Change 18" to fit BBK or go 19" wheels? or just get spacers???

[BimmerRob08]

Hey fella's got a few questions,

So I'm pulling the trigger on eithe AP's or StopTech BBK's. Not sure yet which but 6POT front & 4POT rear.

My M came with style 219 18" OEM wheels as it's a US spec M3. APR BBK require at least a 10mm spacer for the front's so it's either MS spacers 12mm or go with a bigger wheel.

I'm on the fence about either getting 18" wheels that WILL clear the BBK's and keep my tires for two reasons. One, they only got like 20K miles on them. Second, I don't have a ZCP or lowered suspension and the 18" fill it up well and look good IMO.

So big question is, what are my pro's and cons for going with 19"? I may not end up messing with the suspension to lower it and leave it stock. Plus I do track occasionaly and don't 18" handle that a bit better?

Cheers,

[KM3]

There are a couple of different questions here, so let's take them one by one...

Originally Posted by BimmerRob08

Plus I do track occasionaly and don't 18" handle that a bit better?

The reason 18" wheels are preferred is because they are generally lighter, but more importantly, because there are far more options for track tires (regardless of whether you go with performance street or r-comps). Once you step up to 19" for the track, you have far fewer options for tires, and whatever tires you can find end up being a lot more expensive...

Originally Posted by BimmerRob08

I'm on the fence about either getting 18" wheels that WILL clear the BBK's and keep my tires

The OEM 18" wheels will not clear the ST 380mm rotor and caliper - there isn't enough barrel clearance. So if you wanted to stick with 18" wheels, you'd have to go with a different wheel (something that has the clearance, and there are many options) or consider the APR kit or consider going with a 355mm ST front.

Originally Posted by BimmerRob08

So big question is, what are my pro's and cons for going with 19"?

The main pro of going with with a 19" wheel is that you probably won't have to worry about any clearance issues. Some may say 19s look better, cosmetically, but that's personal preference. Cons of 19s are that the ride will be harsher due to the shorter sidewall, and tires will be more expensive. As mentioned earlier, there are more options in 18" sizes.

I have the stock 19s that I use on the street and a separate set of 18s with track rubber. In general, I think it's best to have a separate wheel/tire combo if you track often enough; otherwise you end up severely wearing out your street tires. Since you have the stock 18s, your BBK options are more limited assuming you want to keep the stock wheels. If you don't, there are plenty of 18" options out there that will clear large front rotors and allow you to run a wide variety of rubber.

[BimmerRob08]

Hey thanks for inputs,

I do like the looks and versatility of the 18" wheels like you mentioned. I'm more inclined to stay with 18"s like I originaly posted but my choice is either go with spacers for a while to clear the APR. APR's kit will clear only with no less than a 10mm spacer up front with the style 219 18" OEM wheels from what **********s and AP has told me. So that's why I'm thinking spacers but I don't trust spacers, just seems more can go wrong, especially with the stress of a track.

I won't be tracking like a pro and often enough to worry to much about tire wear to be honest, at least for now with my present location and probebly in the near future will be the same frequency of track visits as now.

So then, what 18" will fit the 245/35 & 265/35 18's I got now and clear the AP BBK? I'll start looking around.

[KM3]

You have nothing to worry about with spacers. Quality made spacers will be just fine and can easily handle the rigors of the track. I use 12mm spacers on my track setup and they do just fine.

As for finding new 18" rims that will accept your existing tires, just look for rim widths that are similar to the stock widths (8.5 front and 9.5 rear).

[BimmerRob08]

Thanks for the advise man! Yeah, I don't really want to fork out $1,000 for the same size wheels but maybe in the future I will. Just a bit skeptical about the spacers but I'll take your word for it. What's the worst that can happen

I'll probebly go with 12mm to make sure I clear the BBK's.

Now next big question, which brakes to get?? I might make a new post for that.

Cheers,

[aus]

You can get the APEX 18" wheel and it'll clear StopTech 380mm BBK, and the spacer is optional up front. You could go 9.5" or 10" up front, and 10" or 10.5" rear or any combination of the two. That way you could get a larger rotor in up front.
The wheels are very reasonable priced. http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthr...highlight=apex

For spacers, consider these. They sell them for just a little over what people are selling them used for: http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=372072

.

[BimmerRob08]

Originally Posted by aus

You can get the APEX 18" wheel and it'll clear StopTech 380mm BBK, and the spacer is optional up front. You could go 9.5" or 10" up front, and 10" or 10.5" rear or any combination of the two. That way you could get a larger rotor in up front.
The wheels are very reasonable priced. http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthr...highlight=apex

For spacers, consider these. They sell them for just a little over what people are selling them used for: http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=372072

.

Damn, those look good. Light, cheap, and good looking. Thanks.

[1MORELAP]

Get spacers and be done with it. Car will look a bit better too!

[BimmerRob08]

Originally Posted by 1MORELAP

Get spacers and be done with it. Car will look a bit better too!

I'm all for it bro, but I got to make 100% sure what combo of BBK and spacers with my OEM 18" will work. I'd be fooked if I had it on a lift, found out the hard way all this crap ends up rubbing. You can understand?

Thanks & cheers