► APEX | ARC-8 Light Weight Track Wheels

[ApexRaceParts]

APEX ARC-8 wheels were designed to meet the specification needs of HPDE, race, and autocross drivers, while exceeding the requirements for everyday street use. This makes them the perfect cost effective, dual duty wheel.


APEX ARC-8 in Hyper Silver, Profile 3


Meeting the Performance Enthusiast’s requirements:

Light-weight:
Flow-forming allows for a significant reduction in rotational mass by reducing barrel weight. This manufacturing technique allows the ARC-8 wheel to be almost as light as a traditional forged wheel, but without the significant increase in price.

Strength:
Track duty requires a wheel that can handle the punishment of high lateral G’s, hitting berms, and every once in awhile a small off track excursion. Spoke and barrel design are a major factor in wheel strength. The flow-forming technique uses high pressure disks/rollers to roll the wheel’s barrel into its final shape. This gives the barrel the same strength properties as a forged wheel, since monoblock wheels go through a similar step to form their barrels. The ARC-8's mesh design helps evenly distribute loads from the barrel to the center of the wheel. The lack of a front lip, and spokes directly connecting to the edge of the wheel, also add increased strength to the outer lip of the wheel. Although a front lip can reduce weight, it can also make the wheel much more prone to bending, and this was an important factor when developing the wheel.

Once a design is selected, it needs to be tested and certified for strength. The ARC-8 wheels were not just FEA tested in a computer simulation, or in house tested to an unregulated standard. They follow Japan’s JWL standard, and are 3rd party tested there by the VIA in Japan. All 18" ARC-8 wheels have a 690KG load rating.

Proper tire fitment:
Stretched rubber, narrow tires, and fender rubbing are not elements to look for in a competitive wheel/tire setup. The ARC-8 wheels were designed with offsets that allow for proper fitment of extreme summer, and r-compound tires without the need for spacers or fender rolling. This means keeping the tire under the fender, and away from suspension components. Track oriented wheel widths are also important as they provide proper sidewall support under hard cornering. Too much rubber for a wheel results in excessive sidewall deflection, which translates into sloppy and delayed turning response.

Multiple fitments:
Most BMW’s come with a staggered setup. Some choose to keep their car this way, while others like to switch out for an easy to rotate, square/neutral setup. This is generally based on driver’s preference in addition to costs. The E46 M3 benefits from being able to fit both square and staggered setups with relative ease. 9.5” or 10” square setups are great for budget minded enthusiasts who want to extend their tires life by rotating between events, in addition to preferring the feel of a square setup. Square setups are popular on all 3 series models for track use due to the significant increase in front grip and turn in response. Some E46 M3 owners comment that due to the extra power of their cars, a square setup will lean towards oversteer. For those who prefer more rubber in the rear, a staggered setup is the way to go. 10” and 10.5” wheels are available for rear fitment. These can be combined with 9.5” or 10” fronts for a bolt-on spacer free staggered setup.

BBK clearance:
Many owners install Big Brake kits on their cars. Having an 18” wheel that can clear large calipers is a must. Due to the low offset nature of the E46 M3, there are no clearance issues with the concave spokes of the ARC-8 wheel. Barrel clearance was increased during the design phase to accommodate StopTech’s 380mm kit. The only kit that poses an issue at this time is the 380mm Brembo setup.


Meeting the needs of Daily/Street use:

Aesthetic design:
Although the ARC-8 put function over form when meeting the above requirements, there is no denying that concave mesh wheels look at home on a BMW.

Paint finishes:
All the wheel have a multi-coat painted finish including a full clear coat except for the Satin finish which does not have a clear (that would have made it gloss black). To give owners more options the wheels are offered in 4 different finishes. Hyper Silver, Hyper Black, Anthracite, and Satin Black. Not everyone wants their track day wheels to be grey.

Abuse of street use:
The world is full of potholes and random things to run over. APEX wheels have an excellent history of handling abuse. To date we’ve only had one wheel with a minor bend and another with a hairline crack on the inner barrel lip. Both these wheels came from the same dedicated race car, and the bent wheel is still out there racing today.

Multiple fitments:
Due to the more conservative nature of street use, the ARC-8 wheel is also available in sizes that can fit more street oriented rubber, at offsets that are an easier fit. Wider more aggressive wheels can be used by those who like a more flush/filled out look. The choice is yours.

