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[loginfailed]

Hello everybody, sorry to ask the same boring questions that all newbies ask, but here goes.

I have a 2006 E90 Sedan with sport suspension. I'm moving from the staggered 161 wheels to a square setup on 18x8 ET40 wheels with 235/40 tires. By my calculations, the wheels will be sunken in vs stock 6mm in front and 9mm in rear.

I've ordered a Koni 1140 kit so it will be a bit lower than stock.

I'm hoping to at least be able to get away with 12mm spacers in front and 15mm in rear. But I would like to go further out if I can. Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

Sheesh...have you bought the wheels yet? That's gonna require some pretty thick spacers to look "right" IMO and those aren't exactly cheap.

I'd start with 15 front/30 rear.

[loginfailed]

I don't intend to offend, as I appreciate the input. You're making it sound like +40 is some crazy offset. The 161 wheels on there now are +34 front and +37 rear. +40 is not that much different.

Yes I already purchased the wheels. Do you really think 30mm in the rear will work?

Originally Posted by loginfailed

You're making it sound like +40 is some crazy offset.

Umm, yeah. Especially since you're putting those in the rear and especially since you're pre-lci; that obviously isn't helping.

In regards to your question, use the calculator at the top of the sub-forum and tell me what you come up with

[loginfailed]

The calculator says the wheels will retract by 6mm front and 9mm rear. I'm looking at the car as is sits in stock form. Going with a 30mm spacer in the rear would put the outside of the wheel 21mm closer to the fender. I don't see how that would fit without rubbing.

When I install the Koni 1140 kit, will there be that much more negative camber that it will clear? Am I missing something? Maybe I'm measuring it wrong.

Thanks for the help.

Originally Posted by loginfailed

I don't see how that would fit without rubbing.

That's because you have ~10 posts and haven't found the search button yet Look around...you won't find someone with the same EXACT setup you have, but all the information you need is already here.

[loginfailed]

I'm looking at your summer setup in your sig.

In the rear, you have 8.5 ET35 with a 15mm spacer.

Going by the calculator, (without spacers) your wheel is to 11mm closer to the fender than mine. With your suggestion of a 30mm of spacer, mine will be a net 4mm closer to the fender than yours.

Do you have an extra 4mm of room on your car in the rear?

Granted we are talking purely wheel and not considering tire stretch. But your 245/40 on an 8.5 wheel is very close to my 235/40 on an 8" wheel. Only ~2mm difference in stretch (1mm per side)

I have used the search button quite extensively, but like you said not everyone will have the same setup. The more threads I've read, the more confused I have become.

I do appreciate your help.

It's not stretch you need to worry about it's height. Yes, even with my taller tire, I *should* be able to run either an 18 or 20mm spacer in the rear. I haven't had the time to try a more aggressive spacer yet.

It would be even easier in your case since you're working with a slightly shorter tire; but again, it all comes down to camber settings, whether or not you're interested in rolling your fenders, etc. Either way, that proposed setup is still far from extreme.

[loginfailed]

I definitely do not want to roll the fenders. I just want to drive the piss out of it and not worry about different parts of the car attempting to occupy the same space.

Do you have any pics handy of your setup showing what your clearance looks like?

[ECSTuning]

Personally I'd run a 12.5mm up front and a 20mm out back on 18x8 ET40s squared. Even with the tire choice that still falls in the "safe" range of fitment for the E9X.

-James

[loginfailed]

So James, you're saying that with a +35. My wheels are +40 so that would mean 17.5mm front and 25mm rear. Correct?

[ECSTuning]

Had to double check myself, the et35 was just a typo in my above post (sorry about that I had a little multitasking fail there).

You could most likely go a lot more aggressive with the spacer choice and still be fine, but the 12mm front and 20mm rear should be a nice more aggressive than stock but safe fitment.

When in doubt toss the new wheels on the car and measure for spacers as seen in the video below. I wouldn't be shocked if with the tire size you could run upwards of 20mm front and 30mm rear (each car is a little different so I'd suggest measuring before jumping into monsters like those).

