how low can an 1986 325es go?
- Thread starter ibe2fly
- Start date
First off...17" rims are the biggest that I would go for an e30....I am not even sure that 18s would fit anyway. After you put 17s on your car you won't be able to lower very much with having the tires rub in the fender wells. It will be come extremely hazardous as you try to corner real hard and your tires rub and bend the edge of your fenders.
17s are pretty much fine and once i throw on a body kit it will look pretty low to the ground correct? now with cornering are 17s safe? or should i go 16 ? cuz i dun need any headaches i mean im not gonna race it till i do an engine swap ... but my town has windy roads and i like to push about 60 on the turns with the arrows that say >>>>>> lol so 17s or 16s? im gonna do some reading on the size and what's better ... ill post what i find ... thanx
If you want to lower the car and not have to be concerned with having to have the wheel openings rolled due to rub, try a 1 inch drop with 16 inch rims. Tire rub can occur on one car and not on another so be careful if you go with 17s. The plus 2 recommended size is 205x50x16. H&R has springs with a 1 in drop (OE Sports) and you can use Bilstein HD shocks. If you go lower you will need shorter shocks such as Bilstein sports which are designed to be used with the even shorter springs. The lower you go the more likely you will need adjustible camber plates. They are not needed if you just lower it 1 inch. Whichever you decide remember that you want as light a wheel as you can afford so you do not increase the unsprung weight (tire plus wheel) too much. A heavier wheel will work against better handling.
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....... wtf.... guys... if you go to a bigger rim, u just decrease the sidewall so the outer dimensions of the tire stay the same as if you had a 14 inch rim on there... good buddy of mine has an early e30 on 17's and is SLAMMED on a ground control coilover setup with NO rubbing. Here's a little pic (and he's had it lower than that) -
and since mark has an '86 with the larger rear fender wells, he'll be fine.
mark, all u have to worry about is correct offset of the rim & increased tire wear, which WILL happen due to the increased negative camber caused by the lowering
and since mark has an '86 with the larger rear fender wells, he'll be fine.
mark, all u have to worry about is correct offset of the rim & increased tire wear, which WILL happen due to the increased negative camber caused by the lowering
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![[confused]](/images/smilies/confused.png "Confused [confused]")
the bigger the wheels (and therefore lower the profile) the harder it is to go round poor rough corners the wheels will skip and slam where smaller ones would ease out the bumps and simply bounce the suspension less keeping the majority of the mass of the car stable and therefor instill a greater feeling of control in the driver. up to you what you want i would personally get 15" or tops 16" as i don't think the E30 looks good with too low a profile tire.