Certification:
The race track has no wheel strength requirements, but the street does. Sadly the USA has very lenient/minimal regulations of wheel strength, unlike like Japan and Germany. APEX wheels are independently tested by the Vehicle Inspection Association of Japan (VIA) to the JWL standard. Wheels tested to the JWL standard require all wheels on the road to meet specific load rating requirements based on the bolt pattern, and dimensions of the wheel, the application/vehicle model has nothing to do with it. In comparison, wheels tested to the SAE standard in the USA can pick their own load rating, which can be as low as they want. This defeats the purpose of the test, as a wheel manufacturer can choose to underrate their wheels in order to reduce wheel weight. Wheels claiming JWL testing, but no 3rd party verification are prone to certifying untested/unproven wheels. VIA certification can not be done in house. It requires sending wheels/tires to japan for crush testing. Sadly a large number of vendors claim their wheels are VIA, JWL and even TUV certified, when in fact they were never tested by those organizations at all, and in some cases don't even meet the standard requirements of those tests. For this reason the certificate numbers for the ARC-8 wheels have been listed below. Self regulate the market, and ask all vendors to back up their claims. If they were tested, then they'll have the registration numbers.


Available Sizes, Weights, and Pricing:

• 17x8.5" ET20 - Profile 3 - 16.50lbs - $259
• 17x8.5" ET40 - Profile 1 - 17.20lbs - $249
• 17x9.0" ET30 - Profile 3 - 16.50lbs - $264
• 17x9.0" ET42 - Profile 1 - 17.20lbs - $259
• 17x9.5" ET35 - Profile 3 - 16.95lbs - $269
• 17x10" ET25 - Profile 3 - 18.45lbs - $284
• 17x10.5" ET27 - Profile 3 - 18.95lbs - $299
• 18x8.5" ET38 - Profile 1 - 18.45lbs - $289
• 18x8.5" ET45 - Profile 1 - 18.20lbs - $289
• 18x9.0" ET42 - Profile 1 - 18.65lbs - $299
• 18x9" ET30 - Profile 3 - 18.05lbs - $309
• 18x9.5" ET58 - Profile 1 - 18.20lbs - $314
• 18x9.5" ET35 - Profile 3 - 18.85lbs - $314
• 18x9.5" ET22 - Profile 3 - 19.20lbs - $314
• 18x10" ET25 - Profile 3 - 19.95lbs - $324
• 18x10.5" ET27 - Profile 3 - 20.45lbs - $344
• 19x8.5" ET20 - Profile 3 - 20.7lbs - $259-$344
• 19x8.5" ET35 - Profile 1 - 20.45lbs - $334
• 19x9" ET38 - Profile 1 - 20.7lbs - $194-$344
• 19x9.5" ET22 - Profile 3 - 20.95lbs - $239-$364
• 19x9.5" ET33 - Profile 3 - 20.5lbs - $364
• 19x10" ET25 - Profile 3 - 21.95lbs - $374
• 19x10.5" ET22 - Profile 3 - 22.95lbs - $394

Available Finishes*

• Hyper Silver
• Hyper Black
• Anthracite
• Satin Black
• Matte Bronze

*Not all finishes are available for each wheel size.


Profile 1 Face


Profile 3 Face



Warranty Summary:
2 year Structural, 1 year limited finish warranty guarantees wheels will be free from defects in materials, workmanship and paint finish under normal and reasonable use. Get more details here.


View On-Car Galleries
Product images are nice but we know what you really want to see, photos of our wheels on actual cars. You can check out our extensive collection of photos on our Flickr page here, or we also have a Showroom Gallery on this forum here.


Ordering and Contact Information

• Phone: (888) 499-9135
• Payment: Credit and Debit Cards: Visa, Mastercard, AMEX, Discover, PayPal. Bank Wire Transfers are also available. Contact us to use a wire transfer for payment on your order.
• Tax: California customers will be charged 8.75% CA sales tax.
• Shipping: APEX ships all orders with UPS.
• APEX Hours: Monday - Friday, 9AM to 6PM PST, Closed Saturday & Sunday
• Warehouse and local pickup: The APEX warehouse is at 7888 Marathon Drive, Unit A, Livermore, CA, 94550 (Map It)

[Papa13]

Is there a concave set-up for e82 135's?

[ApexRaceParts]

Originally Posted by Papa13

Is there a concave set-up for e82 135's?

PM sent!

[fastauto]

Let's get a group buy going!

[Expert@ApexRaceParts]

Originally Posted by fastauto

Let's get a group buy going!

We should have one after the new year!

[fastauto]

Originally Posted by David@ApexRaceParts

We should have one after the new year!

Nice. I love my ec-7's but need a set of arc8's

[nachob]

David, what is the best square setup size for stock 1M track duty. No rubbing? wheels and tire size. Someone recommended Nitto NT1s. with ARC-8s or EC-7s?

Thank you.

[ApexRaceParts]

Originally Posted by nachob

David, what is the best square setup size for stock 1M track duty. No rubbing? wheels and tire size. Someone recommended Nitto NT1s. with ARC-8s or EC-7s?

Thank you.

For a stock 1M, we would recommend the 18x9.5" ET22 square setup with 265/35/18 street tires.

If you had coilovers with linear springs & camber plates, 18x10" ET25 square with 275/35/18 is a great setup as well. Certain coilovers with progressive springs (i.e. KW V3) may require a small 5mm spacer to clear the 18x10" ET25 setup on your car.

Let us know if you have any other questions.

[Papa13]

Whats the best square setup on a e82 135?

Would 9.5's with 275's fit all around?

[Expert@ApexRaceParts]

Originally Posted by Papa13

Whats the best square setup on a e82 135?

Would 9.5's with 275's fit all around?

Our best fitting squared options for your car are the 18" 1-series specific wheels. We have a number of different options in that size that were specifically designed for the unusual fitment constraints of the 1 series chassis. There is also a 17" wheel that can be made to fit, but there will be compromises.

With camber plates and M3 arms, you can get our 17x8.5" ET40 wheel to fit up front. That can be used with either 245/40/17's or 255/40/17's. The back of the car will be a problem, but the front of the car will have some rubbing. Using the 17x8.5" ET40 even with a 245/40/17 in the rear will rub without fender rolling. This is due to the car having unusually high rear offsets (the stock 8.5" wheel has a 52mm offset). The 1-series racers run our 17x8.5" wheel with 255/40/17 square, but they were willing to mess with the rear fenders beyond just a simple roll.

Our 18" 1 series wheel is 18x8.5" ET45, which is an easier rear fitment in the rear due to being in 5mm more, but even at this offset rubbing can occur, so a rear fender roll is recommended. The 245/35/18 is the recommended tire size. A 245/40/18 is far too tall for the car and would cause tire rubbing on the fenders. The 255/35/18 tires can fit up front on the 8.5" ET45 wheel but a thin 5mm spacer may be needed in addition to camber plates being needed for all these listed fitments. 255/35/18 would be very aggressive on the rear at that offset, so messing with the fenders would definitely be needed.

The 265's in 17" cannot happen at all, and the 265's are already extremely rare to come in 17" diameter so they would also be very pricey. The 265/35/18 could only be run on our 9.5" ET62 or ET58 1 series rear wheels. Running the 9.5" rear wheel would create a stagger, which is not what you are looking for, and running the 9.5" wheel in the front is not possible due to the limitations of the car's fenders and suspension. Because of the limitations of the 1-series, using a 275/35/18 squared is out of the question without a widebody kit on the front.

[CP 1///M]

Questions:
1) Canadian order but shipping to US (Blaine WA), can you accommodate such orders (hoping to pick up the rims at the end of a road trip)?
2) Stock 1M suspension + camber plate, I plan to run 1 set of wheels for Winter and Track (which limits me to 18x9.5, square setup) - ET22 wouldn't rub or would I need to go ET35 and use spacers (5mm front and 10mm rear)? Target tire is Michelin Arctic Alpin PA3 235/40R18 for Winter, Hankook RS-3 275/35R18 for track (might go 265/35R18 if 275 rubs)

Thanks

[Expert@ApexRaceParts]

Originally Posted by CP 1///M

Questions:
1) Canadian order but shipping to US (Blaine WA), can you accommodate such orders (hoping to pick up the rims at the end of a road trip)?
2) Stock 1M suspension + camber plate, I plan to run 1 set of wheels for Winter and Track (which limits me to 18x9.5, square setup) - ET22 wouldn't rub or would I need to go ET35 and use spacers (5mm front and 10mm rear)? Target tire is Michelin Arctic Alpin PA3 235/40R18 for Winter, Hankook RS-3 275/35R18 for track (might go 265/35R18 if 275 rubs)

Thanks

We can surely accommodate for orders to be shipped to Blaine, WA for our Canadian customers that are willing to cross the border to pick up their packages. The details of doing so can be discussed via PM.

The 18x9.5" ET22 ARC-8's would surely work on your 1M with OEM suspension and camber plates. The 235/40/18 sized tires are very undersized for a 9.5" width wheel though, and we would suggest at least a 245 even for winter setups. As for 275/35/18 Hankook RS-3's, they should fit without any issues with your camber plates.

[ApexRaceParts]

Thank you everyone for your orders; they are being processed and shipped out as fast as possible.

[dtla1]

Originally Posted by ApexRaceParts

For more information and pricing give us a call.

Whats the latest timeline for getting a set of Arc-8s in 1 series non-M fitment?

[Expert@ApexRaceParts]

Originally Posted by dtla1

Whats the latest timeline for getting a set of Arc-8s in 1 series non-M fitment?

