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[DA51ELK]

Good Evening Guys,

Hope we are all keeping well during these current times.

Just wanted to come on here and ask for some advice and opinions.

I plan on buying some new alloys for my 2011 LeMans Blue E82 and stuck on what to pic.

I have a choice of 4 and thought I would put it to a vote for you guys to help me decide.

I shall upload a picture of the current look, they are 'BMW 17" 207' I am not sure the colour is I brought the car like this, it looks like a 'Gloss Gun Metal (with a hint of) Dark Blue'.

The 4 alloys I am interested in are:

- BMW 666M
- BMW 788M
- BMW M359
- BBS RC Arc-8

I plan to go up to 18" and not 19" as I do not want the ride, etcetera, to be affected too much.

I wanted to go with the 'Gun Metal' colours with the new alloy choice as I quite like the current look, however after looking at a few images online, I quite like that standout Hyper Silver original colour. In my opinion, it just makes it pop and look fresh.

It all started looking at images of the much loved BMW 1M, but after looking at the M359 alloys which it has, I am now stuck between the other choices I have. :dunno:

Please Help.
Thanks

Kindest Regards,
Daniel

[b1aze]

First things first, are you sure you can get the styles you like in the proper width/offsets for these cars and your preferred fitment?

Second, are you after strictly aesthetics or is weight/performance high on your "needs" list?

I personally went a different route. A lot of people choose the CSL style wheels and while they are a great look at fit, they don't stand out. I personally don't like the 666M style wheels and I think they look out of place on these cars but thats all up to personal taste. I do like the "mesh" style also but if I was to go that route, I'd look for a staggered 18" set with lips of some sort but again, personal taste.

[DA51ELK]

Originally Posted by b1aze

First things first, are you sure you can get the styles you like in the proper width/offsets for these cars and your preferred fitment?

Second, are you after strictly aesthetics or is weight/performance high on your "needs" list?

I personally went a different route. A lot of people choose the CSL style wheels and while they are a great look at fit, they don't stand out. I personally don't like the 666M style wheels and I think they look out of place on these cars but thats all up to personal taste. I do like the "mesh" style also but if I was to go that route, I'd look for a staggered 18" set with lips of some sort but again, personal taste.

Yes I have checked online and spoken to a few companies, they have told me that they will fit.

I have also been using the following website to confirm this:
https://www.wheel-size.com/calc/

And it is purely for aesthetics.

Thanks for the information, tbf the 666M were the last option for me, I just thought they looked really good on the new 2 series.

[135_PJ_]

What are the widths and the offsets of the ARC-8s?

[Suprgnat]

I'm partial to brighter wheels on Le Mans Blue E82s, especially when they have Shadowline trim.

[DA51ELK]

Originally Posted by 135_PJ_

What are the widths and the offsets of the ARC-8s?

The ARC8s are:

Front – 18 x 8.5 ET20

Rear – 18 x 10 ET20

I am struggling to find online what alloys will actually fit?

Does anyone know the et and offset limits for the E82?

Or I suppose it varies per alloys.

Thanks,
Daniel

[DA51ELK]

Originally Posted by Suprgnat

I'm partial to brighter wheels on Le Mans Blue E82s, especially when they have Shadowline trim.

Just went through your cars photo history and WOW, what a journey.

Looks super crisp.

[asbrr]

Originally Posted by D4N13L

The ARC8s are:

Front – 18 x 8.5 ET20

Rear – 18 x 10 ET20

I am struggling to find online what alloys will actually fit?

Does anyone know the et and offset limits for the E82?

Or I suppose it varies per alloys.

Thanks,
Daniel

At first glance those sizes and offsets are way too aggressive. You'll have rubbing on bumps and potentially on full lock, even on stock suspension. With any kind of suspension work, forget it. You'll need major fender rolling work and then some....

To put in perspective, stock 18" sizing is:

18x7.5 ET 49
18x8.5 ET52

Using your fronts as an example, compared to stock size of 215/40/18 on the stock rim going to a 225/40/18 on your rim, this is a way more aggressive fitment pushing the wheel out 41+mm outwards....the rear is even worse, it will be 51+mm further outwards....

For comparison, I used stock rims and added 12mm spacers at the front (meaning new offset of ET37mm), and 10mm at the rear (meaning new offset of ET42mm). I had to do a slight roll of the rear fender where it meets the bumper to avoid rubbing, I am mildly lower than stock M-sport on Bilstein B12 suspension. At the front I have DInan camber plates which gives me almost -2 of camber, so I avoided any rolling or changes to the front.

These cars don't have much room, you have to stick with rims within a very narrow width and offset range. Apex makes wheels especially in the right sizes and offset for our cars...

[DA51ELK]

Originally Posted by asbrr

At first glance those sizes and offsets are way too aggressive. You'll have rubbing on bumps and potentially on full lock, even on stock suspension. With any kind of suspension work, forget it. You'll need major fender rolling work and then some....

To put in perspective, stock 18" sizing is:

18x7.5 ET 49
18x8.5 ET52

Using your fronts as an example, compared to stock size of 215/40/18 on the stock rim going to a 225/40/18 on your rim, this is a way more aggressive fitment pushing the wheel out 41+mm outwards....the rear is even worse, it will be 51+mm further outwards....

