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BMW 3-Series (E90 E92) Forum > E90 / E92 / E93 3-series Technical Forums > Wheels and Tires Forum Sponsored by The Tire Rack > Will I need an alignment after changing wheel size?



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      12-01-2011, 09:42 PM   #1
bb2048
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Will I need an alignment after changing wheel size?

Hi guys,

I have a 2006 BMW 330xi (E90). The car came with the 17'' star looking wheels with snow tires (225/45/R17) and I decided to upgrade the wheels. I bought some 2006 BMW M3 CSL 19'' wheels OEM of some guys. The specs are below:

Front: 225/40/R19 (Wheel 8.5)
Rear: 255/35/R19 (Wheel 9.5)

The wheels have been installed for about 2 weeks now. I noticed the following:

I notices that the rear wheels are tilting a little bit, like if the camber or toes changed. The top part of the wheel is now a little bit in and the bottom part is tilting out. This is for both back wheels, fronts are fine. I also notice that the cars feels like it's slowing down, I also notices that the fuel consumption gauge is now consuming more fuel. Before I got an average of 25 MPG, now I'm only getting 20 MPG.

I did not align the car. The car is completely stock.

Please advice
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      12-01-2011, 09:59 PM   #2
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For stock spec the settings are dialed in for the suspension not for the wheel specifically. Mind you you can go to a race shop and get all sorts custom setup done that will compliment the tires/wheel setup.
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      12-19-2011, 03:53 PM   #3
bb2048
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I'm not sure exactly what you are saying bavaddict
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      12-19-2011, 08:16 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bb2048 View Post
Hi guys,

I have a 2006 BMW 330xi (E90). The car came with the 17'' star looking wheels with snow tires (225/45/R17) and I decided to upgrade the wheels. I bought some 2006 BMW M3 CSL 19'' wheels OEM of some guys. The specs are below:

Front: 225/40/R19 (Wheel 8.5)
Rear: 255/35/R19 (Wheel 9.5)

The wheels have been installed for about 2 weeks now. I noticed the following:

I notices that the rear wheels are tilting a little bit, like if the camber or toes changed. The top part of the wheel is now a little bit in and the bottom part is tilting out. This is for both back wheels, fronts are fine. I also notice that the cars feels like it's slowing down, I also notices that the fuel consumption gauge is now consuming more fuel. Before I got an average of 25 MPG, now I'm only getting 20 MPG.

I did not align the car. The car is completely stock.

Please advice
Changing the wheels will not effect the alignment. No need to align unless you have reason to believe the alignment was out prior to the wheel install. If the car hasn't been aligned in the last year, get it aligned to be safe and prevent tire wear.

Reduction in fuel efficiency is normal, wider tires create more rolling resistance. 5 mpg does seem like alot though...
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      12-20-2011, 12:12 AM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lulz_M3 View Post
Changing the wheels will not effect the alignment. No need to align unless you have reason to believe the alignment was out prior to the wheel install. If the car hasn't been aligned in the last year, get it aligned to be safe and prevent tire wear.

Reduction in fuel efficiency is normal, wider tires create more rolling resistance. 5 mpg does seem like alot though...
what he said,

if you havent messed with the suspension at all then youll be fine, changing the wheels would not cause any sort of unalignment. If the car hasnt been aligned in a while then its always good to get it done. But in conclusion NO changing wheel's or wheel size would not cause any issues with alignment
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      12-20-2011, 03:44 AM   #6
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Changing the wheels DOES require a new aligment IF the inflated tire diameters are larger than before (example: if you switch from 225/45/17 to 235/40/18 you will need alignment - the new tires are a few mm taller).
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      12-20-2011, 05:00 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tscdennab View Post
Changing the wheels DOES require a new aligment IF the inflated tire diameters are larger than before (example: if you switch from 225/45/17 to 235/40/18 you will need alignment - the new tires are a few mm taller).
But why? The wheels will still be rolling the same path and geometry.

I'm willing to learn something new.

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      12-20-2011, 08:56 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tscdennab View Post
Changing the wheels DOES require a new aligment IF the inflated tire diameters are larger than before (example: if you switch from 225/45/17 to 235/40/18 you will need alignment - the new tires are a few mm taller).
Not necessary.
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      12-20-2011, 09:29 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Pcemkr View Post
Not necessary.
+1
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      12-20-2011, 12:06 PM   #10
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You should not need an alignment when changing out your wheels, but if you haven't gotten one in a while I would suggest setting up an appointment to go in. I've gotten two alignments this year and I think they were worth the money. It'll ensure that you're not going through tires quickly.

On a side note though, your tire sizing is too tall for your car. A 225/35 or 235/35 would be better suited for the front and a 255/30 or 265/30 would be better suited for the rear.
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      12-20-2011, 12:16 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by VMRWheels View Post
On a side note though, your tire sizing is too tall for your car. A 225/35 or 235/35 would be better suited for the front and a 255/30 or 265/30 would be better suited for the rear.
+1

Front and rear tires are one inch taller than OEM, which means larger circumference and speedo readings that are off. When your speedo says 60MPH, you are really rolling at 62MPH, which might account for the reduction in gas mileage because you are driving faster than you think.

I would actually recommend 235/35/19 Front and 275/30/19 Rear, because both tires would be an exact match in diameter and circumference, but that's just me...
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