Newbie, looking for alloy inspiration!

[garyp159]

I don't think you will have issues with Tram lining on the 8.5 wheels. @Dino D has a 245/40/17 square setup for his track car.

I will be using an 8.5j et41 in the front with a 225. Ill be surprised if my tramming is made worse with 0.5 of an inch more wheel and the same tyre.

Have you tried an 8.5J ET41 wearing 225s?

One of the options I'm considering is 8.5J ET38 with 225/40r18 tyres, when I put the dimensions into willtheyfit.com it says 9.7mm closer to the struts and 15.7mm further out, looking at the car which has 17x7.5J with 225/45 the tyres fill the front arch but the wheels sit back a little, hence why I was thinking 8J with 225s, try to keep the tyres close to where they are just bring the wheel out a bit. Should look better without affecting the steering feel.

I will of course get the geometry done after I change the wheels, feels like it needs it anyway, so a trip to Kenny Brown is on the cards.

 

[Scooblitz]

Have you tried an 8.5J ET41 wearing 225s?

One of the options I'm considering is 8.5J ET38 with 225/40r18 tyres, when I put the dimensions into willtheyfit.com it says 9.7mm closer to the struts and 15.7mm further out, looking at the car which has 17x7.5J with 225/45 the tyres fill the front arch but the wheels sit back a little, hence why I was thinking 8J with 225s, try to keep the tyres close to where they are just bring the wheel out a bit. Should look better without affecting the steering feel.

I will of course get the geometry done after I change the wheels, feels like it needs it anyway, so a trip to Kenny Brown is on the cards.

I had 18x8.5j et41 with a 225/40/18 'linglong' tyre on back in 2019 when I bought the car from it's previous owner.
Made a switch to 17s with 225/45/7 as the 18s were a mess from cracks and poor repairs.

In my opinion the 17s provide the right levels of compliance along with the suspension to provide a comfortable but sporty ride. This is opinion, each to there own and worth saying my suspension and bushings were badly worn at this time which won't have helped out much.

I would also suggest that 8.5j et38 will probably be on the very uppermost limits of 'flush' fit to the arch, perhaps a teeny tiny bit poke. If any, it'll rub the plastic wheel arch trim a bit but won't look illfitting. I have around 5mm too much front poke and my arch trimplastic on one side got 'sanded' back by the tyre. If you can handle that, I do see why not.

As a baseline, the standard 'flush' measuremt I use to calculate tollerences for the front is 17x8 et35. This is the spec of a rondell 0058 e36 wheel which I know to but the outer limit of 'flush fit'. 8.5 et41 being the equivlant in the wider wheel.

Renewed steering assembly bushings and ball joints have made a big difference to my car's handling and this would be a more likely culprit to tram lining than the 8.5j wheels.

I do love a good 'wheel' chat.

 

[ExMX5owner]

245 on the front and 295s in the rear.

Similar here, 265 30 R20,s front 295 30 R20,s rear. a bit of top edge inner guard trim required. on smooth roads, brilliant. on rough roads, well don't go there with your teeth installed..

 

[garyp159]

Similar here, 265 30 R20,s front 295 30 R20,s rear. a bit of top edge inner guard trim required. on smooth roads, brilliant. on rough roads, well don't go there with your teeth installed..

Who needs teeth anyway!?
I'd better not go that extreme, can't spoil the ride too much, replaced my "unrefined" TVR with the Z to placate my wife, if I ruin the ride it'll be back in the dog house!

 

[ExMX5owner]

Who needs teeth anyway!?
I'd better not go that extreme, can't spoil the ride too much, replaced my "unrefined" TVR with the Z to placate my wife, if I ruin the ride it'll be back in the dog house!

I never left the doghouse, I bought the car with those rims, I would have preferred something like @Delk has, also the rims up front are too wide for a 245 and the offset is a bit off hence the inner guard trim. Saving up my pocket money for something not so extreme...

 

[garyp159]

Finally dug out a couple of photos of my old E30, these are Dare DTM with polished rim, I don't think they make these anymore however that's the kind of look I like. Either black or silver spokes with polished rim, staggered.

