Junkyard Wheel, Wrong Size! :(

[eNate]

Wanting to have a spare wheel on hand, I ordered up a 10-spoke 428 "cyclone" wheel off a wrecked i3 from my friendly online auto dismantler.

It was delivered over the weekend and I just unwrapped it.

Good news is it looks nearly perfect, and unexpectedly came with a tire mounted, in great shape with plenty of tread left.

Bad news is it's BMW p/n 6856895 which is the 5.5" rear wheel, with a 175 Ecopia mounted. I want to be able to use this as a spare in all four positions.

I understand that when the rear wheel is mounted to the front, something sometimes rubs something.

But in reality is it the tire, not the wheel, that rubs? Can I swap on one of my 155 tires and be OK?

I've found reference that the front 5Jx19 wheel has an ET43 offset, but I can't find an offset listing for the 5.5Jx19. Is it also ET43?

I see that the i3s 5.5Jx20 is ET33, but I suspect that's unique to the Sport.

My suspicion is as long as the lip of the rim clears the strut, a 155 tire on the 5.5 wheel ought to work with no clearance problems.

 

[electronchaser]

not really a bummer if you can find one more 175 and then use one of the old 155 fronts as an all around spare. But yes a 10mm spacer will keep from contact on full lock of steering wheel. The spacers are highly recommended. After fitting 15mm spacers at each corner I found every aspect of the suspension improved. From less roll in turns, to more stability when I pass a 18wheeler/cross winds, to less bounce when going over poorly paved roads.

Personally I'd go 175s all around. with a 155 spare. (take up a few lbs and inches less space as well)

 

[joni3s]

The inside of the rim should have the number, where it says 5.5Jx19, there should be soon a trailing IS number. that is the ET IIRC

 

[eNate]

The inside of the rim should have the number, where it says 5.5Jx19, there should be soon a trailing IS number. that is the ET IIRC

Thank you Jon! I didn't know about the 'IS' notation for offset.

So it turns out the rear is designated 53mm offset, so 10mm deeper than a front wheel (43mm offset).

Combined with the additional ½" rim width, this pencils out to the inner rim lip being 16.4mm closer to... whatever (usually the strut). The face of the wheel slides in about 3.6mm.

Equally importantly, if I mount a 155 tire to the 5.5 wheel, and mount it up front, the tread ought to shift inward about 10mm, and the sidewall will have to make up the 6.4mm difference to where the bead seats against the lip of the rim.

So now all I have to do is measure my current clearances, and if that looks reasonable, find a 155 to mount up and check it out.

Although, frankly, I'd rather this guy sends me the wheel he advertised!

 

[eNate]

I took a gander at the layout behind my i3 front wheel. I didn't have my calipers to get a truly accurate measurement of the available clearances, so I improvised. My measurements are approximate, not precise.

Doesn't look good!

It appears the stock setup (5.0" wheel with 43mm offset) provides 12mm of clearance between the lip of the rim and the strut, as depicted in the photo below.

This means I'd definitely need at minimum a 5mm spacer to take away from the 16.4mm inset of the rear rim mounted in this position, and although my measurements aren't exact, this would be perhaps be too close for comfort.

The other concern is that the coils reduce that clearance even further. The coils are clear of the rim, but could contact the tire, depending on how the front 155 tire fits to the wider rear 5.5" wheel.

This guy at the wrecking yard where I ordered from is ghosting me, so I'm not too hopeful I'll get the correct wheel (I may dispute the credit card charge, which is entirely another matter). So I may be stuck making do with this wheel. I want to get this resolved before I start dismounting tires and scavenging 155 tires to mount up. I can't test fit the wheel up front until the 175 rubber is removed.

 

[jadnashuanh]

Keep in mind that as your air pressure may change or you hit a bump, the sidewalls will bulge out a bit. So, depends on how far you let it get, or how big of a bump you hit.

Somewhere on the forum, there's someone who had some service work done, and they installed a rear tire on the front...trashed the tire within a couple of blocks. Got new tires out of it, though!

 

[KarlC]

Wanting to have a spare wheel on hand, I ordered up a 10-spoke 428 "cyclone" wheel off a wrecked i3 from my friendly online auto dismantler.

It was delivered over the weekend and I just unwrapped it.

Good news is it looks nearly perfect, and unexpectedly came with a tire mounted, in great shape with plenty of tread left.

Bad news is it's BMW p/n 6856895 which is the 5.5" rear wheel, with a 175 Ecopia mounted. I want to be able to use this as a spare in all four positions.

I understand that when the rear wheel is mounted to the front, something sometimes rubs something.

But in reality is it the tire, not the wheel, that rubs? Can I swap on one of my 155 tires and be OK?

I've found reference that the front 5Jx19 wheel has an ET43 offset, but I can't find an offset listing for the 5.5Jx19. Is it also ET43?

I see that the i3s 5.5Jx20 is ET33, but I suspect that's unique to the Sport.

My suspicion is as long as the lip of the rim clears the strut, a 155 tire on the 5.5 wheel ought to work with no clearance problems.

I may have an extra 5" wheel that I would trade for your 5 1/2" wheel if you wanted.

Thx Karl

.

 

[eNate]

Is this the 428 "cyclone" style? You say in your sig you're running 20? I'm 19.

I got the seller on the phone yesterday. He was going to call me back, but of course he didn't. Must have missed my emails, too.

 

[KarlC]

Is this the 428 "cyclone" style? You say in your sig you're running 20? I'm 19.

I got the seller on the phone yesterday. He was going to call me back, but of course he didn't. Must have missed my emails, too.

I have some 428 19" wheels now and 4 - 20" wheels I will be welling soon.

