pls advise DD on 15mm rear spacers

I am planning to get new wheels/tires (non rft) and while i am at it I thought I might as well get spacers (15mm) to get a nice crouching tiger look. (no spacers in front). I read many posts here and on e90post regarding spacers and there is no clear verdict for daily drivers. Let me summarize all these spacer related threads

1) They improve handling and are not just for looks.
2) You should always use hub centric (which I was planning to use anyway) to avoid vibrations
3) Most people with issues had lowered their car with after market springs. The most suspension related mod I will ever do in future is get Koni FSD's installed.
4) If you plan to track your car, remove spacers first.
5) They will wear out wheel bearings prematurely.

I am a DD and do drive aggressively at times, fast cornering, high speed (max maybe 110 mph). I do not track. Any potential issues if I went rear spacers only ? (as long as there is no rubbing) What do you people who track do extra that you dont do on the street that warrants spacer removal ? I will be glad if the answer is burn outs and drifting since I dont plan on doing that anyway. There is lot of conflicting info on the forums on spacers and Iam hoping some wheel/suspension guru will clear the dust for me and other members with this predicament. Thanks

The size of spacer will depend on the offset of the wheels you use. If they are OEM wheels, 15mm will be fine. And IMHO aggravated bearing wear would only occur if you used some really wide spacers (30mm+).

Originally Posted by gulshan

1) They improve handling and are not just for looks.

I'm no "wheel/suspension guru" but I doubt that a 30mm increase in your rear track would make a noticeable difference in handling.

Also putting a non factory designed spacer between your wheels and the hub is introducing a foreign object in a system that was computer designed by BMW engineers with out it. I know people that have lost a wheel when these spacers have worked loose.

It would be better to buy some wheels with that offset and eliminate the spacers.

Originally Posted by BashedBarrique

I'm no "wheel/suspension guru" but I doubt that a 30mm increase in your rear track would make a noticeable difference in handling.

Also putting a non factory designed spacer between your wheels and the hub is introducing a foreign object in a system that was computer designed by BMW engineers with out it. I know people that have lost a wheel when these spacers have worked loose.

It would be better to buy some wheels with that offset and eliminate the spacers.

I plan to buy the elbrus i08 from tire rack. (18" wheels). Can someone please tell me what spacer I need to get flush look without rubbing on this wheel. (rear only)

You cant do it just by wheel size alone you need to factor in the exact size of the tire. The exact size is not the 255X19X30 its the physical measurement of an inflated loaded tire with a ruler. Tire Rack has this info for all the tires it sells. Somebody on the site might already have the combo & you are golden if not take a lot of measurements at the wheel opening to see how much clearance you have.

Just for a point of info the stock 313 19" wheels will take 245X35X19 & 275X30X19 with out rubbing with no spacers.

BTW if you have a warranty & they see wheel spacers you will have trouble from the dealer.

Originally Posted by bear-avhistory

You cant do it just by wheel size alone you need to factor in the exact size of the tire. The exact size is not the 255X19X30 its the physical measurement of an inflated loaded tire with a ruler. Tire Rack has this info for all the tires it sells. Somebody on the site might already have the combo & you are golden if not take a lot of measurements at the wheel opening to see how much clearance you have.

Just for a point of info the stock 313 19" wheels will take 245X35X19 & 275X30X19 with out rubbing with no spacers.

BTW if you have a warranty & they see wheel spacers you will have trouble from the dealer.

I plan to get the Michellin PSS with the elbrus i08 18 " wheels. if anyone has the same setup please let me know what spacers you used on the rear. Worst case as you said I will get the wheels on first and then measure ...Alternatively if a wider Michelin PSS is available pls let me know what size to order so it will look flush without spacers. I have a 2007 e92/n54 with stock wheels. (I have third party extended warranty from my credit union and will probably have some Indy shop install the wheels - no dealer issues if I have to put spacers)

Originally Posted by gulshan

I plan to get the Michellin PSS with the elbrus i08 18 " wheels. if anyone has the same setup please let me know what spacers you used on the rear. Worst case as you said I will get the wheels on first and then measure ...Alternatively if a wider Michelin PSS is available pls let me know what size to order so it will look flush without spacers.

That wheel has a variety of available widths and offsets, so you'll need to pick appropriately.

For those without Google-fu, it's a resized clone of the 19" E90M3 OEM selection (multispoke Style 220M).

The width of the tire that you can fit on the 18" wheel you are considering is a function of the wheel width and the space under the wheel well. To determine if you need a spacer/what size spacer, you first need to decide what tire size (not just diameter) you want to run. The Tire Rack can help you with this. Once a tire is picked, they can tell you how wide it is. Then by using the offset of the wheel (spec also available from tire Rack) along with 1/2 the width of the tire, you can calculate how much space you have left. This will tell you what size spacers to consider.

All of that said, you would be well advised to follow BashedBarrique's and Bear AV's advice on the spacers. I'd go as wide as the wheels allow, and acll it a day.

Also note that the elbrus wheels require spacer rings already. I do not know what (if any) effect this will have on your idea for spacers - or if you would be better off with another wheel. See the reviews for this wheel.

Originally Posted by Princeton

Also note that the elbrus wheels require spacer rings already. I do not know what (if any) effect this will have on your idea for spacers - or if you would be better off with another wheel. See the reviews for this wheel.

Spacers do accept centering rings but, from my personal experience, wheels that require centering rings are generally extremely poor quality. I would recommend avoiding them entirely.

