I'm So Offset!!
 

I bought these rims on ebay:
AMERICAN EAGLE BOSS MOTORSPORTS SERIES 317 CHROME
bolt pattern: 5X112
offset: +42 mm
Size: 18x8
225/40/18
Seller said it will bolt right in but after a test fit by my mechanic it hits the strut.
My question is: Will this kind of offset EVER fit my '03 c240 if I use spacers?
What thickness should I get?
My mechanic does not recommend spacers 'coz it will make it "ghetto like".
It would make the wheels stick-out too much he said.
If spacers are the only way to make it fit then I will have to go with it.
I would cost me too much to re-ship them all.

Did STFF.

Any advice?...Thanks.

10MM spacers and longer bolts.

18x8 you can run ET30-35 without any problem. just get the H&R 8mm spacers.

post a picture of the rim.

A rim size of 18x8, ET40, you can do more agressive! Get a 12mm spacer from H&R or a 10mm, thats if you dont want aggressiveness. That will flush your setup perfectly. And It shouldnt rub, since its only a 18x8 rim.
I'm currenlty running some Work Meisters F18x9.5 ET29 and R18x10 ET27. Its not aggressive enought for the rears, And i'm planning to change the spacers to a 15mm.

Good luck!

I have 19x8 ET37 up front and i add 15mm spacer, look awesome :D.

I should have bought the 10mm like y'all suggested.
My mechanic said 5mm is all I need...Now after testing the 5mm he worries about rubbing if I "lean" to much with it.
So I have to get a 10 & return the 5. Hopefully it can be exchanged.
They aren't cheap.
Attempted 3 times to get these rims mounted.
1st spacer needed.
2nd mechanic too busy can't get to it/bad weather.
3rd spacer too thin.

What's next ? Losing my patience. There must be an alien force at work here.

Anybody know the stock size of the log bolts? I should get an extended one 10mm longer than stock right? Where can I get it in chrome?

Thanks for your input.

if you getting any spacer from H&R thats is over 5mm thick get these but they only works for the FRONT HUB only of mercedes Benz! Good luck
http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/5484/p3030070re0.jpg
Shot with X400,D580Z,C460Z at 2007-08-07

This turned out to be one big pain GRR!!..For some reason the 10mm H&R spacer does not fit the front.
Per my mechanic: It has a "lip" at the center hole that makes it impossible to fit.

Hey WaveyKat where did you get those spacers? It looks different from the ones I bought.(from http://www.optionimports.com/2055665.html) can't find anything like that.


It took me a while to get it installed so I might not get a refund for the old ones.They have a 10 day return policy. These things are not cheap.

I might end up getting a non-hubcentric cheapo.

does H&R make 8mm spacers for our cars, cause I had hard time trying to find it, i end up buying universal 8mm, cause couldn't find any.

if you knoww here they sell H&R 8mm, let me know


thanks,
Michael

the H&R 10mm for the front hub is p/n 20556659. you can order from purems.com

You have to trim lip to fit, for some reason it is to thick, i did this to my spacers.

Thanks rlee02135.
Question:
How is this different from this: www.optionimports.com/2055665?...It fits perfectly on the back but not the front.

There is also another brand 'ICHIBA'. I wonder if they also have that "lip".

W0n6_3d4n,
Did you have any problems with it? Wouldn't it make the hole too thin?
Did you have it professionally done? How much did it cost you?
It did cross my mind to just trim the whole thing off.

Thanks.

Most of the Ichiba spacers that I have seen don't have that lip.

can i get the part number for that spacer? what's the thickness on that? you know the diameter of the part that sticks out? thanks

I ended up buying a universal 8mm from ebay for $10.
Finally got my rims installed but with my luck we ran into a different problem.
My mechanic heard a clicking sound located at the driver's side rear.
He figured the 40mm extended bolt was too long and changed it with the original bolts which at the moment is fine.
He also was not satisfied with the balancing; so after the test drive he was confident that I can take my car home & come back Mon. for re-balancing & alignment because they're already closing...
This morning, just out of my driveway, I heard that 'clicking' again and this time it sounded like it came from the front ...My car with it's sweet rims is sitting in my driveway. Sucks!!!
I have 3 options at the moment: Get it towed, change the new bolts with the old, or put the OEM rims back myself.
Bought the rims in June & nothing is going right....:mercy:

Slap the OEM wheels back on if you need to drive the car.

