E-46 wheel change tech questions (Tire Rack return customer)

I am getting ready to purchase wheels from the Tire Rack for my 2003 330 Ci and was told by a fellow E-46 owner that a wheel swap requires some sort of "hub-centric" washer anytime the wheel is changed. He said these are "one-time" use items.

Is this true, and if so, will the Tire Rack automatically include these "washers" when I place the order online?

Also-- I am deliberating between two wheel choices:

Choice 1-- Mille Miglia Spider II 18x8 Front and Rear

Choice 2-- Mille Miglia EV-S--18x8 Front, 18x9 Rear

My questions about these choices are:

- Will choice # 2 fit okay without rubbing in the rear?

- Which tire choice do you recommend between the P-Zero Nero & P-7000 Supersport?

- What are the manufacturers weight listing for above choices (per wheel, with your recommended tire choice)?

- Will ride comfort decrease significantly with 18 inch wheels?

Thanks in advance for your help~

Hub centric rings are used to match wheels to different cars using the same bolt pattern. Even with teh same bolt pattern teh hub diameter is different, and the wheel shuold bear against teh hub.

They are one time per wheel per car. And Tire Rack should supply the proper ones for your new wheels to fit you car.

so which popular aftermarket wheels are hubcentric w/ the 3er? which ones don't need those washers?

One should note that at least some hubcentric rings are plastic. This is a mon-issue for street use, but if you have any thoughts of going to the track, it's a big deal.

One-time-use hubcentric rings? This is the first I've heard of this. The ones I've seen have always been a hard aluminum alloy and are very difficult to remove from the wheel (I've had to grind them off in the past), let alone replace every time you take the wheel off and on.

I would imagine that nearly every BMW application (E36/Z/E46 in particular) should be natively hub-centric, as these are the only cars out there that use the particular combination off offset (varies), PCD (5x120) and centerbore (71mm, I think). I know E30M3/E23/4/8/E32/4/8/9) is a little different, as E39s are 72.5mm centerbore vs 71 for everthing else.

Originally Posted by Kaz

One-time-use hubcentric rings? This is the first I've heard of this. The ones I've seen have always been a hard aluminum alloy and are very difficult to remove from the wheel (I've had to grind them off in the past), let alone replace every time you take the wheel off and on.

I would imagine that nearly every BMW application (E36/Z/E46 in particular) should be natively hub-centric, as these are the only cars out there that use the particular combination off offset (varies), PCD (5x120) and centerbore (71mm, I think). I know E30M3/E23/4/8/E32/4/8/9) is a little different, as E39s are 72.5mm centerbore vs 71 for everthing else.

Originally Posted by Kaz

One-time-use hubcentric rings? This is the first I've heard of this. The ones I've seen have always been a hard aluminum alloy and are very difficult to remove from the wheel (I've had to grind them off in the past), let alone replace every time you take the wheel off and on.

I would imagine that nearly every BMW application (E36/Z/E46 in particular) should be natively hub-centric, as these are the only cars out there that use the particular combination off offset (varies), PCD (5x120) and centerbore (71mm, I think). I know E30M3/E23/4/8/E32/4/8/9) is a little different, as E39s are 72.5mm centerbore vs 71 for everthing else.

Actually, the E39 is 74.1mm centerbore and the other BMW models are 72.5mm.

Originally Posted by DZeckhausen

Actually, the E39 is 74.1mm centerbore and the other BMW models are 72.5mm.

Thanks for the correction. I knew there was a 72.5mm in there someplace.

Rings can be resued, as they rarely 'wear out'. They aren't items that woud need to be replaced periodically like brake pads (unless broken of course!) but they often don't transfer from one application to another, since even within BMW the center bore sizes can vary from model to model.

Originally Posted by Gary@Tirerack

Rings can be resued, as they rarely 'wear out'. They aren't items that woud need to be replaced periodically like brake pads (unless broken of course!) but they often don't transfer from one application to another, since even within BMW the center bore sizes can vary from model to model.

Gary-

I started this thread to ask YOU some questions and you ended up answering the "red herring" posts.

Could you take a stab at answering my original questions?

Thanks

No problem, in the future be sure to put my name in the subject as the first word when starting the thread so that I and other members know its directed at me




- Will choice # 2 fit okay without rubbing in the rear?

Yes, use 255/35R18 in rear

- Which tire choice do you recommend between the P-Zero Nero & P-7000 Supersport?

Pzero Nero is much better

- What are the manufacturers weight listing for above choices (per wheel, with your recommended tire choice)?

Mille Miglia Spider II 27lbs.
EVS 18X8 30.5lbs 18X9 31.5 lbs

Tires 255/35R18 24.4
225/40R18 21.8 lbs

- Will ride comfort decrease significantly with 18 inch wheels?


It will be a noticable difference from stock, but there is not really a way to quanitify the difference. Perhaps some other members with 18" on E46 can weigh in with their opinions.

Originally Posted by Gary@Tirerack

- Will ride comfort decrease significantly with 18 inch wheels?


It will be a noticable difference from stock, but there is not really a way to quanitify the difference. Perhaps some other members with 18" on E46 can weigh in with their opinions.

I have a 2001 540i/6, but I just made the switch from 17" wheels to 18" wheels last weekend, so I'll weigh in.

My ride comfort actually improved. I switched from the factory Style 66M staggered wheels at 17x8 and 17x9 to the factory Style 37 at 18x8 and 18x9 and went from the factory-supplied Dunlop SP Sport 2000E tires to a staggered set of Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3. I suspect the ride would have become harsher had I stayed with the same tires. But I changed two things at once.

You will also be changing both tire type and wheel size at the same time. This makes it much harder to predict what will happen in your case. Depending on your tire selection, the ride comfort could go either way.

pssst: P-Zero Nero also has a 235/40, same dia. as the 225/40 yet a slightly better footprint on an 8" wheel

Thanks for the feedback, Gary. Thanks to the other posters also.