I just purchased a 2002 BMW 325XiT (AWD touring wagon) to compliment my S2000.

I did not purchase the sport package because I don't like the wheels that came with them. The regular wheels/tires that come with the car are 205/55-16 (16 X 7).

I want to upgrade to 17's or 18's and I want to know what are the maximum wheel and tire size that I can put on the car. These are the sizes that I was thinking and please correct me if I'm wrong:

17's:
Wheel: 17 x 8 or 8.5
Tire: 235/45-17 or ?

18's:
Wheel: 18 x 8 or 8.5
Tire: 245/40-18 or ?

Check out a tire calculator: http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

Something to keep in mind is that the AWD model is higher than the standard model by 0.7 inches.

What wheel design would you recommend that would look good? There are AC Schnitzers, Breyton, etc...too many to name. I would like to keep the price of the wheel down to around $200 if possible. I went onto the Tire Rack web page and looked for wheels for 2002 325XiT but it was not available.

The big question is that by upgrading to a larger wheel/tire package, will it damage the AWD on the car?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Mark

2001 S2000

 

I will check to see why the site does not pull up your car but we do have many options for the car. You can search a regular 2002 BMW 325 and all of those wheels will fit your car.
You car may be a little taller but it does use the same size and offset wheel as the other 3 series.
The widest tire would be 235/40R17 or 235/35R18 all the way around or you can use a stagger and go wider on the rear.
If I can help let me know.
Thank you

Jim 800-428-8355-364

 

Jim,

Yeah, I was wondering why I couldn't your website to show wheel/tire fitments for a 325Xit;-)

Can I get away with it using 235/45-17 or 235/45-18?

Whats the largest wheel size I can get with 17 or 18 wheels?

Do you know the bolt pattern on my a 325Xit?

Thanks,
Mark

 

The tire sizes you mention are too tall for your car. All of the current BMW's are 5-120 bolt pattern.
Let me know if I can help.

Jim

 

Jim,

Because the 325Xit is AWD and its height is .7" higher then a normal 3 series, would it still work out?

- Mark

 

Not correctly. You would throw off the speedometer and odometer and the gearing and the handling would not be as good. But it is your car and we do live in the USA so if you want to try it, go ahead. I would not recommend those sizes though.