If I had to choose just one of these two mods, which one?

[nd89sc88]

I'm getting a little ahead of myself, because I haven't actually placed my order yet, but I'm soon going to be ordering a 325xi. I'm not going to order the sport package (the wheels offered with the sport package are ugly and I didn't really like the seats), so the car will come with the stardard 16 inch wheels and all-season tires.

The question is, if I have $2000 to spend, should I buy a set of 18" wheels/tires for the summer (nothing specific picked out, yet), or should I re-do the suspension with coil-overs and lower it a bit. (BTW, even though I live in MN, I'm not concerned about clearance in the winter; when we have a really big snowfall, I'll drive our Pathfinder).

I'm wondering which one will I appreciate more on a daily basis? I really think the xi looks too high, and H&R coilovers will only lower the car about a half inch lower than a regular i. Of course, I also love the look of the bigger 18 inch wheels.

This question is seeking input both from a looks and a performance/feel perspective. Any comments appreciated.

Bill

[in_d_haus]

Wheels...coilovers will be a waste of time unless you are going to heavily track the car..on 16" all season tires.

What's there NOT to like about the sport seats? Your first long distance trip and you will wish ya had them.

[MysticCi]

I would go with the 18" rims if I were you. On the other hand, if you already have a truck for bad weather why dont you just get a 325i. I have never driven an XI, but I have heard that the i handles a little better, and it is lower. If you got the 325i you would alredy have a lower car, and you could buy your rims. The best of both worlds!! Regardless of what you decide, you will have an excellent car. You really cant go wrong when you choose a BMW. Good luck :thumbup:

[nate]

Originally posted by in_d_haus
Wheels...coilovers will be a waste of time unless you are going to heavily track the car..on 16" all season tires.

What's there NOT to like about the sport seats? Your first long distance trip and you will wish ya had them. I like the standard seats more

[Nick325xiT 5spd]

Coils. And do 17" wheels later.

[PhilH]

IMO 18s on an unlowered xi will look pretty strange. Get the coilovers. The suspension upgrade is also a serious performance upgrade you'll appreciate every time you drive your car.

[jraymond]

Originally posted by DougDogs
Coilover!! Coilover!

Do a search for posts here by JRaymond from Utah. He did the conversion and posted a bunch of pictures and instructions

Oh, I think you know what my vote is. With coilovers you get excellent performance along with a great look. That's a good value for your money. By the way I put on 17" wheels. I am very satisfied with the look.

[The HACK]

$2,000 to spend? Driving schools. That's 5 sessions and you will DEFINITELY appreciate this mod the most during daily driving.

[tgravo2]

Originally posted by nate328Ci
I like the standard seats more

:confused: hater ;)

[tgravo2]

Get the 18's :thumbup:

[Phil F]

Are you aware that the xi sport package gets the "styling 73" wheels and not the "styling 96"

I would agree that the 96s are dog ugly. But the 73s--the standard wheel on the 330i--are, to my thinking, great looking wheels.

If you think they're ugly, you're the first person I've heard say this.

Also, IMO, the sport seats will be sorely missed if you drive your 325 hard.

[rwg]

What HACK said unless you are really interested in appearance mods. If it's a look that you are after, get wheels.

I always think this is a trick question. Driving school is almost always the correct answer.

[JonW]

I've got a 325xi and I've had it at the track a little. I agree with Hack. Driver school first. And I'd say get the sport package. The seat side bolsters really do help at the track.

Then I'd go with better wheels and tires. The weakest part of the car are the skinny all season tires the car comes with even with the sport package. Those tires don't handle great in the dry, but they're actually quite good in the snow. I got myself some 17" BBS RK wheels with SO3 tires at 235/4/017. Now the car is totally different on the track. A whole new machine. Great handling.

The body roll, etc. doesn't bother me, really. So I'd say skip the coilovers, etc. if you've got limited funds. Although having the car lower and with a tighter suspension would make it handle better and look better, I can't imagine getting the huge improvement that the wheels gave my car.

That said, the big handling improvement I got from the new wheels/tires was mostly at the track. It's still better on the street, but probably not better enough to justify the big expense it was (2K).

Also, if you're going to be buying a second set of wheels/tires, you might want to skip the xi and have dedicated snow and summer setups. The 325i will be lower, stiffer, lighter, and cheaper than the 325xi.

[Raffi]

What HACK said. Mod the driver first, you can transfer that knowledge to any car you drive.

