wheel fitment and spring help

[westaussie323i]

Having had a selection of E21, E38 and E39 models I am now looking to buy an E23 1985 735i Australian delivered car. I am having trouble finding a tyre/wheel calculator that lists the E23. Its has the stock 14" rims but would like to go to 16-17" and don't want to roll guards or run spacers (these are illegal here) with maybe a 30-50mm static drop. So if I use a 16" or 17 x 8" rim with ET20 is this going to cause problems rubbing? Do I need to use different offset? Tyre shops here arent very helpful and certainly don't go out of their way to help. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated

[Carpy2]

Sorry if this isn't helpful, I don't know much about e23's, if anything at all. But generally speaking, keeping similar offset to stock when moving up wheel diameters is a good idea. The overall diameter should be similar to stock sizes (rim gets bigger, but tire profile gets smaller, maintaining the same overall diameter). Because you aren't allowed to use spacers, potentially running a slightly lower offset may help (ie, if stock is et30 for example, running et20 wheels in the same width is sort of like running the et30 wheel with a 10mm spacer). But someone else with more experience than me will have to comment on the exact offsets needed.

I did find this thread where someone is running 17" e34 M5 wheels on their e23, so maybe something close to what the e34 runs, or actual e34 M5 wheels, may be a good option for you if you think the ride height they're at is about what you would run.

I know I don't have experience with e23's, but I love learning/researching anything BMW so I hope this helps a little. Super sexy car, great choice btw.

[Hit Man X]

That ET20 will be okay with a tyre around a 225 width, wider will probably rub up front.

I like a 225/50R16, works well with E38 wheels...but those are ET23 so you will need a 3mm shim to clear that width. E32 and E34 wheels work fine, most are 15s.

[StevenHenriksen]

16x8 style 5 wheels from the E38 look great IMO, and a 225/50/16 tire looks good on a lowered car. But if you aren't able to run any kind of spacer, I don't think that setup will work without rubbing on the front strut housing.

[westaussie323i]

Hey guys thanks for the suggestions. I am also going to try Beyern for some new wheels.