-James

[loginfailed]

Thanks FCobra94 and thanks James for the video which really helped clear up my remaining confusion.

My wheels are set to be delivered today. I have some long bolts and big washers on hand to try and figure out what fits my setup.

Nice! Good luck and report back with the results.

[loginfailed]

There was a delay in shipping on my wheels. Apparently Fedex Ground was closed on July 3rd. So they are now supposed to be here tomorrow.

But to my surprise, even though the ETA on my Koni 1140 kit was another week out it actually arrived on the 3rd. So I immediately got to work on that.

A few unboxing pics and then a before & after:
















Front Before


Front After


Rear Before


Rear After


Stance Before


Stance After


I was afraid it would be too low, but I think it looks just right. On the Konis I'm running it with 1 full turn front & rear. So far I'm liking the way it rides. Quite a bit firmer than it was before. The rear feels just right but the front is a tad firm so I may back the front shocks off just a hair and see how that goes. Of course going to go-flat tires may make a difference too so maybe I'll wait until the new wheels are on.

I'll update again once I get the new wheels & tires mounted.

[loginfailed]

I got the wheels in hand today. I did some testing with some washers. It looks like you were right FCobra. Except I might even be able to do 20mm front and 30mm rear. I'll actually be happy to be able to go 20mm in front because I prefer the bolt on style spacers and it looks like 20mm is the thinnest they come in.

So here are a few shots. I lifted the car and put some wood under the front wheel. Added 20mm worth of washers and longer bolts. It looks like it everything will clear mostly.







And here is the rear with 30mm of washers. I jacked up the other side to put extra load on the side with the washers. Looks like it will clear fine.



Excuse my messy garage.



I ordered Eibach spacers tonight. Hopefully they get here soon. The car looks slightly goofy with the wheels sunken in. It's going to look nice though, can't wait to get the spacers on!

lookin good let us know how it works out

[Pumper]

Tbh, it does not look like you'll be able to pull off the front. Even the H&R official specs list (OEM) 16x7 205/55 ET34 compatible with 20mm spacers in front without mods (anything wider says you'll need to modify the wheel arch for clearance).

In any case, would like to see an update. Ordered 20mm for rear, but would like to do 30mm rear and 20mm front in the future (running stock 16"), but I'm certain that 20mm would be way too much for OEM 17" with 225/45 tires in the front (would like to upgrade to 285s at some point) .

[loginfailed]

Well my wheels are ET40. Compared to an OEM ET34 wheel my wheels are an additional 6mm further from the fender. I'm pretty confident that the front will work out. If it does rub it will likely just be the fender liner.

Eibach is out of stock on the 20mm spacer so I cancelled my order and ordered a set of H&R spacers. So for now I'm still rolling with the sunken in look.

[loginfailed]

A quick update on the results of this setup in case anyone is interested.

18x8 ET40 wheels
Sumitomo 235/40/18 tires
Koni 1140 suspension kit (essentially Koni yellows & H&R sport springs)
H&R DRA bolt on spacers (20mm fronts, 30mm rears)
Front camber alignment pins pulled

There is a slight rub in the front in the fender liner. Right where the bumper cover meets the fender there is a little bulge in the fender liner. It BARELY rubs on heavy dips in the road. It only seems to happen when going straight. I believe that if I add a set of Dinan camber plates it will completely clear with no rubbing at all.

In the rear, I hear a very occasional rub when going over the same heavy dips in the road. The next alignment I have done, I will have them add a bit more negative camber and that should take care of it.

The best part is that the car drives great and looks killer, IMO. Thanks again to those of you who helped talk me through it.

Front


Rear


Overall

[David0ff]

Great Setup !

Remove the alignment pin in the front and you can get a bit more camber.



this is an M3 but its the same for you

unscrew the little pin with a pair of vice grips and max out the front plates, should eliminate your rubbing

He already pulled the pins.

OP: Shouldn't M3 LCA fit your car as well? If so, that would certainly get you more camber. A very worthwhile mod regardless.