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re: Bent wheels, rims, tires, suspension

A few weeks ago, somebody asked about used rims for a 325e.

I have an 86 325es which I recently purchased a new set of rims.  I 
still have the original set.  They are in good condition.  I am open to 
any reasonable offer.

If you decide to get another set of rims, I have a few suggestions.  I 
purchased a set of Borbet Type H 15X7.  They look great on the car and 
really makes the car stand out.  I purchased them from the tire rack 
for $129 ea.

After I installed the rims, I was browsing through my usual set of car 
magazines and I noticed that and saw an ad for Discount tires selling 
the TSW Hockehiem in a 15' for only $75 ea.  I don't think you are 
going to find a better price on any rims that will fit the car.

A few more suggestions about tires.  The 325 came with 195/65/14 tires 
in an H rating.  This provided a very good "BMW" ride, but left you 
wishing for more going fast around any corner.  The car had a tendency 
to understeer like a pig and would occasionally roll over onto the 
sidewalls.

I tried several sets of tires in a 205/60/14 size in an H rating.  This 
provided a little better grip, but still rolled on the sidewalls during 
really aggressive cornering.  For what it is worth I tried these tires 
and here is my synopsis:

Pirelli	P500	205/60/14H	Good dry handling, shit wet handling. 
Made lots of noise when reaching the limits, predictable drifts.  
Warrantied for 40K miles, managed 13K miles.

Michelin MXV4	205/60/14H	Good dry handling, felt a little softer 
than the Pirellis, which caused intial turn-in a little more vague.  
Wet handling was far superior that the Pirellis.  Little highway noise, 
the tire was generally very quiet, talking back softly when approaching 
the limits.  Very predictable drifts that were easy to modulate.  
Warrantied for 60K miles, got under 20K miles.

Yokohama AVS Intermediate	205/60/14V	EXCELLENT! EXCELLENT!
EXCELLENT dry handling!  What wet handling?  Actually the wet handling 
was not bad when new, but got progressively worst as the tread wore 
down.  Which incidently coincided with really good dry handling.

The tires were very noisy, transmitted every bump, highway strip, and 
even the smallest imperfections were felt in your hands.  These tires 
were on a completely elevated plane from the others.

A word of CAUTION about these tire though.  The grip is far superior 
and therefore requires a higher speed through the corners to break it 
loose, or to drift.  Going through a corner "only" 2-5 miles faster 
does not sound like much, but you feel every in of it.  If you do lose 
it, that car is a little less predictable.  This is probably more my 
fault for not being used to drifting at that speed than the tires.

The tires have no warranty, I got 10K on the fronts and 8K rears.

I am currently riding Dunlop SP Sport 8000 205/55/15 Z rated.  These 
tires are a little less harsh than the Yokos, Very good dry and good 
wet handling.  I have not tried reaching the limits with these yet.  I 
will wait until the tread wears down a bit more.

I tried the different tires with the same rims and same suspension, 
later I installed a Dinan performance system.

E30 Suspension Question of the day:

Q: What is the difference between the 325e and the 325es suspension?

A: The 325es came with 10% softer springs and 20% stiffer shocks.

I have 168K miles on my es, it was time to get a new suspension.  I 
purchased the Dinan suspension kit with the camber plates.  The car 
corners like it was on rails, I am now able to go around corners up to 
5 miles faster in some cases.  

The dreaded understeer was exorcised by the camber plates.  The ride is 
remarkably pleasant and feels OEM.  That is until you get into the 
twisties, I have not found another BMW or for that matter any other car 
that dares to keep up with me in the twisties.  You have to be a little 
crazy, but it's fun.

I did not have enough money to get the sway bars, but that is only a 
few paychecks away.

Anybody interested in installing camber plates, spend the money on the 
plates before the sway bars, in case you run out of money like me.  The 
camber plates require that the springs be a tad shorter.  I don't know 
about other suspension systems.

I would really like feedback from anybody about other suspension 
systems they installed, tires used, and exhaust upgrades.

ohman@domain.elided
1986 325es w/168K and still shifting past redline @ 5200rpm!  Eta 
owners will wonder, i owners raise a brow.