19 or 20 inch wheels on my e92 m3?

thefinalprestige · 04-22-2012, 08:11 AM

Hi Guys,

After a couple of years with old Porsches, I am a now finally a new owner of a BMW e92 m3 with original European 18 inch wheels. Although these are good for the track, 99% of the time, the car is to be used on the street, therefore, I am looking for nice 19 inch wheels, of even 20 inch wheels.
Some questions:

Those of you that have tried out 20 inch wheels, what is the most obvious backside of the coin? If you could live with the looks of 19 inch wheels, are these to prefer?

Any suggestions of nice proper wheels in 19 or 20 inches, that looks good on an e92 m3. Preferably something lightweight constructed, and not to “bling bling” ;-).

Grateful for any thoughts.

Regards
Andreas W
Stockholm, Sweden

GUTSUL · 04-22-2012, 09:03 AM

Congratulations!

19 inch should do the job, rims will be big enough to fit aftermarket brake kits, will look good and most likely to be much lighter than 20". My personal favorite are ADVAN RS.
They only come in 19x8.5 +32, +38 , 19x9.0 +22, 19x9.5 +25, +35, +45 and 19x10 +20
For E92 M3 I'll suggest 19x9 +22 / 19x10 +20 for aggressive fitments or
19x8.5 +32/ 19x9.5 +35 for conservative fitments. Advans are very light weight, strong and look pretty good as well.

Here is the link to some popular rims for BMW M3 with specs:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/lv?key=0AsKmxWl9cALddFZjNGdOTG5vcmlUUm5KOEwxRjE2V3 c

crabman · 04-22-2012, 09:23 AM

If you look at the same wheel in either 19 or 20 the 20 is always going to be heavier which means that you lose a little in every performance measure. You also increase the odds of wheel damage and the ride will generally suffer. With 19s wheel diameter is not a factor with most available bbk's leaving only one good reason I can think of to go to 20s. The look outweighs all other factors. Quite a few people do make the move to 20s and none of the downsides are huge so you would not be alone.

This question has been well gone over so if you do a search you will find input from people who have moved to 20s and their impressions of the tradeoffs.

thefinalprestige · 04-22-2012, 09:32 AM

Thanks guys. Thanks GUTSUL for the excel sheet. I see I have plenty to do. Probably gonna stick with the 18-19 inch upgrade. But then, design wise I am still 100% confused :-).

M3SQRD · 04-22-2012, 09:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GUTSUL

19x8.5 +32/ 19x9.5 +35 for conservative fitments

Why would you recommend 8.5et32 and 9.5et35 when stock 219 and 220 wheels are 8.5et29 and 9.5et23?

MR///M3 · 04-22-2012, 10:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dbarnes

Why would you recommend 8.5et32 and 9.5et35 when stock 219 and 220 wheels are 8.5et29 and 9.5et23?

+1 that fitment would be really tucked. I had 19x8.5 et30 front and 19x10 et23 on my e92 335i with no rubbing dropped on coilovers. My wheels now are 18x9.5 et15 and 18x10.5 et20 and I have zero rubbing dropped.

1MOREMOD · 04-22-2012, 10:02 AM

i agree about the advan RS. very good wheel but you should pick a much more aggressive offset and sizing than that.

HoOdRiCh///M3 · 04-22-2012, 10:15 AM

My conservative fitment is custom iss forged fm10 front 19x9 +15/ 19x11+20 with 255/35 and 305/30 LOL didn't know conservtive fitment was 9.5inches in the rear lol

Quote:

Originally Posted by dbarnes

Why would you recommend 8.5et32 and 9.5et35 when stock 219 and 220 wheels are 8.5et29 and 9.5et23?

Moxie · 04-22-2012, 11:24 AM

I went from 19's to 18's & immediatly noticed how much better the car handled, rode & felt more planted with the 18's. Wouldn't say I'd never get 20's, but don't see them in my immediate future....unless there's a deal I couldn't pass up.

BLACK OPS · 04-22-2012, 11:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thefinalprestige

Hi Guys,

After a couple of years with old Porsches, I am a now finally a new owner of a BMW e92 m3 with original European 18 inch wheels. Although these are good for the track, 99% of the time, the car is to be used on the street, therefore, I am looking for nice 19 inch wheels, of even 20 inch wheels.
Some questions:

Those of you that have tried out 20 inch wheels, what is the most obvious backside of the coin? If you could live with the looks of 19 inch wheels, are these to prefer?

