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[DrRobert]

HRE FF15 flow form wheels
front 18x9 ET35
rear 18x10 ET 40
Made in Japan
$2700/set + shipping

Bridgestone RE11 tires
front 255/35/18
rear 275/35/18

All 4 fenders rolled at time of install. GC camber plates installed at same time.

First impression: AWESOME. Car is way more planted than it was with Michelin PSS on OEM wheels. Traction, turning response and grip much improved. Slight increase in NVH, but who cares?

[cdgatti]

I always enjoy reading about your very tasteful, well thought out mods. Nice job once again!

[Nafy]

Op, did you need spacers for the front? Thanks!

[DrRobert]

Nope, no spacers. But I gotta say that I can no longer recommend these wheels. I have already bent two of them. One was my fault when I hit a curb, had to buy a new one. Then recently I bent another one badly when I hit a pothole. At that time I found out that 2 of the other 3 were slightly bent as well. I don't want to keep buying replacements. I'm ditching these rims and getting forged wheels instead. Wish I would have paid more last year and gotten forged instead of these.

[Nafy]

Oh no I just bought them. Maybe I will exchange for their forged wheels. Thanks for the heads up.

How did you clear the front without spacers? I thought a minimum 3mm spacer is required to clear the struts.

[DrRobert]

Originally Posted by Nafy

Oh no I just bought them. Maybe I will exchange for their forged wheels. Thanks for the heads up.

How did you clear the front without spacers? I thought a minimum 3mm spacer is required to clear the struts.

I rolled the fenders and installed camber plates at the same time to make sure there was no rubbing. Not sure both were necessary but I didn't want to take any chances.

[Nafy]

i am on stock suspension, not sure if they are going to fit. I am leaning towards exchanging for their custom forged wheels. What forged wheels would you get?

[DrRobert]

I think you can trust HRE's fitment for BMW. I was more concerned about rubbing on the fenders as I wanted to put 255s up front. If you're putting a smaller tire than that in front you should be fine.

Regarding the HRE forged wheels, if you want to stay with an 18" wheel your choices are limited. I like the 303M, it is a similar design to the FF15, but others in their Classic series also come in 18". Check their website, and I'd call HRE and ask what offsets are available and which they would recommend for your car.

Sorry if my OP misled you about the FF15s.

[Nafy]

Op I didn't buy them because of your thread. I thought they are good quality and comparable to Advan and the reputable JDM brands because they are made in Japan. Seems like it isn't the case.

Wanted to exchange for the HRE forged but not sure if they are worth the $$$$. The 303m is one of the best looking ones. I am actually looking to get the 17s because I go to tracks and mine is a 328i so need to take as much unsprung weight off as possible.

[DrRobert]

Yeah that's what I thought too. Guy at my shop said HRE forged aren't worth it unless you want one of their custom colors. I didn't price them out but he said the price is the same even if you want a normal color like silver or black. I'm getting BBS forged, but I think the Advans and other forged Yokohama brands are just as good and may be even stronger.

[Nafy]

Op, if you don't mind, I just want to confirm one more time that spacers are not required to fit the front for a lci sedan, non-sport suspension.

I called HRE today and they said 3mm spacers are required so as the Turner website.

I used the offset calculator to do a comparison with others who have fitted the 18x9.5 et35 and a 5mm spacer to clear the front. The HREs should have a bit more clearance than that set up.

Thank you.

[DrRobert]

Originally Posted by Nafy

Op, if you don't mind, I just want to confirm one more time that spacers are not required to fit the front for a lci sedan, non-sport suspension.

I called HRE today and they said 3mm spacers are required so as the Turner website.

I used the offset calculator to do a comparison with others who have fitted the 18x9.5 et35 and a 5mm spacer to clear the front. The HREs should have a bit more clearance than that set up.

Thank you.

I have no spacers front or rear. But see my OP, I have 18x9 ET35 up front, not 18x9.5. 18x9.5 ET35 wheel is obviously 1/2" wider and might need a spacer to clear the strut depending on the tire used. I have had no issues w/ rubbing after 1.5 yrs, even w/ -2 camber and 255/35/18 tires in front.

[Nafy]

Really appreciate your response! I realized that you had 18x9 et35. I couldnt find much info on 18x9 et35 but many people are running 18x9.5 et35 with 5mm spacers. So I used that setup to compare our HRE wheels using the calculator.

With /-2 camber, the wheels and tires should sit closer to the suspension than the OEM camber.

What suspension were you running?

[DrRobert]

My mods are listed in my garage list under my name to the left.

[DrRobert]

Nafy,
I was just rereading your posts. The only other thing is that you have stock suspension and I have a heavily modified sport suspension, so I don't know if that might affect wheel fitment with respect to strut clearance. I would suggest you contact Greg at HRE (his email is gregl@hrewheels.com) - he is the flow form guy there (or at least he was 1.5 years ago) and will be able to answer your question.

[Nafy]

Normally springs are mounted higher on stock suspesion than sport/lowered suspension and stock shocks are usually thinner than aftermarket ones, so I should have less clearance issue, but I will double check with Greg to confirm. I will probably test fitted mine once I get the tires. Thanks Dr.Robert!

[Nafy]

Reply from Greg:

I wanted to get our hands on an E90 to check as our data is somewhat vague. So, I was able to get one in to test fit and you are correct...no spacers is needed with the 18x9 et35 front. There is 5mm clearance between the wheel and the strut. The 9.5 et35 that you referenced, there is no way that would work without a spacer. With all that said though, we recommend a 245/35 tire as opposed to the 255 you want to run. It will be close if you go 255, so just be prepared to possibly run that 3mm spacer if going with 255.

[Nafy]

So I will either get 245/35/18 or 255/35/18 with narrow profile

[Nafy]

Op, how did you put the bmw caps on the ff15s? My oem caps dont seem to fit. Thanks

[DrRobert]

Originally Posted by Nafy

Op, how did you put the bmw caps on the ff15s? My oem caps dont seem to fit. Thanks

That is not a BMW center cap. It is a 60 mm domed BMW emblem stuck onto the HRE center cap. I looked for a long time and the closest fit I could find was a badge from a BMW motorcycle (BMW p/n 52537686464). I think I ended up ordering it from a motorcycle place online. Put the part number into a search field and you should be able to find them. Don't take the HRE badge off the center cap, I tried that first and it looks better if you leave the HRE badge on. If you could find a 61 mm domed roundel somewhere that would be a perfect fit but I was unable to find one and 60 was close enough to look good IMO.

[Nafy]

Oh wow didnt know you put so much thought into it for just the caps. I really appreciate the info.