another tire size question

[brodee]

I'm getting ready to order the tires for my new wheels. Car is a '92 525i that WILL be lowered soon, wheels are 8.5"x18" et20. Should I stick with a 235/40 or can I run a 245/40 front and rear without issues?

Thanks in advance!

[Jose]

245 in the back will fit without a hassle at all. 245 in the front will fit also, but think about the tramlining, it will be much more sensible for any tracks in the road and the steering won´t be as light and agile as you´re used to. 225 or 235 is the best to go with even if it looks less chunky.

[pmlmotorsports]

I'm getting ready to order the tires for my new wheels. Car is a '92 525i that WILL be lowered soon, wheels are 8.5"x18" et20. Should I stick with a 235/40 or can I run a 245/40 front and rear without issues?

Thanks in advance!

Which wheel did ya get? I would suggest the 245s all around, 235s belong on 8" wheels, plus you can use all the sidewall you can get when utilizing 18" wheels.

[Mobius]

245 in the back will fit without a hassle at all. 245 in the front will fit also, but think about the tramlining, it will be much more sensible for any tracks in the road and the steering won´t be as light and agile as you´re used to. 225 or 235 is the best to go with even if it looks less chunky.

Tramlining has a lot to do with front toe, too. Having a stiffer-sidewall tire just makes the car more sensitive to front end alignment settings.

I run 235/40-18 on my fronts - I have no tramlining problems on all but the deepest-rutted roads. Currently the fronts are ES100s, and you don't get much stiffer sidewalls than those. It was a lot worse, though, before I had the front end aligned.

[brodee]

Which wheel did ya get? I would suggest the 245s all around, 235s belong on 8" wheels, plus you can use all the sidewall you can get when utilizing 18" wheels.

Thanks, that's what I was thinking of doing. I really want some more width on the back than a 235, but I don't want to run staggered so I figured 245's were a good compromise. I just put 235's on my wife's touring, but they are just about perfect for her 8" rim, I think the extra .5" would need a little larger tire.

If I do decide to go staggered can I get a 265 under the back with it lowered on an 18"x8.5" et20 rim or is 255 as big as I can go?

Thanks again for the help. I'll post some pics of the wheels once I get them.

[pmlmotorsports]

Thanks, that's what I was thinking of doing. I really want some more width on the back than a 235, but I don't want to run staggered so I figured 245's were a good compromise. I just put 235's on my wife's touring, but they are just about perfect for her 8" rim, I think the extra .5" would need a little larger tire.

If I do decide to go staggered can I get a 265 under the back with it lowered on an 18"x8.5" et20 rim or is 255 as big as I can go?

Thanks again for the help. I'll post some pics of the wheels once I get them.

I'm sure you could get a 265 on an 8.5, but it NOT recommended. If you don't like excessive understeer, go with the non-staggered. If you go staggered, I would suggest a 235/265 combo or a 245/275, BUT YOU NEED STAGGERED RIMS DUE TO A 265 REQUIRING A MINIMUM OF 9" WIDTH.