[XKxRome0ox]

so i purchased a set of Apex ARC-8 wheels and tires
18x8.5 ET45 square set up
with 255/35/18 tires
the offset and tire sizing is for the 2 series, not f30



I test fitted the wheels up front
expected to not clear the brakes and especially the suspension
but ... it did
it BARELY clears the brake caliper

i'm surprised they fit at all though
i was expecting to have to use 12mm spacers because of losing the inner distance between inside of wheel and the suspension
an online calculator showed that i am losing 17mm on the inside with the wheel change






i drove it around the block once
turned the wheel from end to end
did a tight U-turn
didn't rub anything
but of course it might not be the case under load and especially on a track
so i'll be using 5mm spacers

[.BMW.]

Good info that the 8.5x18" ET45 clears the brake calipers.

I'm not so surprised that the tires doesn't rub, 255/35-18 is 1" too short for F30 and the wheel gap is massive!

[XKxRome0ox]

Originally Posted by .BMW.

Good info that the 8.5x18" ET45 clears the brake calipers.

I'm not so surprised that the tires doesn't rub, 255/35-18 is 1" too short for F30 and the wheel gap is massive!

lol
yes


my biggest concerns were clearing the ...
#1 brake caliper
#2 suspension strut

"Compared to your existing wheel, this new wheel will have an inner rim which is 17.4mm closer to the suspension strut.
The outer rim will poke out 4.7mm less than before."
http://www.willtheyfit.com/index.php...8-5&offset2=45


so 5mm spacers should be all that i need to make the wheels work without any problems up front

[Polo08816]

Originally Posted by XKxRome0ox

lol
yes


my biggest concerns were clearing the ...
#1 brake caliper
#2 suspension strut

"Compared to your existing wheel, this new wheel will have an inner rim which is 17.4mm closer to the suspension strut.
The outer rim will poke out 4.7mm less than before."
http://www.willtheyfit.com/index.php...8-5&offset2=45


so 5mm spacers should be all that i need to make the wheels work without any problems up front

Why didn't you just buy the 18x8.5 ET38 APEX ARC-8 wheels?

[XKxRome0ox]

Originally Posted by Polo08816

Why didn't you just buy the 18x8.5 ET38 APEX ARC-8 wheels?

money

i bought these used
didn't see any used ET38 wheels for sale
ARC-8's tend to get snatched up right away since they're so popular with the autocross/track crowd
these also come with great tires

so i knew it wasn't ideal fitment but i thought i could make it work

[2000Z3M]

what are you doing with those 398?

[XKxRome0ox]

Originally Posted by 2000Z3M

what are you doing with those 398?

they'll continue to be my daily wheels

keeping the arc-8 just for track duty
at least for the time being

[wdeerfield]

you are not hitting the strut tube? on my 18x8.5 et40 with a 235/45/18 its this close:

[XKxRome0ox]

Originally Posted by wdeerfield

you are not hitting the strut tube? on my 18x8.5 et40 with a 235/45/18 its this close:

Are you lowered at all?
I am at stock height with m sport suspension
I drove to work and back today ... haven't had any issue
But I am going to take the wheels off for now
The Bridgestone re-71r tires are NOISY

[wdeerfield]

I am not lowered and im on stock xdrive ride height. your wheels look great on there though. With a proper sidewall size itll look great.

[gljev1]

Originally Posted by XKxRome0ox

so i purchased a set of Apex ARC-8 wheels and tires
18x8.5 ET45 square set up
with 255/35/18 tires
the offset and tire sizing is for the 2 series, not f30



I test fitted the wheels up front
expected to not clear the brakes and especially the suspension
but ... it did
it BARELY clears the brake caliper

i'm surprised they fit at all though
i was expecting to have to use 12mm spacers because of losing the inner distance between inside of wheel and the suspension
an online calculator showed that i am losing 17mm on the inside with the wheel change






i drove it around the block once
turned the wheel from end to end
did a tight U-turn
didn't rub anything
but of course it might not be the case under load and especially on a track
so i'll be using 5mm spacers

Sorry to revive an old thread but I can't pm you yet... is there any chance you remember how much clearance there was between the spokes and calibers? Would you say there was about 5mm or not even that?

[johnung]

Originally Posted by gljev1

Sorry to revive an old thread but I can't pm you yet... is there any chance you remember how much clearance there was between the spokes and calibers? Would you say there was about 5mm or not even that?

I don’t believe the OP ever said what car or brakes he had. If you wonder about fitment of an APEX wheel on your car, just contact APEX with the wheel model, size & offset and tell them your year, model and brake sizes.

On an F30 the general rule of thumb is that you want to end up around ET35 or so for proper fitment. So if you have an ET45 wheel you could add a 10mm spacer (and 10mm longer wheel bolts) to bring it to ET35.

But if a wheel is ET25, you are out of luck because it already pokes out of the fender well too much and a spacer would only make that worse.