how to fit E39 wheels

[Philly]

Since I usually get at least 2 to 3 PM's a week asking about the fitment of my E39 wheels ... I figured Id make a "official thread" about it for people who do not want to scour through their searched threads to find the answers... and more so, to save myself the time it takes to type this up a few times a week.

SO here we go,

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The most popular E39 wheels seem to be sized at 17x8 with a 20et offset. (Style 5's, Style 42's, etc etc)

This list assumes you are dropped, or planning to be soon.
For reference, I use 17x8 20et style5's with 235/40/17xl tires and I use H&R sports


Whats needed to fit 20et E39 wheels?

Hubcentric rings - I.D = 72.56mm / O.D = 74mm - The E39 use a larger centerbore on the hub, by using these rings, they will make the centerbore the correct size to match with the wheels. I suggest getting the aluminum ones.

Hub centric rings are manufactured so that when they are installed on a vehicle, the wheels are located directly off of the centre flange of the brake drum or rotor. This is done to insure that the outer beads of the wheel are concentric with the wheel bearings. The result is a much truer, better balanced tire/wheel assembly. This is very important with modern high tech suspension systems.

Rear fenders - You will have to address the rear fenders before fitting, there is a sharp lip inside that will rip your tires sidewall to shreds if its not rolled down... if you fit the wheels/tires before you do this, and your dropped, give it a few days and then picture me saying "I told you so".
Alot of people attempt to roll them theirselves, but I paid a body shop to do mine and it cost me $150 for about 3hrs of labour. There is a good chance the paint will crack on our old cars, right on the edge where the fender rolls back up&inside, keep that in mind if your wary about your pretty new paint job getting scarred up.

PROS :

Wider footprint / Better handling - the low offset wheel stick out about 0.5" to 1" further to the fender than stock wheels

Looks - obviously

CONS :

RUBBAGE! - some people report minimal rub with a similar setup, I on the other hand... rub the rear ALOT, I don't know if its just a "style 5" issue, a tire size issue or just my Ti.. but I do rub a fair amount. I ruined my last set of tires before rolling the sharp inner lip inside the rear fender, everytime I hit it would "slice" away a sliver of the sidewall... but with the rear roll, at least now the rub doesn't ruin the tires. The fronts do not hit unless your REALLY driving the corners hard... I only hit one time in the front that I can recall and that was under some extreme driving into a downhill corner.
(Note : with use of 215/40 tires, rub should be very minimal to non-exsistent. Myself, I do not like the stretched tire look and wanted a nice wide footprint, so I run 235/40's .. FTR, last ruined set was 225/45/17)

Rear Camber - Not a huge issue with a minimal drop, my tires still appear to be wearing almost evenly. If using H&R race or equivalent, you may have some camber issues to address if you want to salvage your tires.

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Now, some people have different opinions and experience than I do in regards to this wheel fitment. Some do not run the hubcentric rings, others have little to no rub at all... so this is strictly based on me and my experiences with my setup and what I believe to be the "proper" way to run these wheels, as they were intended.

This is all that comes to mind right now, if I left out anything you feel should be added, please feel free.

[thesk8nmidget]

there are also a piece of the inner molding of the bumper that will rub... you can see this after you rub a few time. you can jack your car up pull the tire and see where it is being worn down.. simply cut it off with an exacto knife

[SDKmann]

Great write up, definitely good to know.

[thesk8nmidget]

the difference from a 5 series wheels et20 to say a 3 series wheels et35 or et40 will actually be .75 to 1 inch further out

[trickiekid]

I am running 215/50/16 with no rubbing issues. Good write up though.

[Bobbak]

im in the process of restoring my style 5's and this info helps alot in doing a 215/40/17 stretched tire

[Philly]

Originally Posted by thesk8nmidget

the difference from a 5 series wheels et20 to say a 3 series wheels et35 or et40 will actually be .75 to 1 inch further out

Ive never actually had a stock set of wheels other than my steelies, so I wasn't sure how much of a difference there actually was - I fixed it in my write up thanks!
(edit : wait, yes i did, my Beyerns... oops, i obviously have the memory span of a goldfish)

Originally Posted by trickiekid

I am running 215/50/16 with no rubbing issues. Good write up though.

Thank you. I just wrote it based on my experiences with what I encountered on my car with the E39 17's... Good to know about the 16's too!

[thesk8nmidget]

im running a 215/45/17 on mine.

[Philly]

Originally Posted by Bobbak

im in the process of restoring my style 5's and this info helps alot in doing a 215/40/17 stretched tire

Jeez, everyone is picking up style 5's lately lol
Buttttttttttt they are a gorgeous wheel, so i don't blame you.

are you polishing the lips or just getting them back to OE condition?

have you popped the center barrels out yet?
if so, i hope you had as much fun as me trying to break them free as I did... lol - 50lbs weight + a stack of newspapers helps bang those centers out pretty quickly.

[trickiekid]

Just to add, I am running stock suspension (for now). If you really want an easier way out with still having the -20 offset find some e28 rims, same bore as the e36 but with the 5 offset

[angel318ti]

MODS please sticky this thread. it's definitely "Sticky Status".

[Bobbak]

I popped out the center with a rubber mallet and now im putting them back together and i dunno the exact torque specs for the bolts, and yeah im polishing the lip and making them shiny

[Bobbak]

bump

[angel318ti]

Originally Posted by Bobbak

bump

????

[ATF]

Originally Posted by angel318ti

????

He doesn't know the torque spec for the 5-series rims (nor do I after a brief search).