For comparison, I used stock rims and added 12mm spacers at the front (meaning new offset of ET37mm), and 10mm at the rear (meaning new offset of ET42mm). I had to do a slight roll of the rear fender where it meets the bumper to avoid rubbing, I am mildly lower than stock M-sport on Bilstein B12 suspension. At the front I have DInan camber plates which gives me almost -2 of camber, so I avoided any rolling or changes to the front.

These cars don't have much room, you have to stick with rims within a very narrow width and offset range. Apex makes wheels especially in the right sizes and offset for our cars...

Thanks for your advice mate, much appreciated.

Yes, I did think that our cars didn't have much room with the lack of information online.

I should state I am currently running standard M-Sport suspension and most likely will not go over to bilstien as I live in a very rural area.

It's shame we can't pull off much rear concave with our cars like the 3 series

I shall keep researching.

[thez99]

Yea, I know aesthetics are an important angle for buying up wheels and all..but you REALLY need to focus on actual fitment before you go ANY other route, sure there's a few other sets of wheels out there I really dig but they are absolutely out of fitment for this car, that or they don't even come in the correct bolt pattern, etc.

Anytime I'm looking for wheels its: 5x120 bolt pattern. 72.6 hub bore (so the wheel sits snug on the car's hub, no need for shitty hub rings that bring vibration), and then what size (18x8.5 with an appropriate offset like 40-45).

There's a certain amount of wiggle room when it comes to the offsets say if you have camber plates, arms and a maxed out camber in front, but something like an 8.5" with et20 is just going to rub like a flaming hooker ALL the time and look like ass. Massive offsets are for racer boys with lambos and mustangs with huge fender jobs.

Also you say it's all aesthetic but are you not at all interested in what these wheels (and tires?) weigh? Whether or not they're flow formed for long term quality and so on? The fitment numbers will not only play an important role in the performance of the set on your car, but also how they look. A set of insanely offset wheels on this car will make you shit yourself. A super wide wheel in the back without a fender mod kit will poke out past your fender and prob not even ride unless you're going in a straight line at 20 mph with no bumps...

I've said my piece. I make a big deal bout all this shit, but it's what your entire vehicle investment is riding on (literally), so take it or leave it

P.S. Without knowing wtf you're looking at buying I can't know for sure, but don't just take any random shop's word for a set of wheels fitting on your car. Not unless they are absolutely vetted with fitments for these cars like Apex or VMR for instance, or they have a pretty fine reputation behind them like Tirerack.

[DA51ELK]

Originally Posted by thez99

Yea, I know aesthetics are an important angle for buying up wheels and all..but you REALLY need to focus on actual fitment before you go ANY other route, sure there's a few other sets of wheels out there I really dig but they are absolutely out of fitment for this car, that or they don't even come in the correct bolt pattern, etc.

Anytime I'm looking for wheels its: 5x120 bolt pattern. 72.6 hub bore (so the wheel sits snug on the car's hub, no need for shitty hub rings that bring vibration), and then what size (18x8.5 with an appropriate offset like 40-45).

There's a certain amount of wiggle room when it comes to the offsets say if you have camber plates, arms and a maxed out camber in front, but something like an 8.5" with et20 is just going to rub like a flaming hooker ALL the time and look like ass. Massive offsets are for racer boys with lambos and mustangs with huge fender jobs.

Also you say it's all aesthetic but are you not at all interested in what these wheels (and tires?) weigh? Whether or not they're flow formed for long term quality and so on? The fitment numbers will not only play an important role in the performance of the set on your car, but also how they look. A set of insanely offset wheels on this car will make you shit yourself. A super wide wheel in the back without a fender mod kit will poke out past your fender and prob not even ride unless you're going in a straight line at 20 mph with no bumps...

I've said my piece. I make a big deal bout all this shit, but it's what your entire vehicle investment is riding on (literally), so take it or leave it

P.S. Without knowing wtf you're looking at buying I can't know for sure, but don't just take any random shop's word for a set of wheels fitting on your car. Not unless they are absolutely vetted with fitments for these cars like Apex or VMR for instance, or they have a pretty fine reputation behind them like Tirerack.

Thank you for the information, you've given me a lot of food for though.

Yes I always do look for a 5x120 bolt pattern, but that is the first time I have heard the borehole dimension for the E82, cheers for that. Hub Rings sound a b*tch lol.

I plan on keeping the standard M-Sport suspension so I will most likely not get camber plates etc. Thankfully I do not want to look like a boy racer ahaha, just looking for that clean OEM look. The wheels would need to come out around 28MM to be flush with the arches, currently running the stock 207M 17" alloys.

I haven't really looked into wheel weights however that is something that I would look at.

I 100% agree, the whole investment is sitting on these wheels so they need to be well thought out.

You've made me hesitant to even change from stock now ahaha

Again thanks mate, I appreciate taking the time to provide the above information.

Also the website you provided for fitment is very useful, I also use the following: https://www.wheel-size.com/calc/

[thez99]

By no means should you be scared of going away from a stock setup, there's just a limited choice of wheels and tires out there that truly fit this car's setup without going balls to the wall with camber, fender rolling, etc. I myself was originally planing on swapping out my current stock set for a straight setup of FAST FC09's 18x8 et45's which is legitimately about as perfect a square setup you can get for this car paired with 245/35/18s. But i've decided for now to stick with my stocks and just go for 12mm front and 15mm rear spacers and probably do turner camber plates later. My tires are too new to try and fuck with selling and going against the cost of a new set of wheels/tires.