E46 (03 plate) wheel offset??

[miniblob]

Mate of mine has bought an '03 plate 320D and wants to get some better rims than the standard 16's!!

Anyone know what offset the wheels would need to be, and what width he could go up to??

Cheers,
Rob.

[gasgas]

the offset changes as the wheel size increases. what size are you going to?

[miniblob]

Not sure mate.
Didn't know the offset changed with wheel size!! Surely the optimum would be the offset of the standard wheels!!

Think he's considering some 18" MV's at the mo - not sure of the width - what could he go up to??

[JazzMan]

I've got 17x8J on the front, and 17x9J on rear of my 02 E46 Coupe, no clearance issues. I'm using 225/45/R17 and 245/35/R17 tyres.

IIRC the 8J says ET46 they are Alpina Softlines.

[stuartgallafant]

rob, if he changes the size of the wheels, he's gonna need a KDS. this will reset the suspension and sterring geometry, decreasing tyre wear and vastly improving handling, but, they're expensive

[gasgas]

OFFSET FOR 16'S IS E46
OFFSET FOR 18'S IS FRONT ET47 AND REAR ET50
As mentioned a KDS will need to be carried out ideally, approx £300.

[miniblob]

Woah!!!!! what the hell is KDS????? Is that a dealer thing, or can any alloy place do it??

Cheers for the info though!!

[gasgas]

KDS Is basically a track and camber check, they weight the car so it sits correctly and check all the allignments and stuff. It is done using a computer and some optical sensors and is meant to be mega accurate! dunno if i would pay £300 though! but it looks pretty impressive. I pressume you could get it done out of the dealer network, but whether it will be as precise?

[stuartgallafant]

KDS = Kinematic Diagnostic System. Kinematic is German for geometry or some sh1t like that. its basically the setup of the suspension geometry, ergo, it controls how you car handles!!!

[miniblob]

Oh, right!!!!

Never realised what a pain in the ass newer cars are!!!! Glad i bought the E30 instead of the E46!!!!

I'll pass on the info and let him decide!!

Cheers fellas!!!!