[SARAFIL]

Originally posted by nd89sc88
I'm getting a little ahead of myself, because I haven't actually placed my order yet, but I'm soon going to be ordering a 325xi. I'm not going to order the sport package (the wheels offered with the sport package are ugly and I didn't really like the seats), so the car will come with the stardard 16 inch wheels and all-season tires.

The question is, if I have $2000 to spend, should I buy a set of 18" wheels/tires for the summer (nothing specific picked out, yet), or should I re-do the suspension with coil-overs and lower it a bit. (BTW, even though I live in MN, I'm not concerned about clearance in the winter; when we have a really big snowfall, I'll drive our Pathfinder).

I'm wondering which one will I appreciate more on a daily basis? I really think the xi looks too high, and H&R coilovers will only lower the car about a half inch lower than a regular i. Of course, I also love the look of the bigger 18 inch wheels.

This question is seeking input both from a looks and a performance/feel perspective. Any comments appreciated.

Bill

Have you ever seen an xi with 18 inch wheels? Please, please, please do the suspension first, then take care of the wheels at a later date. You will not enjoy the look of your new wheels everytime you look at the car and see that ENORMOUS fender gap.

[sshuit]

I agree with whoever said that if you have a pathfinder for the bad weather then you should just get a 330i which is lower, has 17's standard and will be a lot more fun due to better pwr/wt anyways.

Ive only got my Cdn$ price guide but I could get a 325Xi for 42,300$ or a 330i for 46900$ a difference of about 4600$CDN or about 3000$ USD with no need to add heated seats, sunroof, or 17"s

but then again you do live in MN!

[blackhawk77]

Originally posted by nate328Ci
I like the standard seats more

I second what Nate just said.

[smalldog]

I agree w/previous posts that, if you're gonna drive a Pathfinder anyway in heavy snow, don't get the 325xi....

I have a 328i with Sport Pkg (17"x8" wheels all around w/225/45/R17 tires), and it actually handles pretty decent in the snow (especially after switching to Michelin Pilot Sport A/S tires when the factory-supplied Bridgestones needed replacing this year).

The combination of the lower sport suspension and 17x8 wheels makes a BIG difference in handling AND looks. And since the Xi is more expensive than the i version of the car, you can probably get a 330i w/sport pkg for about the same price as your 325xi + the $2,000 you intend to spend on mods.

Finally, I have to beg you to reconsider the sport seats. I have 'em, and they're great. My coworker recenlty bought a used 330ci w/o them, and he's already complaining about the lack of lateral support and lack of being able to extend the bottom cushion forward toward the knees.

[Bavarian]

Originally posted by nate328Ci
I like the standard seats more

Finally a man who has his thinking straight! The standard seats are SUPERIOR to the sport seats. Yes, that's right - go ahead and flame me "enthusiasts"!!! I couldn't care less if you enjoy that "hard-as-metal" "sport" seat of yours.

[Cadetdrivr]

Originally posted by nd89sc88

The question is, if I have $2000 to spend, should I buy a set of 18" wheels/tires for the summer (nothing specific picked out, yet), or should I re-do the suspension with coil-overs and lower it a bit.

Hi Bill:

My $0.02: I'd select 'none of the above.'

Why buy an AWD, then lower it, and then don't drive it when the AWD might actually help???

The simple matter is the 'plain' 325/330 does just fine with a decent set of snow tires, and the Sport Package is usually cheaper than an aftermarket performance wheel/tire setup anyway. Plus, you can pocket the savings from deselecting the xi.

FWIW, I did the SP on my '02 330i and just went through the past winter here in MN (w/ snow tires) driving it daily as my only car, and had ZERO problems. I almost went with the xi, and in retrospect I am really glad I did not.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,
Paul

[Capitalist]

I agree with what others have said with regards to RWD vs. AWD winter performance. RWD + Pirelli Snow Sport 210 did just fine for me last winter. Xi's only real advantage is higher ground clearance. I had to avoid unplowed side streets on several occasions because of the low ground clearance that comes with the sport suspension.

Getting 18” wheels with stock suspension would be an EXTREMELY bad idea in my opinion. The xi looks jacked up even with standard 16’s; lower profile tires that you’d have to put on 18’s would make the already big wheel gap look totally ridiculous.

[jj_spike]

Capitalist,

did you use your 325i with the snows often in the winter? Since I would only have 1 automobile, I have some concern with an RWD. Would a regular suspension 325i (16" wheels) be fine for the winter?

Thanks

JJ

[Capitalist]

Originally posted by jj_spike
Capitalist,

did you use your 325i with the snows often in the winter? Since I would only have 1 automobile, I have some concern with an RWD. Would a regular suspension 325i (16" wheels) be fine for the winter?