Any suggestions of nice proper wheels in 19 or 20 inches, that looks good on an e92 m3. Preferably something lightweight constructed, and not to “bling bling” ;-).

Grateful for any thoughts.

Regards
Andreas W
Stockholm, Sweden

Dude, are you THE Andreas Wiig? If so, you rip bro!

If not, nice ride.

slicer · 04-22-2012, 01:02 PM

I have had both 19 and 20 inch wheels. I would go with 19 without a doubt. I had light weight, forged, 20" wheels so I didn't notice a huge penalty with them. Your choice in tires is also a large factor in your ride quality. Some tires have stiffer side-walls than others. In fact I didn't notice much difference between my 20's vs. 19's in the ride quality department. I did however find that there are more tire size / brand options with 19" wheels. When I switched to 19's, I decided to max out the width of my tires and went with an "extreme performance" tire. Made a big difference in grip and I love it. Some people like 20's for looks but I think the fashionable thing to do today is smaller (18 or 19) track-oriented wheels. If you care about that.....

tibra1 · 04-22-2012, 01:14 PM

19s..i would never put 20s on my M3..

more weight, worst ride..ultra thin tire...higher risk of road hazzard...no bueno..

hieu1004 · 04-23-2012, 06:57 AM

I would go with 19's personally, due to what others have stated...worse ride quality w/20's. Some wheels do look hot in 20's though.

PhillyNate · 04-23-2012, 07:03 AM

I think 19's are the ideal compromise. Looks, performance and ride quality etc.

