[DarkEnigma]

I had the same dilemma when I was on the hunt for my wheels. I wasn't 100% confident in some of the cheaper wheels being offered on Ebay so I decided to go with a reputable brand (though they aren't as well known in UK) -- WSP Italy. Cost a fair bit more than I was going to spend originally, in fact I doubled my budget lol. I have bought cheap wheels in the past for an ex-car and they buckled up, got rid of them in the end.

On a previous car I ran 19s and it had OEM wheels, during an MOT they found a crack on the inside of one of the wheels and had to get a replacement.

With the BMW I made the decision I would go for 18s since I know UK roads aren't that great and I knew I would also be lowering the car too so wanted a little more comfort. I think this size offers good balance of comfort and style, just need a nice drop

[FRG]

Originally Posted by Kerr

Are the wheels supplied from CM and BM really different brands?

It would be an expensive job to tool up to make replica wheels and I wonder how many people are actually doing it.

The M359 reps are different for sure. The CM Wheels ones are more like the original than the BM Autosport ones. The spoke is only 'attached' to the very outer part of the rim on the CM Wheels ones whereas on the others (like I had) the spoke returns back to the 'inner' 'second' rim face. I hope that makes sense.



BM Autosport




CM Wheels





Not that I've looked into it much!! Ha

[lemans 330d]

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=811914

Set of reps for sale with hairline crack and NON runflats fitted.

[Hotcoupe]

Originally Posted by lemans 330d

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=811914

Set of reps for sale with hairline crack and NON runflats fitted.

100's of OEM wheels,cracked, both hairline and major,majority fitted with runflats,but some with non runflats (26 pages long!):

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=190162

[BIFCAIDS]

Originally Posted by lemans 330d

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=811914

Set of reps for sale with hairline crack and NON runflats fitted.

[Alex.J]

Unless forged, it's inevitable that a wheel will crack these days. (still possible to crack forged wheels mind you)

Small profile tyres, increasingly larger rim size, narrow wheel designs, run flats... It's all against the rim..

When we had 45/50 profile tyres on 16" wheels cracks where unheard of.

The materials have only got better(in most cases). Cast items are brittle, shock load them and they crack.

Might as well crack a cheap set!

[Phil325i]

Originally Posted by FRG325

The M359 reps are different for sure. The CM Wheels ones are more like the original than the BM Autosport ones. The spoke is only 'attached' to the very outer part of the rim on the CM Wheels ones whereas on the others (like I had) the spoke returns back to the 'inner' 'second' rim face. I hope that makes sense.



BM Autosport




CM Wheels





Not that I've looked into it much!! Ha

Good spot! Actually the CM wheels are closer to the OEM design than the BM Auto wheels....

[E90325iM-SPORT]

Yes thats right ******** reps are closer to oem than bm and Chris always helps if anything goes wrong in future. Top guy here and on m3cutters.

[FRG]

Originally Posted by Phil325i

Good spot! Actually the CM wheels are closer to the OEM design than the BM Auto wheels....

Something I never noticed until I got the Avant Garde 359's and I had them sat at the side of the BM Autosport ones in my garage. The AG and CM Wheels are the better looking reps IMO.

[RallyRcrr]

I have the AG m359's and I like them a lot. There are two types of generics high quality and low quality and these are in the higher quality lot.

Truth be told all wheels can crack, forged, billet or otherwise. I've personally owned cheaper "low quality" Ebay wheels that have never failed after 10s of thousand of miles. I've also seen OEM wheels that crack and fail when the driver it a curb and a bad angle and too high a speed. I would buy the Ebay wheels again.

[106turbo]

Originally Posted by FRG325

Something I never noticed until I got the Avant Garde 359's and I had them sat at the side of the BM Autosport ones in my garage. The AG and CM Wheels are the better looking reps IMO.

Damn you i didnt realise you had the avant garde 359s now

I see you dropped your car off at PW today reiss told me i need to do the msport stripes on my grille like yours!!

[FRG]

Originally Posted by 106turbo

Damn you i didnt realise you had the avant garde 359s now

I see you dropped your car off at PW today reiss told me i need to do the msport stripes on my grille like yours!!

I dropped the M3 off there today, still need to get the front bumper painted properly on the E90 as all the lacquer is now peeling off!!

I've still got a good 0.5 metre of each colour for the ///M stripes if you want some Ol, you can have it, no probs.

[FRG]

Originally Posted by RallyRcrr

I have the AG m359's and I like them a lot. There are two types of generics high quality and low quality and these are in the higher quality lot.

Truth be told all wheels can crack, forged, billet or otherwise. I've personally owned cheaper "low quality" Ebay wheels that have never failed after 10s of thousand of miles. I've also seen OEM wheels that crack and fail when the driver it a curb and a bad angle and too high a speed. I would buy the Ebay wheels again.

The thing I like about the AG's is how concave they are. My first set of 359's were 8.5" and 9.5", my AG's are 9" and 10" but I measured from outer face to centre cap face and the difference was something like 35-40mm more concave on the AG 359's front and rear. That's quite a lot to be fair and very noticeable

[RallyRcrr]

Originally Posted by FRG325

The thing I like about the AG's is how concave they are. My first set of 359's were 8.5" and 9.5", my AG's are 9" and 10" but I measured from outer face to centre cap face and the difference was something like 35-40mm more concave on the AG 359's front and rear. That's quite a lot to be fair and very noticeable

That's one thing I regert about my 8.5 sqaure setup. They are almost flat. They are a great looking wheel still, but I wanted more "concavity".