Thanks

JJ

Yes, I did drive it quite a bit last winter. Personally, I find the 325i with snow tires to be almost as capable as the X5 with all-seasons unless we are talking about conditions where ground clearance becomes an issue.

Regular suspension provides noticeably more ground clearance than the sport version so there shouldn't be much of a problem. However, to be honest, unless you leave on a street that does not get plowed regularly, you’d be fine even with the sport package (I certainly was). But regardless of whether you choose sport or non-sport, you absolutely must invest in a set of good winter tires if you go with RWD – they make all the difference in the world. Even though the regular 325i comes with all-season tires, I wouldn’t trust them in winter.

[Phil F]

Originally posted by Capitalist
Yes, I did drive it quite a bit last winter. Personally, I find the 325i with snow tires to be almost as capable as the X5 with all-seasons unless we are talking about conditions where ground clearance becomes an issue.


Capitalist-

I own an X5 and I just ordered a 325xi. I went with the xi over the rearwheel drive because I felt that even with snows hillclimbing would be a problem w/o the AWD. (I barely got up my icy driveway a couple times last winter in the X5.)

What is your experience with the 325i on icy inclines?

[Capitalist]

Originally posted by Phil F
Capitalist-

I own an X5 and I just ordered a 325xi. I went with the xi over the rearwheel drive because I felt that even with snows hillclimbing would be a problem w/o the AWD. (I barely got up my icy driveway a couple times last winter in the X5.)

What is your experience with the 325i on icy inclines?
Phil,

I don’t think my personal experience would be helpful to you because 1) I don't have a steep driveway and 2) Toronto and surrounding area are relatively flat and there aren't that many steep hills around here (or at least I don't encounter them during my regular commute). I had no problem climbing a few semi-steep snowy hills (nothing extreme though) but that’s about as far as my experience goes. It’s hard to say whether the extra traction provided by winter tires would outweigh the obvious benefits of AWD in a hill-climbing situation. The popular consensus seems to be favoring AWD. In 1999 Car and Driver did a four car comparo (snow tire-equipped RWD E320 and FWD A6 vs. all-season tire-equipped E320 4-matic and A6 Quattro) and it was their opinion that AWD cars were superior in terms of hill-climbing traction.

"Four-wheel drive won this first round of testing. Both four-wheel-drivers, even shod with stock all-season tires, were able to ascend the 30-percent grade, whereas the 2wd cars could only conquer the 10- and 15-percent grades."

Car and Driver winter traction test (http://www.caranddriver.com/xp/Caranddriver/features/1999/May/199905_feature_whatp.xml?&page=2)

Hope this helps.

[The HACK]

Originally posted by ___lk___
geezus, how did i KNOW somebody would mention driving school within the first 10 responses.... no matter what anybody asks, the answer is always "driving school"

no to single u out dan, but it's hilariously predictable. :rofl:

It's only the truth and it's definitely worth repeating.

I'd hate to see someone spend $2,000 on mods that won't do a 10th of what a driving school will teach. What's the point of making your car handle better when you can't really handle it better anyway.

And your sarcasm is predictable too lk. :rolleyes: :angel:

[nate]

Originally posted by The HACK
It's only the truth and it's definitely worth repeating.

I'd hate to see someone spend $2,000 on mods that won't do a 10th of what a driving school will teach. What's the point of making your car handle better when you can't really handle it better anyway.

And your sarcasm is predictable too lk. :rolleyes: :angel: That's more like 8-10 sessions in TX/LA (the state)

[brave1heart]

Frankly, if performance is very important to you, you shouldn't be buying the xi model... You'll spend $1,450 to get a much heavier car with a raised suspension and then spend another 2 grand to fix that? :tsk: :dunno: :confused: :eeps:

[TD]

Originally posted by Bavarian
Finally a man who has his thinking straight! The standard seats are SUPERIOR to the sport seats. Yes, that's right - go ahead and flame me "enthusiasts"!!! I couldn't care less if you enjoy that "hard-as-metal" "sport" seat of yours.

I suspect Rooster Boy here has a fat ass.

(Oh, and lk is obviously right. This guy isn't going to drop a penny on a drivers school. It's all about the BLING, baby!)

[Mr. The Edge]

Originally posted by ___lk___


for future reference guys, whenever somebody asks about wheels *over* 17-inches, they AREN'T interested in going to driving school.... :rofl:

:rolleyes:

http://members.roadfly.com/stmedina/evosportrg82.jpg

:rolleyes: