Arch clearance advice...

JDGreaves67 · 10-23-2023, 01:43 AM

Hi, I hope everyone's well!

I'm just after some advice if possible from people who might be a bit more familiar with trying to fit large wheels to en E82.

I've recently picked up a E82 125i from an auction which was an absolute steal

... at least until going into limp mode on the way home after overheating... Anyway, turns out it was just a fuse missing from the signal wire to the fan relay so nice easy fix! (think someone had ripped a dashcam out and didn't put the original fuse back).

Since I've got it running without overheating I wanted to replace the style 256 alloys (with Landsail and "Fullrun's"

: ) for some nicer wheels and decent rubber!

So I've picked up some 400M's with Potenza S001's all round (225/45/18 fronts & 255/40/18 rears).

400M specs are:
Fronts: 8J ET34
Rears: 8.5J ET47

I was led to believe from some research that these would fit ok but they are a pretty aggressive offset when fit (I mean, they look great!) so I'm just getting a bit of scrubbing.

It's not undriveable but you do have to be careful with speedbumps etc.

The rears aren't so bad so I'm confident I can roll enough room in the rear arches to stop any scrubbing but the fronts are tight!

Again, I think I can probably massage the arch to get enough room but it's the bracket in there that fixes the bumper to the arch that seems to be in the way. I've trimmed it back as far as I dare but still not quite enough - wondering if anyone's had this problem before and how they got around it?

The obvious would be "Buy wheels that fit", but where's the fun in that?!

Thanks!

BimmerAg · 10-23-2023, 07:46 PM

One issue is your tires being too tall, standard tire size with 18" wheels should be 215/40/18 fronts and 245/35/18 rears. 225 front and 255 rears are fine but the aspect ratios (40 and 35 respectively) need to be maintained. If you're not willing to get new tires, then maybe something like Dinan camber plates would be a relatively easy way to get more clearance. They'll give you a bit more negative camber in the front to tuck the he top of the tires under the fender and they'll also lift the front slightly (~5mm) for more room.

JDGreaves67 · 10-24-2023, 01:45 AM

Thanks BimmerAg, very helpful! Been commuting for the last few days with no notable scrubbing but fairly sure that an unforeseen bump or pothole would lead to the front catching so definitely want to make sure I've got plenty of room. The tyres on there have 6-7mm each left so would prefer to keep them if at all possible but would definitely move down in tyre size when they're due to be replaced. Will have a look into camber plates as a do like a car with some front-end camber! Thanks again.

10-23-2023, 01:43 AM	#1
JDGreaves67 Registered 0 Rep 2 Posts Drives: BMW E82 125i Join Date: Oct 2023 Location: Greater Manchester, UK iTrader: (0)	Arch clearance advice... Hi, I hope everyone's well! I'm just after some advice if possible from people who might be a bit more familiar with trying to fit large wheels to en E82. I've recently picked up a E82 125i from an auction which was an absolute steal ... at least until going into limp mode on the way home after overheating... Anyway, turns out it was just a fuse missing from the signal wire to the fan relay so nice easy fix! (think someone had ripped a dashcam out and didn't put the original fuse back). Since I've got it running without overheating I wanted to replace the style 256 alloys (with Landsail and "Fullrun's" : ) for some nicer wheels and decent rubber! So I've picked up some 400M's with Potenza S001's all round (225/45/18 fronts & 255/40/18 rears). 400M specs are: Fronts: 8J ET34 Rears: 8.5J ET47 I was led to believe from some research that these would fit ok but they are a pretty aggressive offset when fit (I mean, they look great!) so I'm just getting a bit of scrubbing. It's not undriveable but you do have to be careful with speedbumps etc. The rears aren't so bad so I'm confident I can roll enough room in the rear arches to stop any scrubbing but the fronts are tight! Again, I think I can probably massage the arch to get enough room but it's the bracket in there that fixes the bumper to the arch that seems to be in the way. I've trimmed it back as far as I dare but still not quite enough - wondering if anyone's had this problem before and how they got around it? The obvious would be "Buy wheels that fit", but where's the fun in that?! Thanks!
	Appreciate 0 Tweet Quote

10-23-2023, 07:46 PM	#2
BimmerAg Lieutenant 425 Rep 545 Posts Drives: 2011 135i Join Date: May 2017 Location: San Antonio, TX iTrader: (0)	One issue is your tires being too tall, standard tire size with 18" wheels should be 215/40/18 fronts and 245/35/18 rears. 225 front and 255 rears are fine but the aspect ratios (40 and 35 respectively) need to be maintained. If you're not willing to get new tires, then maybe something like Dinan camber plates would be a relatively easy way to get more clearance. They'll give you a bit more negative camber in the front to tuck the he top of the tires under the fender and they'll also lift the front slightly (~5mm) for more room.
	Appreciate 1 JDGreaves670.00 Quote

10-24-2023, 01:45 AM	#3
JDGreaves67 Registered 0 Rep 2 Posts Drives: BMW E82 125i Join Date: Oct 2023 Location: Greater Manchester, UK iTrader: (0)	Thanks BimmerAg, very helpful! Been commuting for the last few days with no notable scrubbing but fairly sure that an unforeseen bump or pothole would lead to the front catching so definitely want to make sure I've got plenty of room. The tyres on there have 6-7mm each left so would prefer to keep them if at all possible but would definitely move down in tyre size when they're due to be replaced. Will have a look into camber plates as a do like a car with some front-end camber! Thanks again.
	Appreciate 0 Quote