E30 lowering, stance, & wheel question.

[PragB]

Might be picking up a `85 e30, have sets of 18's I can stretch tires on laying around to mount with adapters, I have 8, 9 & 10 inch wide so I'm trying to figure out how low on 18's for these cars, if it's worth it to do a coilover or just do a shock/spring configuration on 18s because of height... Also if I can run 10's in the back and what offsets ultimately I'd want them to end up to be flush front & rear... A bunch of dumb questions, but my other car in the shop is a e39, I'm used to working on that one, not used to these older ones.

Thanks for any and all comments good or bad.

[Stephen]

18s are generally too big for e30s

[-low&slow-]

18s are generally too big for e30s

This.

As for offsets, you'll probably want something with a relatively high offset if you're planning to run adapters and still sit flush.

[PragB]

I'm looking more for what the final offset number would be to build my adapters. I saw a e30 on 18s looked pretty cool I can go 17x9 if that fits all the way around as well, just needing the final number of where I need to be. Also if I run the 17x9 would a simple spring/shock combo look nice with that fitment? I have the wheels trying to just build around them with what fits good underneath the car and have it at a nice height to take a little bit of tire stretch in the fenders. If you can direct me to a post that may have pics with a description of drop & wheel styles that'd be awesome. When I search e30 it says my search word is too short.

[Stephen]

17s and coilovers. Widths can vary, but the general rule of thumb is youll want high or semi high offsets Think 30s and 40s) if you want to adapt. Final offsets will depend a lot on how low you go, fender work, camber plates etc. But if youre looking at a 17x9+5 and need to adapt, thats a no go.


Shock spring combos don't go very low.

[PragB]

Thanks. What are the specs on what you're running? Do you have a build or feature spread with more info? I'm kinda just looking to throw suspension in, bolt the wheels on & drive. This e30 is just to cruise but still look the way I want, my other car is more for show.

[Anonymoose]

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=e30+with+18+inch+wheels

That's a good place to start. Unless your e39 is always at 'the shop' with mechanics working on it you should have an idea on how to measure for this shit surely...

[PragB]

Figured if someone already did it, which on this forum there are tons of people who have done blasphemous things to e30s, it's more intelligent, easier, & quicker to to just ask someone who's gone through all the steps already. Also, most of the Bimmer forums are not as helpful when it comes to slamming or stretching on a Bimmer. This forum has been touted as such a close knit community so I figured it would not hurt to just ask.

As far as my e39 it has had a bunch of work done to it, but the main reason it has been in the shop for a while is because I had other things come up in my life, I'm not a young man so I unfortunately went through some things where that car didn't really matter much, and it was more of a chore putting the thing back together and I wasn't in the mind state to deal with it after I tore it all apart, so it has been there for 3 years wasting space but since most of the mechanical stuff, not mentioning the custom stuff, had been mostly done and it's not been to the paint shop yet, I felt I had too much invested to try to sell. Currently it has had a full cooling system change, vanos seals, tranny flush & screen, oil flush, diff fluid, new seals on every door (every door seal on the doors have been replaced and there's quite a few), window regulators on every door, hatch popper & gas door popper, rear hatch struts, rear sub frame bushings replaced (bought the tool to do it from England), thrust arms and many other suspension bushings and components replaced, KW coilovers, 20" staggered stretched with Eibach spacers, Eibach sway bars, M replica front bumper, OEM M touring rear bumper, M replica mirrors, roof rail delete, all pillars and headliner recovered in black suede, full audio video system with media player to run a 1tb harddrive filled with music and movies, Boser hood, and probably a bunch of other things I don't remember since it's been so long. In the long run it was better to just keep it and deal with what was going on. Right now I'm only looking for something else because my middle son needs a car, he can get an internship at a machining shop, he's been in a machining class at school for 2 years now so it's a great opportunity but he needs transportation so I want to give him the car I'm driving and get something to just cruise around in, my touring probably has a couple or more months before it will be back on the road finally and I don't want to make him wait. The main problem is that I am an enthusiast so I pick things I'd be better off not even getting involved with, like this e30 I am looking at.

But anyways, none of that stuff matters. I think my questions were fairly simple, the suspension one has been answered, the other question is pretty simple as well, unless I'm not communicating it well. If you have 9" wheels and you have them flush what offset are you running. It's not a hard question, I think that some of you are not understanding what I'm after. I'll try to explain it a little better. I can get the wheels to that offset, I do not need any help with that at all, so don't even think of that part, it's handled. I don't need to know the offset of "my" wheels I am just looking for the final number. Are you running 0? +5? +10? -12? Thanks.

[CW-325]

I think you should be fine with et:0

[FSUjbp]

.... If you have 9" wheels and you have them flush what offset are you running. It's not a hard question, I think that some of you are not understanding what I'm after. I'll try to explain it a little better. I can get the wheels to that offset, I do not need any help with that at all, so don't even think of that part, it's handled. I don't need to know the offset of "my" wheels I am just looking for the final number. Are you running 0? +5? +10? -12? Thanks.

9 inches wide with 15 will go beyond the fenders in the rear. 9 inches wide et 15 will require 3 mm spacers to clear the strut tube in the front. That setup in the front will be beyond the fenders. If you want to see what it looks like, google "16x9 e30" and look for et 15 wheels. Here are a few:

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1338821

http://www.r3vlimited.com/board/showthread.php?t=182446

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthrea...!-Baller-setup!

[Schultz28]

sell the wheels and buy some 15's or 16's

[Genkiboi8o8]

Since I'm looking for a similar answer, if there are any e30's here that has acquired "slammed" status, can you let me know how you go lower in the rear?

My fronts are completely fine and I have AST 4100s, but I just can't seem to go lower in the rear. I either have a 4" or 5" inch springs, and they're pretty stiff (I forgot the numer). I tried putting them on without the adjuster and it scared me because, every time I lifted my car up from the rear, it looks like the spring would fall right out.

Any idea's? I just want to go a tad bit lower for Hellaflush Hawaii, and was wondering if you guys can help me out.

Here's a picture



Sorry for thread jacking.

[FunfGang]

I don't know about how your coil overs are, but with my GC spring/ Adjustable Koni combo the rear shock didn't have enough downward travel to let the spring out, even jacking the car up. Short of buying a new spring, taking the adjuster out is your only option.

[CarpetCleaning]

Thanks for the post sharing with us.

[agustingig]

Since I'm looking for a similar answer, if there are any e30's here that has acquired "slammed" status, can you let me know how you go lower in the rear?

My fronts are completely fine and I have AST 4100s, but I just can't seem to go lower in the rear. I either have a 4" or 5" inch springs, and they're pretty stiff (I forgot the numer). I tried putting them on without the adjuster and it scared me because, every time I lifted my car up from the rear, it looks like the spring would fall right out.

Any idea's? I just want to go a tad bit lower for Hellaflush Hawaii, and was wondering if you guys can help me out.

Here's a picture

[IMG]http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg4/KaitoIshida/IMG_1865.jpg
Sorry for thread jacking.

Shouldnt have any problem running just the spring as long as your not gonna rally it on the way,, I know 4-5 guys here in iceland that run the rear springs with no adjuster..