what wheels look best....

readie

readie

Well-Known Member
Messages
182
Reaction score
21
Location
kent, england
i realise this is subjective but, i presently have 14 inch alpinas on my csl. I would prefer a bigger wheel and am considering 16 inch. quite like the bbs style 5's. on my e28 i have remotec basketweave with a deep dish.

What have others on here got ? any thoughts or pictures of alternatives. anyone got any minilites or similar, what about slot mags ?

Suggestions welcome.....
 
Its a personal preference.

My coupe came to me with 16" BBS RS' with gold centers. Looked great. I had to have 16" Alpinas, had to!, so I sold the BBS' and bought Alpinas. That all said, my preferred wheel would be a set of staggered silver 16" BBS RS. IMO, those look the best. Not much fun to clean though.
 
Last edited:
Staggered set of Alpina's is best IMO but after riding on Steve's 15's in New Orleans they are a much better ride.
 
tmason said:
Staggered set of Alpina's is best IMO but after riding on Steve's 15's in New Orleans they are a much better ride.
Click to expand...

I love the look of the Alpina wheels, and 15s to me seem like a great option. Where in the world would one look to find a set of these?

Alpina's US distributor - KSK Distributing - doesn't show a 15" Alpina wheel.
 
Last edited:
Alpina did not make a 15" wheel for our cars in the same style as the 14" and 16" ones. Maybe their uber rare magnesium ones were but not sure. Mine are Alpina style made by OZ in Italy in the same era as the 16's (early 80's). I've not seen another set for sale in a couple years so apparently quite rare, I bought mine from a member here.

I love the way they look (nice balance between rim and tire size proportions) and tire selection is excellent and the ride is not too harsh given the extra sidewall vs 16's. I love 14" Alpina's but tire selection is a challenge. 16's have too much rim for me.

photo.JPG


Incidentally I am putting together a set of Alpina logo'd center caps like those pictured above to complete the "tribute" look and will go on this weekend.



Ohmess said:
I love the look of the Alpina wheels, and 15s to me seem like a great option. Where in the world would one look to find a set of these?

Alpina's US distributor - KSK Distributing - doesn't show a 15" Alpina wheel.
Click to expand...
 
The wheel I like the best is the very early BBS Mahle 7x14 ET 9 deep dish basket weave. Very contemporary, very sporty, gives the car a nice wider stance (by 11mm per side) and still a very comfy ride (with 205/70 tires). I have those on my E3.
I believe they were an option for the CSL and are
one of the lightest wheels I´v ever lifted as well.
Like 70s Ferraris and such I think the E9 needs a high sidewall to look the part. Lower sidewalls just look too modern and clash with rest of the car.
 

Attachments

  • mahle003.jpg
    mahle003.jpg
    77.5 KB · Views: 242
  • 3_33.jpg
    3_33.jpg
    78.5 KB · Views: 287
  • AdomitderGoldkante.jpg
    AdomitderGoldkante.jpg
    95.5 KB · Views: 215
  • BMW_2500_E3_hl_blue.jpg
    BMW_2500_E3_hl_blue.jpg
    102.4 KB · Views: 212
Not much fun to clean though.[/QUOTE]

I was talking to a guy who said to use a clear car wax and the brake dust washes right off?
 
tmason said:
Not much fun to clean though.
Click to expand...


With the basket weaves: No point in even trying. What you do instead is just clean the dish and the front of the weaves. You leave the spaces between the weaves dirty. After a while that is just a solid athracite on all fours and it looks "clean" again and gives the wheel a nice 3d-look.

At least that´s what I tell myself...
 
tmason said:
I was talking to a guy who said to use a clear car wax and the brake dust washes right off?
Click to expand...

yeah, right... :) if only things were so simple. If anyone could invent a wax that can do that he´d make enough dough to buy himself the nicest csi in the country. And a Bugatti for the wife.
 
I have those BBS Mahle 14 wheels, They are nice....I wouldn't mind 14 inch csl wheels + Michelin tires...But I personally like the smaller (14") wheel with more sidewall.

As for the wax, there are companies with Nano-tech that can probably do this....but the feasibility of putting such a product out on the market is hard to justify.

Most people will find a way to take advantage ( ie. coating their car etc..) and companies that make money from cleaning products will first start crying, then start fighting to keep it off the shelves.

Mine clean-up fairly easily and I usually don't bring it up in a conversation I have with a fellow auto enthusiast...

MF
 
Tierfreund said:
Like 70s Ferraris and such I think the E9 needs a high sidewall to look the part. Lower sidewalls just look too modern and clash with rest of the car.
Click to expand...

I have to disagree. Wheels smaller than 16s make the coupe look older than its design and the tall sidewalls look like doughnuts. 16s look right; however, I must agree that the ride (comfort) is better with 14's.
 
bbs mahle

I also love the look of the basketweaves...have 3........need one (or two..) more for a set...anyone?
Sorry to step on the thread...
Dave V.
 
Does anyone think brake dust and assorted road film, bugs, cat hides, and squirrel fur look good attached to their wheels :-) ? Just a thought - maybe we could start a thread with the most interesting road grime- hey, shows they're driven.

-he (or she) who dies with the most miles on their coupe wins!-
 
Peter Coomaraswamy said:
Does anyone think brake dust and assorted road film, bugs, cat hides, and squirrel fur look good attached to their wheels :-) ? Just a thought - maybe we could start a thread with the most interesting road grime- hey, shows they're driven.

-he (or she) who dies with the most miles on their coupe wins!-
Click to expand...


I like a little brake dust...but that depends on the brand of pad you are using....I use Ferodo and the dust looks like a thin light-gray film...
 
Peter Coomaraswamy said:
Does anyone think brake dust and assorted road film, bugs, cat hides, and squirrel fur look good attached to their wheels :-) ? Just a thought - maybe we could start a thread with the most interesting road grime- hey, shows they're driven.

-he (or she) who dies with the most miles on their coupe wins!-
Click to expand...

Can an E3 compete? I´ve done 131 thousand miles in the last 5 years (since I´ve had it).
Had at least 100.000 miles on the odo when I bought it (probably more). I´m 45 and intend to drive that thing till I drop (my other car is a Jaguar (lovingly known as my S&M garage ornament) so no competition...) I´m in better shape than the Jag (but not as good shape as the E3) so I can reasonably expect to get another 30 years out of me and the BMW.
I recently even modified the odmoeter to 6 digits to keep track
What´s the prize?
Who is to beat? Murray? (much missed)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top