Staggered wheels possible on a 93 325i?

[Ad Hoc]

I'm putting 17" wheels on my '93 325i sedan. Can I put a staggered set on this model or do they need to be the same front and rear?

Thanks

[ettsn]

Staggered wheels will fit fine, so long as they are the same offset as the E36 M3.

-Paul

[bigboremike]

i have a 93 325is with 225/40/17's on the front and 245/40/17's on the rear with no rubbing/problems at all, car looks really sweet, rims are off a 2002 330ci...

[stupenal]

Yups, I run the staggered M3 Contour set. I went with 235/45 in the rear because I wanted a less staggered setup and a bit more neutral. Its a GREAT improvement over stock. Even though I had good rubber on my stock 15s, the 17s are much wider and give better contact and stability and control.

[ettsn]

I used to run 235/40-17 on the front and 245/40-17 on the rear of my '97 M3. Stock front tire was a 225/45-17. It was much more neutral that way (far less understeer). The 235/40 size was stock all the way around on the '95 M3, including the LTW that came with staggered forged wheels (7.5/8.5).

-Paul

[Ad Hoc]

Thanks for the info guys.

One additional question: I've been looking at using Pirelli P Zero Nero tires all around (I have Pirelli P 6000s on now), but I hear some people prefer a little softer tire - I know Pirellis are pretty hard. Any thoughts or preferences?

[Jared at Pelican Parts]

As for tires, I've found that Pirellis wear too quickly and are expensive for what they are.

I highly reccommend either the Falken Avensis, or Kumho Ectsas or VictorRacers. These tires are astounding values for the money and seem to able to handle everything you can throw at them

Also good in my book are the Yokohama A509s, although im not sure if they make them anymore.

[Dave at Pelican Parts]

The 509s have been gone for many years now, Jared.

The Falken tires you mean, I think, are the Azenis. Outstanding dry grip, good wet grip, no snow whatsoever grip. They don't last very long, and they're rather loud. Did I mention they really really grip? Plus they're generally quite a bit less expensive than most other tires in any given size.

The VictoRacer tires are "sticky" or "soft compound" or "competition" tires. Inappropriate for the street, IMHO. They'll wear out in no time flat, will hate any standing water, have relatively-fragile sidewalls (e.g., will puncture easily), and pretty much give up everything else that a tire does in order to give you traction. But boy oh boy oh boy do they grip! Better than any street tire.

I am considering trying the Yoko AVS dB. It's supposed to be a good-gripping tire (not great), that gives decent ride comfort and is quiet. My "other car" right now has Dunlop SP Sport A2 tires, and I find them pretty decent but not outstanding. They're kinda noisy, and I'll be looking for something quieter when it comes time to replace them (soon).

The Yoko ES100 is also supposed to be a good-gripping dry-weather tire.

I had Sumitomo HTR100s a little while ago. Very middle-of-the-road, to me.

Most of my research (such as it is) has been in the direction of tires that are available in small sizes. Both of my cars have relatively-small wheels by today's standards, so I haven't considered the tires that are only available in 16"+ sizes.

As always, some quality time spent at http://www.tirerack.com will not be wasted.

--DD

[ettsn]

The Kumho Ecsta 712 is a great tire for the money, although from experience they ride poor when stone cold. They seem to be ever-so-slightly out of round. All of them (I've had two sets, and I know 8-10 people with the same experience). Not really annoying, though. Just manifests itself as road noise until they get a little heat in them.

The Kumho V700 Victoracer is bloody awful on the street. Traction galore, but they get slippery if the weatherman even hints it might rain. Also treadwear is horrid. Expect maybe 2500 miles out of a set, if you don't drive them hard. This really should be for track-only wheels. (They're DOT-R anyway!)

The Yokohama AVS dB is a fantastic tire. Of all the tires I had on my M3, this was probably my favorite. Nice and quiet, with good feel and a very easy limit to cross (linear).

The Yokohama ES100 is in my opinion the absolute best bargain tire period. It's made on the old AVSi (intermediate) carcass, albeit with a slightly modified tread pattern. Only a few bucks more than the 712s, and again IMO, far superior.

Sumitomos are crap, IMO. Avoid, especially since the Yokos and 712s are the same money.

The Falken Azenis are good, but only on lightweight cars. They're really good on things like CRXs, but I'd bet they'd be poor on something like a 3200# E36. Not any cheaper than the Yokos or 712s either.

-Paul

[stupenal]

If you are talking about the Falken Azenis Sport (with the funky tread pattern) that is probably the best street tire dry grip you'll ever get. I think it has a great treadwear rating of 80 or something. That was sarcasm. They stick as good as R compounds almost.

I'll be testing out the 712s on my next set of wheels (picking them up this weekend!) but i've heard decent reviews. HOwever, according to tirerack, they get REALLY REALLY loud after several miles.

The Yokohama ES100 indeed was meant to replace the AVSi and supposedly did a decent job. I have the old intermediates and they're a GREAT tire albeit very fast wearing. I run the p7000 supersports on the front of my car right now. Decent grip but when they start to heat up they start to lose traction quickly. I found at the end of my 20 min run sessions at the track I couldn't keep a good line at the speed I originally had.

Personally if you're looking for awesome grip at a decent price, I'd go with the Kumho Ecsta Mx. It grips as well as the Bridgestone Potenza $03 in the dry (not as good in wet) for a much lower cost. I had them on my old set of contours and they were really top notch.

For a good, cheap tire with decent grip and tread life, consider the Bridgeston RE750 or ES100. Those are the highest rated according to tirerack for those specifications.

[Jared at Pelican Parts]

I have the Sumitomo HTR's on my BMW. LOVE them. Great grip, although they could be a bit better in the rain...

[BMWCowboy]

We sale alot of Sumitomo >>Great tires! 4 cheap!