So yes I will have an extra 5x19 428 wheel if you want to trade

.

 

[eNate]

Good news! I been in contact with the salvage yard and they're shipping me the correct wheel.

Rear wheel is gone!

 

[KarlC]

Good news! I been in contact with the salvage yard and they're shipping me the correct wheel.

If anybody wants this rear wheel and decent tire for 250 and can pick up in Oakland PM me now because otherwise I'm shipping it back in a few days.

Would you ship it to San Diego ?

THx Karl

 

[eNate]

If you're willing to pay shipping, sure. PM me.

 

[eNate]

Rear wheel gone!

 

[eNate]

Alright, here's the dealio...

I used the salvage yard inventory website http://www.car-part.com to track down these wheels. This particular seller I chose was closest., but there are many others out there with i3 wheels.

Price was $150, and upon contact quoted me 40 shipping. This seller had this listed as "front" under the search category. I initiated contact through an automated web inquiry, but nowhere in the inquiry text did it say "front" or list the pertinent dimensions,. All of the rest of our business was conducted by phone, text, email, and scanned PDF I signed for credit card authorization (on which i wrote "19x5" but not "front" or the tire size.

So that's why it fell apart, because he said "I've got a couple of these" and he sent me a photo of the nicer looking wheel, which I okayed. Frankly, it didn't even cross my mind that he would mistake a front for a rear, but hey, the i3 is an quirky little buggy.

He offered to ship the correct wheel no charge, but wanted me to cover return shipping of the rear wheel back to him. I didn't even bother to argue because I figured I could move the rear with no problem for a better price and cover my cost and put a few bucks in my pocket.

I ended up shipping it to a buyer in LA. The $37 online FedEx quote turned in to $44 in the store: I used listed weights of 18 lbs for the wheel and 19 lbs for the tire that I found with a web search, but actual scale weight was 43 pounds. Plus insurance, which I always decline but didn't. Then when I swiped my card the $44 in-store quote ballooned to $60 for "special non-FedEx packaging" which was ridiculous. Lesson: pay for & print the shipping label at home.

Anyhow, for a sale price of $250 shipped, the shipping ate up any profit, and that's not counting the leftover green holiday Glad wrap I bought at Safeway that morning, another $6. My time, of course, is free. I was still technically ahead since the correct wheel was being shipped to me for no charge. I called the salvage yard to tell them I "would be keeping" the rear, and they were cool with that any only charged me $150. Last I checked, even with the Glad wrap, I'm slightly ahead of where I would have been. Let's just call it a wash.

Rear wheel quadruple wrapped and LA-bound, ready for the handoff to FedEx.

Last night I came home to a package behind the garage.

Who wraps a wheel like this? I can already tell this one is is slightly worse condition than the first one, which was nearly pristine.

Peek at the hub and the size & offset check out.

Dirty, but looks pretty good!

A few inches of light rim rash, not awful for a spare, but not par for an "A" graded wheel.

I'd have been fine with a bald tire -- the tire was bonus, many sellers list the wheel only -- but the tread looks close to new.

 

[Mick787]

Somewhere on the forum is a thread I posted about having a spare wheel. In short, the front rims can be put on the rear but the rear rims can't go on the front. Front rims on the rear are ok as long as the tyre fitted on the rim is the correct load rating. Also check the rotation, the tyres are directional so you really need 2 to be covered. The tyre pressure label stuck on the door frame shows what can be fitted and BMW specify that 155's can be fitted all around, (subject to the correct load rating of the tyre. My comments refer to my experience here in the UK.

 

[eNate]

Somewhere on the forum is a thread I posted...

...Front rims on the rear are ok as long as the tyre fitted on the rim is the correct load rating. Also check the rotation, the tyres are directional so you really need 2 to be covered.

???

Here's your thread: https://www.mybmwi3.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=16540

If it's an "i3 tire" (i.e. EP500, EP600), it's the correct load rating. Stock is 86Q load rating at both ends.

The tires are not directional. The tires do have an inside and an outside, which is indicated on the sidewalls, but outside on the left is same as outside on the right.

Early i3s had directional wheels (left wheel, right wheel), which was only an aesthetic detail. The wheels pictured in this post are both "universal" aka ambidextrous, found on both sides of. However, the car-part.com website I used categorizes all of the 428-style wheels as either "left" or "right" so check the photo to be sure, IF that's important to you.

In a nutshell, an i3 front wheel & tire will serve as a suitable spare at any location, I believe even on an i3S.

Here's an i3 with left & right wheels mixed and on full display somebody shared on the Facebook group recently.

 

[jadnashuanh]

My personal experience with FedEx is lousy. I won't use them unless it's the only choice.

 

[eNate]

I don't want to bag on FedEx. Too much.

I should have printed the label at home. I shipped a set of four wheels/tires with them previously, and they were cheaper than UPS.

Also noticed the wheel was originally shipped to me with 17 lbs listed on the UPS label. WTH? I wonder if they caught that.

Here's a funny FedEx logistics puzzle. I ordered an item from Britain, shipped FedEx.

First night tracking shows it in Feltham, a town outside Heathrow's south fence. I don't think Heathrow has FedEx operations, but whatever, it's on the way.

Next night it shows up in Stansted. Ok, Stansted is a FedEx base.

The night after it shows up at Charles De Gaulle. Really? Paris? I just want my box.

Next night I pull up my box on a flight tracker, over Nova Scotia, onboard a CDG-Memphis-bound 777. And what's flying on a track right next to it? A MEM-bound FDX flight out of Stansted.

Hopefully it shows up with a bottle of champagne or a tasty wedge of French cheese.