I am more confused now. reading reviews for this wheel , one review mentions that this wheel is heavier than the oem M3 wheel of same design and the weight of the car is supported just by the bolts instead of bolts and hub. Does this logic apply to any wheel with a spacer ? I have a feeling i will be spending thru my nose and end up buying oem BMW wheels but unfortunately many of the cool M3 style wheels do not come in 18" diameter.

Originally Posted by gulshan

1) They improve handling and are not just for looks.

Most people won't even notice the difference in handling or appearance. You would probably have to tell them.

2) You should always use hub centric (which I was planning to use anyway) to avoid vibrations

Yup, unless you have a really good reason not to. I mean a really good reason.

3) Most people with issues had lowered their car with after market springs. The most suspension related mod I will ever do in future is get Koni FSD's installed.

Cannot imagine you having any problems. I'm running 15mm spacers with FSD's, but I got those spacers to bring the offset off the E46 119 style wheels closer to the OE E90 offset.

4) If you plan to track your car, remove spacers first.

Can't imagine why you'd do that.

5) They will wear out wheel bearings prematurely.

They are not so aggressive it would make a difference if you did nothing else. In combination with other mods and very aggressive driving there might be some effect on bearing life, but that would probably be the least of your worries.

I now understand why a centering ring is needed for aftermarket wheels. Explained nicely here. Before I get further confused with tapered lug nuts and what not, I will check to see if I find 18" M3 style wheels made specifically for the stock e92/18" wheel offset which can be used without any centering ring. Then I will worry about the spacer..

Better idea is to find (if you can) 18" wheels that you like that incorporate the desired offset. Then you won't need spacers.

The quest for the perfect offset has started. Soon I will be talking "et34". (guessing this is same as offset but not sure...).

Originally Posted by gulshan

The quest for the perfect offset has started. Soon I will be talking "et34". (guessing this is same as offset but not sure...).

ET34 is about the same as the OEM wheel offset for 8.5" wheels.

Anecdotal evidence: I ran 265/30R19s in back on 19x9.5 ET30 for awhile with no scrubbing issues but it definitely was not flush. ET22 or so might've worked but I never experimented. Coupe / sport suspension.

I currently have stock Style 189 Rear: 18x8.5 offset 37 and tire size 255/35 18. If I add a 15mm spacer I get the exact flush look like I need. So if I want to avoid using a spacer should I be looking for wheels with offset 52 (37 + 15) ?

If you are not doing so already, read the really excellent info about wheel offset at the Turner Motorsports website and learn how to use an offset calculator.

Originally Posted by gulshan

I currently have stock Style 189 Rear: 18x8.5 offset 37 and tire size 255/35 18. If I add a 15mm spacer I get the exact flush look like I need. So if I want to avoid using a spacer should I be looking for wheels with offset 52 (37 + 15) ?

Originally Posted by gulshan

I currently have stock Style 189 Rear: 18x8.5 offset 37 and tire size 255/35 18. If I add a 15mm spacer I get the exact flush look like I need. So if I want to avoid using a spacer should I be looking for wheels with offset 52 (37 + 15) ?

The math seems odd if you're not familiar with wheel and suspension geometry, but you'd be looking for ET22 (37 - 15).

Positive offset is a measure, in millimeters, of how far outboard the wheel mounting face is from the wheel centerline. Adding a spacer moves the mating face farther inboard so you subtract the thickness of the spacer from the wheel's manufactured offset to determine the new offset.

thanks guys. iam almost there. I now know why they say et22 is a really aggressive fitment. Meanwhile I have also learned that our bore size is 72.56 (sometimes referred to as 72.6). I am closer to my goal of getting a flush rear wheel look without spacers and hub centric rings. I will read the links posted above.

Originally Posted by CT

Spacers do accept centering rings but, from my personal experience, wheels that require centering rings are generally extremely poor quality. I would recommend avoiding them entirely.

I wouldn't say forged BBS wheels with their PF spacers/centering rings are poor quality...

Originally Posted by dkreidel

I wouldn't say forged BBS wheels with their PF spacers/centering rings are poor quality...

Please refer to the word 'generally.'

I still wouldn't run even a BBS wheel with centering rings, though. Would rather just get the proper wheel face.


OP: You may find more info on what you seek here. Bimmerfest can only help so much in this arena - e90post is a whole different world.

I have one last question. I am having a hard time finding some csl style wheels that will give me a flush rear wheel look. Partly cause I want 18" and no spacers/center rings. Lots of choices if I go 19" but I live in Chicago and 18" provide nice balance of comfort/handling. I have stock 18" right now. The only one I found was
18" VMR VB3. Front 18x8.5 et35 and rear 18x9.5 et 22 pcd 5x120, bore 72.6

If the rear was 18x8.5 et 22 I know it will give me perfect flush look, but this is 18x9.5 and I am worried it will give me MexiFlush as shown in below pic. Do you think I will get flush or mexi flush ? thanks

You'd need nearly negative offset levels to achieve mexiflush tier. 9.5 on ET22, if you run 255s, should get you to a little less than flush. Look around on the wheel/tires section of the e90post forums - I'm certain someone over there has thrown up some images of their car using that combination.

About to pull the trigger on below. Need opinions and feedback (good , bad, ugly). Does anyone know what the gap in mm is between the back of the wheel and the strut (stock front and back) and how close you can go to the strut safely.

hyper silver avant m359 pcd 5x120, bore 72.6
FRONT
18x8.5 et 35
7mm LESS clearance on the strut side, and the outside edge of the wheel will EXTEND an extra 5mm
REAR
18x9.5 et 33
9mm LESS clearance on the strut side, and the outside edge of the wheel will EXTEND an extra 17mm

I currently have stock Style 189 -- 18" wheels