So you're saying the 9 and 10 are much more concave? I was thinking about selling my 8.5s and going to a 9 square. Do you think I'd see much difference or is it not worth it?

[FRG]

Originally Posted by RallyRcrr

That's one thing I regert about my 8.5 sqaure setup. They are almost flat. They are a great looking wheel still, but I wanted more "concavity".

So you're saying the 9 and 10 are much more concave? I was thinking about selling my 8.5s and going to a 9 square. Do you think I'd see much difference or is it not worth it?

Have a measure on your wheels and see what you've got then compare. I presume as you're 8.5" then the wheels will be 18"? I just put a straight edge across and measured my 19" wheels outer face (rim) to small raised face around the centre cap hole: Front 9" ET35 - 62mm, rear 10" ET38 - 80mm. I know my original (not AG) 359 8.5"x19" front was quite flat, no where near the 62mm of the AG.

HTH you decide

Dave

[RallyRcrr]

Originally Posted by FRG325

Have a measure on your wheels and see what you've got then compare. I presume as you're 8.5" then the wheels will be 18"? I just put a straight edge across and measured my 19" wheels outer face (rim) to small raised face around the centre cap hole: Front 9" ET35 - 62mm, rear 10" ET38 - 80mm. I know my original (not AG) 359 8.5"x19" front was quite flat, no where near the 62mm of the AG.

HTH you decide

Dave

Yea I am on 18x8.5 square.

I'll definitely go measure next chance I get. Thanks for the numbers to compare against. Based on your opinion, are the 9s very concave or mostly flat? BTW, are you rubbing with your 9s on the front?

[FRG]

No rubbing at all front or rear. Fronts are 235/35/19, rears are 275/30/19 on stock Msport suspension.

[dmt335d]

I had a hairline crack on one of my reps, it was a 19inch CSL rep from CM wheels. The tyres are non runflats on a 19inch rims.
The tyre wasn't leaking any air so it wasn't too bad. I've had it welded but I'm looking to replace it at some point.
It's the first time I've ever had a cracked alloy and I do approx 25k miles per year. My view is I'd rather keep replacing reps opposed to oem's.

[Billyray911]

I had two cracks in my OEM MV3's.I had these welded and then sold them on as such.
I now have a set of BMAutos CSL GTS in 19" with non runflats.Really nice looking wheels and are very concave.
However,I've had a crack in one of them that I've replaced and I've had to have a buckle taken out of another. No major 'event' for either of these wheels where I know the cause.
These wheels were actually Dare (NK1)wheels.
I'm not impressed with how they have held out and will be going elsewhere for a stronger wheel in future.
It's a difficult decision getting the right wheel with matching longevity.

[Russbmw]

Generally anything that isn't forged is low pressure cast. That is the same for oem wheels.

Most wheels are made in Taiwan - including oem ones for bmw.

Personally, I didn't want oem ones. Whilst I agree that the problem of every 19" oem wheel cracking is down to the shitty run flats fitted, that to me meant I'd not trust oem wheels to be 100% perfect and undamaged if they're second hand, and there's no way I'd shell out for brand new oem ones either.

I think if you're buying a set of wheels, such as a branded wheel that is a replica of an oem wheel, for around the £700 to £1000 mark, they're going to be no worse quality than an oem wheel.

I think cheap Chinese alloys are going to be questionable, without a doubt, but as has been mentioned,d buying from a reputable company that has been specialising in alloys for years is a safe bet. All such wheels will have the passed tuv tests, etc.

Anyone ever buy parts from gfs in the past for older cars, such as an e36? Viscous fan clutch from bmw I was quoted back in the day something like £120. The one I bought from gfs was made by Sachs. Looked exactly the same as the one I took off my car, which as also made by Sachs, it just didn't have the bmw logo in the casting. That cost me £40.

Oem doesn't always mean best IMO. Bmw is a business, they haven to buy parts from suppliers, which change over the years no doubt based on price and availability. Who's to say the same manufacturing plants in Taiwan that supply oem rims aren't the same ones that also produce replicas or wheels for other brands?

As for the argument about how the cm wheels are closer replica than bm autosports ones, I think I prefer the idea of having more material around the most stressed part of the wheel design thanks! That filleted area must help strengthen the wheel in my opinion.

It's like anything in life, you never buy the cheapest, often don't buy the most expensive because you're likely to be paying for that brand name, but somewhere in between.

Btw, one of my replica rims on a car I had in the past took the full impact of some knob head steaming into the front wing of my car. Fucked a lot of parts, including snapping the steering rack. However, the wheel, whilst cosmetically mullered, remained completely true and the tyre held pressure still once reinflated. No cracks, no buckles.

I'm pretty sure any pothole severe enough would damage an oem wheel just as much as a replica of the same wheel. It's the wheel style and design that dictates the strength as much as anything else. I remember the bmw oem "space" style 5 spoke rims for the e39 were renowned for buckling and going out of shape.

[dmt335d]

I was speaking with the welder who repaired my rim and said to him about BMW rims and he felt the damage was more to do with the width of the wheels. My crack was on the inside of a 9.5inch rear wheel. He felt it was the nature of the beast. Wide wheels, low profile tyres and bad roads equal plenty of business for him.
OEM or not this problem of cracking wheels is only going to get worst. Back to 16inch rims and 65 profile tyres!!