, those who have an E36 bimmer with 17 inch wheels, will you take a nice side pic of the car and post it so i can see what it looks like? Also, those with 18" i would love to see the same thing. Also, will you include any information about spring changes etc?

Has anyone put 17" on and dropped their car? The problem i have with that is that while you decrease the gap on the top of the wheel well (say to 1") but it stays 2.5" on the side, so it looks awkward. Does that make sense? Thanks in advance.

jllphan · 03-23-2005, 08:01 AM

{CLICK HERE}

IMHO, 17's are the best combo for the e36, as you have to do a few mods to prevent 18's from rubbing during aggressive driving or with passengers.

17" ///Motorsport LTW's

CiscoKid · 03-23-2005, 09:17 AM

17s came stick with the e36 ///m's

tomctx · 03-23-2005, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by CiscoKid@Mar 23 2005, 11:17 AM
17s came stick with the e36 ///m's

[snapback]317004[/snapback]

They actually came with 15's, 16's or 17's depending on what year, model or option. The 17's do look the best IMO. and yes, I understand what you are saying. The top of the wheel well drops with lowering, but it's still wider on either side of the wheel. To me, lowering kits look better on the darker (black) cars.

BTW, in case you didn't know, discounttire.com has a program that lets you see the wheels on your car. tirerack.com has one also, but it's smaller and a little less detail IMO.

-pimpin328is- · 03-23-2005, 01:23 PM

i haven't had any problems with rubbing with my 18's i think they look great, plus getting 18's in a way eliminates of the need to lower your car.

see sig for side view

morph · 03-23-2005, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by -pimpin328is-@Mar 23 2005, 01:23 PM
i haven't had any problems with rubbing with my 18's i think they look great, plus getting 18's in a way eliminates of the need to lower your car.

see sig for side view

[snapback]317143[/snapback]

But the wheel edge to wheel edge diameter still stays the same, so you still get that 'gap' right?

Those of you who dropped yours, how much did you do it?

What products do you all use to keep the wheel wells dark? Currently, i've been naughty and been using a 'tire wetter.' It works wonders, but probably not the best to use long term.

Thanks for the discount tire link.

Cruzin 323is · 03-23-2005, 05:54 PM

my ride... 17" m3 replicas

Gomerino · 03-23-2005, 11:24 PM

OEM 17"s [attachmentid=20213]

-pimpin328is- · 03-24-2005, 11:50 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by morph@Mar 23 2005, 02:57 PM

But the wheel edge to wheel edge diameter still stays the same, so you still get that 'gap' right?

[snapback]317177[/snapback]

how would the diameter stay the same

used to me a e36 on 18's has a smaller gap then a e36 on 17's

[attachmentid=20083]

93 325i · 03-24-2005, 12:12 PM

In theory the diameter from the edge of tires should be around the same for 18's and 17's. The bigger the rim the lower the profile tire you use. So depending on what size tires you compare then on 18's you still may have a "gap". But you can get away with using slightly larger tires on 18's to fill the gap.

morph · 03-24-2005, 03:39 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by -pimpin328is-+Mar 24 2005, 11:50 AM--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(-pimpin328is- @ Mar 24 2005, 11:50 AM)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteBegin-morph@Mar 23 2005, 02:57 PM

But the wheel edge to wheel edge diameter still stays the same, so you still get that 'gap' right?

[snapback]317177[/snapback]

how would the diameter stay the same

used to me a e36 on 18's has a smaller gap then a e36 on 17's

[attachmentid=20083]

[snapback]317690[/snapback]

[/b][/quote]

Ohhkay....so is anyone using plus-sized tires? Also, i took a tape measure to my friends E46 w/ 18's and his tire edge to tire edge was 24.5" whereas my on the E36 was 24". So there is a slight difference, but nothing drastic.

But it seems like there is major difference in that wheel well in the E36 and E46. Do we know if the 328 sits up a little higher?

Whose familiar with springs? Can you get springs to go down .5 to 1 inches versus the standard 1.5?

tomctx · 03-24-2005, 03:48 PM

Whose familiar with springs? Can you get springs to go down .5 to 1 inches versus the standard 1.5?

[snapback]317825[/snapback]

[/quote]

B&G make a set that lowers 1.2" in front and 1" in back. that's as close to 1" as I can find.

Cruzin 323is · 03-24-2005, 03:52 PM

get coilover springs!

fredo328 · 03-24-2005, 07:03 PM

I wish I got 17s, but I found these 16s brand new with brand new tires for $400, couldnt pass that up especially since I was really sick of the stock 15s I had when I got her.

morph · 03-25-2005, 05:31 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by fredo328@Mar 24 2005, 07:03 PM
I wish I got 17s, but I found these 16s brand new with brand new tires for $400, couldnt pass that up especially since I was really sick of the stock 15s I had when I got her.

[snapback]317960[/snapback]

But your 16's don't look that bad. A major improvement from the 15's...that's for sure. (Maybe you can sell yours for more)