04-22-2012, 08:11 AM	#1
thefinalprestige New Member 4 Rep 22 Posts Drives: e92 m3 2008 Sparkling Grafite Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Capital of Scandinavia - Stockholm iTrader: (0)	19 or 20 inch wheels on my e92 m3? Hi Guys, After a couple of years with old Porsches, I am a now finally a new owner of a BMW e92 m3 with original European 18 inch wheels. Although these are good for the track, 99% of the time, the car is to be used on the street, therefore, I am looking for nice 19 inch wheels, of even 20 inch wheels. Some questions: Those of you that have tried out 20 inch wheels, what is the most obvious backside of the coin? If you could live with the looks of 19 inch wheels, are these to prefer? Any suggestions of nice proper wheels in 19 or 20 inches, that looks good on an e92 m3. Preferably something lightweight constructed, and not to “bling bling” ;-). Grateful for any thoughts. Regards Andreas W Stockholm, Sweden
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04-22-2012, 09:03 AM	#2
GUTSUL New Member 2 Rep 23 Posts Drives: M3 E92 ESS VT2 600 Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Ukraine, Donetsk iTrader: (0) Garage List 2009 BMW M3 [0.00]	Congratulations! 19 inch should do the job, rims will be big enough to fit aftermarket brake kits, will look good and most likely to be much lighter than 20". My personal favorite are ADVAN RS. They only come in 19x8.5 +32, +38 , 19x9.0 +22, 19x9.5 +25, +35, +45 and 19x10 +20 For E92 M3 I'll suggest 19x9 +22 / 19x10 +20 for aggressive fitments or 19x8.5 +32/ 19x9.5 +35 for conservative fitments. Advans are very light weight, strong and look pretty good as well. Here is the link to some popular rims for BMW M3 with specs: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/lv?key=0AsKmxWl9cALddFZjNGdOTG5vcmlUUm5KOEwxRjE2V3 c
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04-22-2012, 09:23 AM	#3
crabman Captain 177 Rep 858 Posts Drives: 2024 X5M Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: WA iTrader: (0)	If you look at the same wheel in either 19 or 20 the 20 is always going to be heavier which means that you lose a little in every performance measure. You also increase the odds of wheel damage and the ride will generally suffer. With 19s wheel diameter is not a factor with most available bbk's leaving only one good reason I can think of to go to 20s. The look outweighs all other factors. Quite a few people do make the move to 20s and none of the downsides are huge so you would not be alone. This question has been well gone over so if you do a search you will find input from people who have moved to 20s and their impressions of the tradeoffs.
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04-22-2012, 09:32 AM	#4
thefinalprestige New Member 4 Rep 22 Posts Drives: e92 m3 2008 Sparkling Grafite Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Capital of Scandinavia - Stockholm iTrader: (0)	Thanks guys. Thanks GUTSUL for the excel sheet. I see I have plenty to do. Probably gonna stick with the 18-19 inch upgrade. But then, design wise I am still 100% confused :-).
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04-22-2012, 10:02 AM	#7
1MOREMOD - 11817 Rep 23,187 Posts Drives: Race car-> Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: check your mirrors iTrader: (5)	i agree about the advan RS. very good wheel but you should pick a much more aggressive offset and sizing than that. __________________ 02 Tiag e46 M3\|6MT\|GC plates\|MCS c.o.\|GC bars\|GC race control arms\|GC bushings\|BW eng. & tran. mounts\|subframe kit\|BW race shifter\|BW Jaffster\|Euro header\|BW exhaust\|K&N c.a.i.\|Epic race tune\|Rouge pulleys\|Seibon CF hood\|CSL bumper\|apr gt 250 & splitter\|ST-40\|XR-2\|SS lines\|half cage\|Recaro profi\|Profi 2 harness\|BMWpedals\|BW studs\|
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04-22-2012, 11:24 AM	#9
Moxie Lieutenant Colonel 67 Rep 1,895 Posts Drives: AW 328d Touring/SG 335d Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: North Carolina iTrader: (12)	I went from 19's to 18's & immediatly noticed how much better the car handled, rode & felt more planted with the 18's. Wouldn't say I'd never get 20's, but don't see them in my immediate future....unless there's a deal I couldn't pass up.
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04-22-2012, 01:02 PM	#11
slicer Major General 2736 Rep 6,734 Posts Drives: 'E46 M3 Race Car, '23 X7 Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Wisconsin - Instagram - @slicer_m iTrader: (39)	I have had both 19 and 20 inch wheels. I would go with 19 without a doubt. I had light weight, forged, 20" wheels so I didn't notice a huge penalty with them. Your choice in tires is also a large factor in your ride quality. Some tires have stiffer side-walls than others. In fact I didn't notice much difference between my 20's vs. 19's in the ride quality department. I did however find that there are more tire size / brand options with 19" wheels. When I switched to 19's, I decided to max out the width of my tires and went with an "extreme performance" tire. Made a big difference in grip and I love it. Some people like 20's for looks but I think the fashionable thing to do today is smaller (18 or 19) track-oriented wheels. If you care about that..... __________________ '23 X7 '04 M3 - Fall Line Motorsports Built Race Car - S65 swap, Dry Sump, Bosch Stand-Alone ECU, Drenth Sequential Trans, MCS 3-Way, Flossmann Wide Body, Brembo Motorsports Brakes, Drexler LSD, BBS E88 Etc. INSTAGRAM - @Slicer_M
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04-22-2012, 01:14 PM	#12
tibra1 Banned 127 Rep 6,773 Posts Drives: 2011 ZCP M3 - 2007 335i crashd Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: NYC iTrader: (4)	19s..i would never put 20s on my M3.. more weight, worst ride..ultra thin tire...higher risk of road hazzard...no bueno..
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04-23-2012, 06:57 AM	#13
hieu1004 Second Lieutenant 19 Rep 226 Posts Drives: Space Gray e92 M3 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Bothell, WA iTrader: (0)	I would go with 19's personally, due to what others have stated...worse ride quality w/20's. Some wheels do look hot in 20's though. Last edited by hieu1004; 04-23-2012 at 07:35 AM..
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04-23-2012, 07:03 AM	#14
PhillyNate ENTHUSIAST 135 Rep 2,097 Posts Drives: 2010 Porsche Cayman Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Philadelphia iTrader: (0) Garage List 2010 Porsche Cayman [0.00]	I think 19's are the ideal compromise. Looks, performance and ride quality etc. __________________ "what I'm driving here...is an ending." Jeremy Clarkson 2010 Carrara White Porsche Cayman 6mt 2014 Whiteout Toyota GT-86 6mt(Sold 05/23/15) 2011 Alpine White BMW M3 6mt ZCP Coupe(forced retirement 06/06/14) 2008 Alpine White BMW 328i 6mt Coupe(retired 06/21/11)
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