Fitting 18x10.5+22 squared on E46 M3

[cornerbalanced]

Hoping some of you guys on here have had experience running this setup,

I recently purchased 18x10.5+22 squared wheels off a buddy, looking to see if I'll be able to fit them or if I should trade them for something slightly less aggressive. I'm cap'd at about -3 degrees of camber up front (stock top-hats, flipped).

At the moment, from what I've seen they will fit with -3 degrees of camber up front if I run 265 squared, however 275 squared will be more of a challenge. At the moment my fenders are moderately rolled, but not shaved. In an ideal world these would be 18x10+25, but unfortunately we do not live in an ideal world.

Cheers!

[Tbonem3]

Tire brand really matters when you're cutting it this close.

[enjoy_m3]

Well ride height and shock travel factors in also. I would say you will need camber plates. I test fitted 10.5+20 with a 265 up front with 3.7 camber and it just about fits. I'd say -3 isn't enough

[cornerbalanced]

Tire brand really matters when you're cutting it this close.

Hoping to run either Hankook RS4s (true to size) or Kumho V730s (run narrow)

[cornerbalanced]

Well ride height and shock travel factors in also. I would say you will need camber plates. I test fitted 10.5+20 with a 265 up front with 3.7 camber and it just about fits. I'd say -3 isn't enough

Good to know, where was the clearance the tightest? Against the lip of the fender?

[enjoy_m3]

both on the coilover side and the fender. lol. There was probably no more than 5mm of clearance with ohlins dedicated coilovers and it maybe stuck out of the fender 5-10mm but ohlins have short stroke so I didn't have any rubbing issues with normal driving. I have about 10mm of gap between the tire and fender. The rim itself sticks out the fender slightly but the 265 stretch gets it under the fender with -3.7 so I'm having doubts -3 will be enough.

[9kracing]

I've never understood why people try to force wheels that don't fit.

[cornerbalanced]

I've never understood why people try to force wheels that don't fit.

A friend of mine needed to get rid of the wheels to clear up space, I figured I'd help him out and just trade the wheels for something less aggressive. I know a handful of people who run 10.5+22 squared wheels on their E46, they obviously CAN fit, just not with the modifications (or lack thereof) currently done to my car.

[Mtrace]

18x10+25 is a tight fit let alone those specs.

[Slideways]

A 9.5 ET35 with a 265 already needs enough camber to make it look slightly ridiculous running on the street. Add a 25mm spacer to that and you have your wheel setup OP. Running negative 3 to 4 degrees on a track car is understandable. On a street car, not a good look IMO, not mention all the debris thrown up along the side of the car.

[enjoy_m3]

I've never understood why people try to force wheels that don't fit.

Me either, lol. But my car is a track car (club sport) driven on the street. The main reason I decided to try 10.5 is to stretch the 265 for better sidewall performance. I've seen most fast s2000 drivers do 255 on a 10" wide wheel. Tire rack also did a test on tire width vs wheel width and surprisingly, the stretched 225 on a 9 was the fastest. So there seems to be some benefit which makes sense. There's time left on the table with just tire setup. So I've decided to try it out before upgrading other parts on the car. For a completely street driven car, it definitely won't be as enjoyable to drive.

[cornerbalanced]

A 9.5 ET35 with a 265 already needs enough camber to make it look slightly ridiculous running on the street. Add a 25mm spacer to that and you have your wheel setup OP. Running negative 3 to 4 degrees on a track car is understandable. On a street car, not a good look IMO, not mention all the debris thrown up along the side of the car.

Really?? I've easily fit 18x10+25 265 squared with stock suspension & alignment on a previous E46 before doing coilovers. I'd assume 9.5+35 would be an even easier fit. -3 degrees+ of camber is the only way I will drive these cars aha, steering feel ultimately suffers for me otherwise.

[jet_dogg]

I've never understood why people try to force wheels that don't fit.

Been saying this but they'll tell you it does fit.

[Gearhead55]

I run 10.5 +22 with 265/35s. This is primarily a track car but I street drive it frequently. I'm not that low but I plan on going a little lower soon. I track it with this set up and it does not rub at all. I'm not even running particularly high spring rates, but I am running -3.8* front and -2.5* rear camber. I can run a 10mm spacer in the rear on the street at this height. Front fenders are rolled and the rears are shaved. Tuners in Japan run this size all day long.

- a 265 on a 10.5 is an optimum stretch for predictable grip and breakaway
- I don't rub at all, even on track
- it looks good
- people still say they "don't fit"

[cornerbalanced]

I run 10.5 +22 with 265/35s. This is primarily a track car but I street drive it frequently. I'm not that low but I plan on going a little lower soon. I track it with this set up and it does not rub at all. I'm not even running particularly high spring rates, but I am running -3.8* front and -2.5* rear camber. I can run a 10mm spacer in the rear on the street at this height. Front fenders are rolled and the rears are shaved. Tuners in Japan run this size all day long.

- a 265 on a 10.5 is an optimum stretch for predictable grip and breakaway
- I don't rub at all, even on track
- it looks good
- people still say they "don't fit"

Thank you!! There's something to be said about the "old head" forum mentality--so many people are ultra conservative when it comes to wheel and tire fitment, it appears as though we're stuck in 2006.

Looks incredible. Appreciate the info, looks like I'll need a decent amount of front camber but will be fine otherwise.