 

[Scooblitz]

 

[garyp159]

Now that's a dish!

 

[Scooblitz]

Now that's a dish!

Big time dish.

Front dish could be reduced a little as for me it's a touch too much for a front rim. Rear is perfect.

 

[garyp159]

Big time dish.

Front dish could be reduced a little as for me it's a touch too much for a front rim. Rear is perfect.

Agree, about half that at the front would be fine, but they are nice wheels... I'm just not convinced about 8.5 on the front, I'd rather keep it to 8 front and 9 or 9.5 on the rear, haven't found the right wheels yet...

 

[Scooblitz]

Agree, about half that at the front would be fine, but they are nice wheels... I'm just not convinced about 8.5 on the front, I'd rather keep it to 8 front and 9 or 9.5 on the rear, haven't found the right wheels yet...

Going 18s?

 

[garyp159]

Going 18s?

So far, yes. I'll consider 17's or 18's.

 

[Scooblitz]

So far, yes. I'll consider 17's or 18's.

Can do 17x8 and 17x8.5 or 17x10 in the rondells 0058s. 10j needs z4 hub mod.

 

[Scooblitz]

ASA ar1 available in various 17s and 18s option with varying dish levels.

 

[garyp159]

ASA ar1 available in various 17s and 18s option with varying dish levels.

View attachment 260307

Any ASA outlets in the UK?

 

[Dxbolton]

I had AC Schnitzer replicas and spacers, lowered car so they filled the arches

Hi all,
Recently bought a 2.8 widebody, a more refined option after a TVR S3 (my wife is much happier). Had an E30 for many years previously.
I'm very happy with it, except for the alloys... they're staggered 17" 7.5J & 8.5J with nearly new Avon AV7 225/45 & 245/40.
Tyres are good, drives fine, I just want a different look... retro with a modern touch maybe?
I'd like to fill the rear arches a bit more, maybe 9J or 9.5J (I believe the latter fits without mods?)
I ran silver DTM style alloys with deep polished dish on my E30, I still like that look but keep thinking gloss black would look better on the Z3.
Undecided, hence looking for inspiration!
Thanks,
GaryView attachment 259857

I had AC Schnitzer replicas and spacers, lowered car so they filled the arches

 

[Scooblitz]

Any ASA outlets in the UK?

I am not aware of any. I think they are sold in America though. Can be found second hand but would suggest you would likely be buying e39 rear wheels and e36 wheels for the front.
ASA, BBS, Ronal, Rondell, Breyton, Racing Dynamics, Ac Schnitzer are the period correct second hand brands to look out for.

Have a look on Driftworks UK. They have various off the shelf DTM style wheels that are reasonablly priced with finance too. The DTM look should be available off the shelf, especially in 18s.

 

[garyp159]

Can't quite find what I was looking for ie dished DTM or Le Man's style wheels, however I do like the look of the Dare F5s which are dished 5 spokes. The fronts are 8J ET40 and rears 9.5J ET42, very close to standard offsets just wider. However I can't decide if I'd put 255/35 or 265/35 on the rears? Would there be clearance issues?

 

[Scooblitz]

Can't quite find what I was looking for ie dished DTM or Le Man's style wheels, however I do like the look of the Dare F5s which are dished 5 spokes. The fronts are 8J ET40 and rears 9.5J ET42, very close to standard offsets just wider. However I can't decide if I'd put 255/35 or 265/35 on the rears? Would there be clearance issues? View attachment 261595

Id expect a 265 to be no issue at all. Will look great. Maybe even squeeze on more.

Assuming it's 18s?

Send me a pic of an ultimate dtm style wheel you would like and I'll try and find something for you.

 

[garyp159]

Id expect a 265 to be no issue at all. Will look great. Maybe even squeeze on more.

Assuming it's 18s?

Send me a pic of an ultimate dtm style wheel you would like and I'll try and find something for you.

I want 8x18 front and either 9 or 9.5x18 rear, nothing bigger.

Those ASA ar1's look good, though I can't see them in the UK.
The Swiss_Z3 wheels look decent too.
Any DTM style i.e. 6 to 8 twin spokes with a dish.
Or something similar but concave like these: