I know most guys here stick with 255's in the rear of their M3, but I like to be different. I know there is one guy here running 265's in the rear of his M3. I was just wondering if there was a rim out there with the correct offset and width to allow 265s in the rear with just fendering rolling(not flared fenders)? My car is lowered with H&R Coil-overs and it doesn't look like I have much space to spare in the rear. My S03s are starting to show signs of wear and I'm thinking of getting a new rim/tire package.

PM M Rob. I think he is (or was) running 265/35s on Forgelines. . .

275's on 19" BBS CH's, not me, but a friend

Wow black_in-Black, 275s on the rear of an E36 M3??? Can you give me more info on this setup? Was there major body modification required to fit the tires? I was thinking of going with BBS CHs in 18x10 in the rear with 265 tires.

Mode is right, I am running 265.35.18 on 18x9.5" forgelines. A fender roll is not going to be enough to fit this size tires on your car. I had to flare the fenders out about .75".

Trust me on this, I've tried just about every combination. Biggest you can run without some kind of fender mods is 255s. But you need to have lots of offset in the rear, 40-45mm. Even that might be too tight on a 10" rim though. On a 8.5" you should be ok with just a roll.

275-30-19 tires with stock suspension and NO fender rolling. Don't ask me why, but it only rubs w/ 4 people in the car over bumps. 99 M3 coupe by the way.



Originally posted by ADVANT123
Wow black_in-Black, 275s on the rear of an E36 M3??? Can you give me more info on this setup? Was there major body modification required to fit the tires? I was thinking of going with BBS CHs in 18x10 in the rear with 265 tires.

m rob ..

can u fit 245/35/18 on a forgeline 18x8 with a drop and no rubbing ??

Yep, no problem. Offset is still important but not as critical. Look for 40mm+. But no rolling should be needed even with a good drop.

Rob

which offset would u recomend for front and rear .. i wanna run 18x8 and 18x9 .. forgelines .. just like yours

Rear: I am using 9.5" 44mm offset

Front: This is more complicated. Are you gonna run a BBK? If so then calculate the spacer needed before you order. If you plan on keeping the stock front brakes then go for something like 32mm. You want to target 28-35mm when all is said and done (wheel or wheel+spacer).

M Rob- How much should I expect to pay to have my fenders flared? Is it very noticable from the outside of the car? Since you flared your fender, is 265 the max you can go in the back or can you go wider?

Black_in_black- Do you have any pictures of your friends car? No one ever drives in my back seat and I'd be willing to raise my car back to stock height if I could fit 275s in the rear. Is he a member of Bimmerforums? Does he have an email address I can reach him at? I'd love to see that setup.

Originally posted by M Rob
Rear: I am using 9.5" 44mm offset

Front: This is more complicated. Are you gonna run a BBK? If so then calculate the spacer needed before you order. If you plan on keeping the stock front brakes then go for something like 32mm. You want to target 28-35mm when all is said and done (wheel or wheel+spacer).

What size rims/tires are you running in the front?

Guys, heres a trivial question for ya:

Everyone keeps telling me the largest size tire I can fit on the E36 M3 is a 255 in the rear. So being the curious cat that I am, I went to tirerack.com and did some research to see just how much bigger a 265 is compared to a 255. Heres my result:

Bridgestone Potenza S0-3 Pole Position in a 255/40/18
Sec. Width= 10.4"
Tread Width= 9.4"

Michelin Pilot Sport in a 265/35/18:
Sec. Width= 10.5"

Kuhmo Ecsta 712 265/35/18
Sec. Width 10.7"

Kuhmo Ecsta MX 265/35/18
Sec. Width 10.8"

So, the question I have is: Is that .1-.4" of extra tire over a 255 really going to make me have to do extensive body work and flare my fenders? A heavy fender roll(or just trim the edge of the fender if necessary) won't accomodate that extra tire??

I really need your opinions here. A friend of mine is basically willing to give me a set of barely used Pirelli P-Zero 265/35/18s(couldnt find the specs. on tirerack) for free, and as you all know, this is a expensive tire. I want to make this fit on my M3, but if its too much of a headache, than I'll take the tires and sell them.

I run a 255/40-17 tire, the Kumho Victoracer. It has a 10.6" section width. I rubs a little on the inside forward fender, and the outer rear fender. I rolled the fender, and hammered the inside, and it clears most of the time. Just a little rubbing every once and a while. I have a 17x9 wheel with 45mm offset. A slightly larger tire is just going to require more pulling on the fender. But it is very tight back there, and alighment has a big effect also. Good luck.

Chris

M Rob- How much should I expect to pay to have my fenders flared? Is it very noticable from the outside of the car? Since you flared your fender, is 265 the max you can go in the back or can you go wider?

Depends on the body shop, I'd say about $200 a side if they can do a good job. The hard part is finding a job with the tools and the willingness to work on them.

They are slightly noticeable from the outside. I have test fit a 275 and it might be ok, but I don't need anything larger.

What size rims/tires are you running in the front?

Depends. Street I use 245.35 or 255.35. Track I use 265.35 or sometimes 255.35

Overall, I don't think the 265s are really necessary. The 255s are really the best option. Remember that the stock M3 has been known to be very tight with some 245s so the 255s usually need some work to fit so adding an extra .5" is not going to work with out some major body work. Don't forget the effect the wide rim has on the section width. The 265s on a 9-10" rim is really wide, almost 11".

Trust me you won't really notice the difference in appearance from the 255 to 265 but you will hate the fender work hassle.

Rob, 3 questions.

1- How do you know what type off spacer a BBK will require?

2- Can you take a pic of your rear fenders?

3- How do you choose a shop for the fenders (tools, quality, etc)?

I'll be adding rims soon. Right now I'm looking at Kinesis K29s. I want to have a really staggered look and am thinking about 18x9.5 et38(265) in the rear and 18x8.5 et35(235) in the front.

My biggest concerns are fitting the wheels in and figuring the offset to accommodate BBK. Any advice?

Sorry to get slightly OT
M R0b- I'm getting custom set of 19's done for my car 8"F and 9.5" in the rear what offset do i need in the rears. How bout tire sizes. Since these are custom I can get any offset.

Btw, I'll be getting H&R C/O.

thanx.