Don't drive the car with "clicking" noise.

Put the OEM wheels back on today. Hopefully nothing else will go wrong until I get this rim issue solved.
I compared both the oem bolts to the extended ones and they seem to be the same length except for the ext. ones are fully threaded & the oem bolts are threaded only at the tip.
Why then is it 'clicking' if they are the same length? Overtightened maybe?

8mm front
10mm rear
Extended Bolts
Type 12 X 1.5 Thread
Length 40

It sounds like your wheels are different thicknesses at the center (the new wheel is thinner), and the bolt is too long for that wheel. To check this, take one of the new wheels off and put one of the bolts in the bolt hole. Measure how much the bolt protrudes past the bask surface. Now do this with the same bolt on one of your old wheels. If you find the bolts protrude more on the new wheels, you should get bolts that are shorter by the same amount.

Thanks jolenicz...you are correct!
I measured it today and from the OEM it seems to
require only 5/8 in(15.87 mm) bolt length to fit.

Extended bolt is about 1 9/16 in (39.6mm listed as 40mm)

The FRONT 8mm spacer has an excess of 3/8 in (9.5mm) bolt length
so I require a bolt around 30 mm.

The REAR 10mm spacer has an excess of 1/4 in(6.35mm) so I require
a bolt around 33 mm.
Hope my calculations are correct...

Anyway my question is: Do I need to get both sizes? How about a length between 30mm-33mm for all rims? Can I get away with 30mm for all ?

The only thing I can find online so far is a 29mm & 35mm @ $3 ea.
Ebay 28mm $24.99 set.
How about cutting my 40mm to size? Will it mess up the thread?

Thanks for your help..This may be my last obstacle....:wall:

When I bought new lugs for my wheels, I had access to someone who could machine down the lugs to be shorter. I wouldn't recommend cutting the lugs with a hacksaw, but if you have a good way to machine them down, I would suggest using your current lugs or buying ones slightly longer than you calculate you need. If you can't have them machined, I'd buy them slightly shorter than what you calculate.

What might be best is to buy one of each size you have available, and test install to check for the clicking rubbing before buying the whole set. Since I just bought mine at the dealer, this was an option for me (though the dealer can't always tell you the length; I just made the parts guy bring me one of each lug bolt he had). A bit more patience determining the right bolts, and you should be all set :)

Finally got my rims installed!!! I found bolts on ebay that worked.

I do have a problem:......
My mechanic tried to balance the tires twice but could not seem to get rid of the vibration...He said an alignment might be needed.
It feels like the front driver's side is vibrating...I may be wrong.
I have a universal non-hubcentric spacer on the front(rears are hubcentric)
Could that be the culprit?

I will wash my car this weekend and maybe post a pic...wish these setbacks would be over soon so I can start the mods.:puke:

most likely its the spacer. get H&R or Eibach spacers.

Through my own personal experience, Hubcentric spacers still have vibration issues. I'm running a set of 5mm H&R hubcentric spacers on the front of my car and noticed that it picks up road vibration at around 60 to 65 mph. Tried to balance it out, but it didn't really help. Made the decision that I liked the rims more than the slight vibration and kept them as is. After awhile I just don't notice it as much anymore. If you figure it out, please post your fix. Good luck.:y

Mine starts around 40-45 mph. It is weird that once in a while the vibration stops for 4-5 sec.+- around 50mph then starts again.
It's intermittent sometimes but not all the time.

I did have 10mm H&R spacers originally rlee02135 but because of the "Lip" it was useless.

Now I am wondering if it is all worth it just for looks...