We are currently expecting a restock of the 1-series ARC-8's in the summer.

[Tinsta]

I'd like to get a set of wider Arc8's.. I have a 135i, currently running a set of Aero-7s (8j & 9j) but its got the 1m arches going on shortly, as rears were rubbing with kw v3s with camber plates. No spacers, and oem arches rolled.

Would a 8.5j et45 with 245 tyre and 9.5 et62 275 tyre fit, looking to get widest fitment are these available in possibly 9j and 10j sizes?
thanks

[Expert@ApexRaceParts]

Originally Posted by Tinsta

I'd like to get a set of wider Arc8's.. I have a 135i, currently running a set of Aero-7s (8j & 9j) but its got the 1m arches going on shortly, as rears were rubbing with kw v3s with camber plates. No spacers, and oem arches rolled.

Would a 8.5j et45 with 245 tyre and 9.5 et62 275 tyre fit, looking to get widest fitment are these available in possibly 9j and 10j sizes?
thanks

For our ARC-8s in 18x8.5" ET45 and 18x9.5" ET62 for the 1-series, we would recommend the 235/40/18 and 265/35/18 tire sizes. The 235/40/18 street tires are generally a direct fitment for the front of a stock car, and are a great improvement in width and grip over the stock 215/40/18 front tire size. Not all 235/40/18 tires will fit. R-compounds, slicks and some other tires may touch the strut tube, requiring a spacer to fit. This fitment is tight on both the strut tube side and on the fender side, so there is little room to play with on a stock car. If a 3-5mm spacer is used to clear the strut tube with some tires, then it would be ideal to dial in some negative camber into the front suspension to help clear the fender. 235/40/18 tires are tall and could potentially rub the plastic inner fender liner if the car is out of alignment. Plastic liner rubbing is usually considered acceptable by most owners, but it is something to look out for as the gills in the liner for the oil cooler can some times stick out towards the tire more than normal.

The rear 265/35/18 is a direct fitment on the 18x9.5” ET62 wheel. There is no need to roll or run additional negative camber for this tire size on this wheel. If you would like a wider tire, you would need to make some modifications to your 1-series in order to accommodate them. If a tire that is wider than 235/40/18 is being used a 3mm wheel spacer must also be installed, otherwise the tire will start rubbing the strut or spring perch. The 245/35/18 tire size would require either M3 front lower control arms, or camber plates, in order to achieve negative camber in the front due to how close the wheel and tire is in relation to the fender. For the 255/35/18 tire size, both the camber plates and the M3 front lower control arms are required to achieve enough negative camber in front in order for the front tires to clear the fenders. With coilover setups utilizing a cone shaped progressive front spring (KW, ST, or PSS9) a 235/40/18 tire is the maximum front tire width because the spring takes up too much room on the strut side creating rubbing issues once a wider tire is used.

The rears are limited to the 265/35/18 tire size with the ET62 ARC-8 unless you roll the fenders. Even then, there are other issues that arise when using the 275/35/18 size which is why we do not recommend it. This is because when one is running a 275/35/18 rear extreme performance (ie. Hankook RS3’s) or R-compound tires with the 18x9.5" ET62 then the tire will likely contact the rear sub frame. This sub frame rub is only when the suspension is drooping (lifted in the air for service). The tires do not touch the sub frame when driving, but because there is contact, we do not recommend 275 width tires usually. The ideal setup for no issues is definitely the 265/35/18. You may have read about using a 275/35/18 rear tire before we were aware of how significant this problem is in the rear of the 1- series. It may be possible to fit the 275/35/18 rear tire with the use of a 5mm rear wheel spacer but at that point you are pushing the wheel/tire out very far and fender rubbing will very likely happen without heavy fender rolling.

[ApexRaceParts]

Restock Alert!
We have thousands of wheels arriving in the next 30 days, including the following fitments for the 1M:

• ARC-8 18x9.5" ET22

• ARC-8 18x9.5" ET35

• ARC-8 18x10" ET25

• ARC-8 19x9.5" ET22

• ARC-8 19x9.5" ET35

• ARC-8 19x10" ET25

• ARC-8 19x10.5" ET27

Contact us today to secure your set!

[Tinsta]

Thanks David, received my set of wheels a few days ago, excellent quality and love the concave profile. Getting them painted at the moment in satin black before fitting

[ApexRaceParts]

For more information and pricing give us a call.

[ApexRaceParts]

Check out these custom guards red APEX ARC-8's!



Please contact us with any questions that you may have, we have wheel experts ready for your calls, emails & PM's.

[CarsonE3x]

I really gotta get my set ordered already, just waiting til August!