[sbce90]

The title pretty much says all you need to know.. Replaced my 194M style rims for genuine 193M painted black. I am not 100% convinced about the gloss black finish, (only about 95%), but it looks the part at night for sure. Keeping the tyres black will probably help the make gloss finish on the rims look a bit better. Next on the mod list are the yellow performance brakes to shine from behind the black.

also a big shout out to Ed, who is not actually on e90post...yet.. (I'll try get him on) but has a really awesome 330d and helped me out with this!























okay so i went a bit crazy with posting the pics up here, heres the album anyway only a couple more in there. http://s818.photobucket.com/albums/z...90/New%20Rims/

[VGR00]

Modding is all about personal choice and taste so congratulations and well done if you are happy with the end result.

I'm not a fan .... sorry. I think the 193M are a great design and probably would have looked better on your car left in silver. I think you need a tougher looking wheel to pull off the black on silver look.

[sbce90]

vgr02 - opinion respected. good to know there arent just yes people on here. i thought about leaving it silver but there are many cars out there with that look. i wanted something a bit different. what do you consider a tougher looking wheel? i thought about the 313 performance rims but they cost a bit too much now. i hated the 194M anyway so im happy to just see them go

[ikslee]

The wheels look awesome. Can't wait to see some yellow brakes peeping through - will they be Brembos?

[johnnydad]

Looks don't work for me - the wheels disappear, shame as the 193Ms are beautiful in silver and balance perfectly on a silver car.

But that doesn't matter as long as you like the ride and handling changes - content? Are they RFTs still?

[MFKN3]

I like it and it makes the wheels appear larger. A slight drop and a rear spoiler and it will look tough

[VGR00]

Originally Posted by SBC

vgr02 - opinion respected. good to know there arent just yes people on here. i thought about leaving it silver but there are many cars out there with that look. i wanted something a bit different. what do you consider a tougher looking wheel? i thought about the 313 performance rims but they cost a bit too much now. i hated the 194M anyway so im happy to just see them go

I've been thinking of a wheel change too and cant really decide on the look. I think being silver makes it a hard colour to contrast with. It's either you go conservative and stick to a silver wheels or go out and put an aftermarker wheel on in either black or gunmetal. I've seen some gunmetal CSL wheels but I still come back with my current wheels as the best option. I'n my opinion, these wheels looked beter on my Le Mans blue E90 but until I find an alternative (ie -preferably another car), I'll stick with what I have.

Anyway ... as long as you are happy with the look well thats all that matters.

[sbce90]

ooo I see opinions are split on this one.. @johnnydad, I would have been pretty happy just leaving the rims in silver, but there are soo many other 3s out there with just regular 193M rims mine would just blend in with others. By painting it I feel like it makes it a bit more unique and shows that I put some thought behind my rim change instead of it just coming from the factory like that. (Questionable thought for some though) As for the rims disappearing, I really don't mind (in fact it something i was partly aiming for) and while on the move, the rims are hard to see anyway. They're still RFT and who knows, once they wear out I may get some other rims with regular tyres.

@xsboost, thanks - someone who likes it the rear is okay, a sliiiiight drop at the front would look better but not very practical. It already scrapes on roads and driveways :S

@vgr02 - i thought about the hyperblack csl reps but again, there are quite a few 3s out there with csl reps. I also thought about getting these rims painted in a hyperblack or gunmetal finish but just ended up going black. I saw your pics on the blue and yeh.. have to agree that the rims seemed better on them. Not that theyre bad currently but they did look a lot more slick on the blue. let me know how you go with your next rim choice. silver does seem to be a difficult colour to match rims with especially if you decide to paint like I did. your rims do like nice btw and where did you get the spoiler from?

[sbce90]

@ikslee - na im going to save up and go bmw performance. brembo just seems too common. theres a corolla on the same street with 'brembo brakes'... just caliper covers i think. also more for the look and not so much the performance.. i mean how much stopping power does a 320 need...

[John_01]

Hi SBC, Interesting to see your new wheels. I think I am starting to like them. If going down that track, I think you need something extra to co-ordinate the look. If your going to stick with this black wheels, I'd suggest looking at the BMW performance glossy black kidney grill. You could also think about the BMW performance rear wing in CF, but I'm still in two minds about that one. A cheaper copy of the OEM rear wing painted gloss black could be virtually as good, but it probably costs about the same as CF once you get it painted.

[sbce90]

Originally Posted by John_01

Hi SBC, Interesting to see your new wheels. I think I am starting to like them. If going down that track, I think you need something extra to co-ordinate the look. If your going to stick with this black wheels, I'd suggest looking at the BMW performance glossy black kidney grill. You could also think about the BMW performance rear wing in CF, but I'm still in two minds about that one. A cheaper copy of the OEM rear wing painted gloss black could be virtually as good, but it probably costs about the same as CF once you get it painted.

I agree with you wholly about needing some other black touches around the car. The guy who helped me out has an AW 330d msport and he has the same rims (slightly less glossy), and what he has done is get the black grill and some black eyelids. He has also painted the grill part of the lower front bumper in gloss black (instead of the greyish black it normally is) and hes painted the rear grey plasticky bit in black too.

I'm not a fan of eyelids... But what I was thinking was for the grill, either CF ( http://www.**********s.com/CarbonFib...MW-E90-LCI.htm ) or the performance black one. I'm in a bit of an argument with myself as I would like the CF look, but i know the gloss black would definitely suit much better with the rims. Given the money I will definitely also go for the CF front splitters and rear wing as you mention. The only remaining problem is the grey plasticky bit. In its current state I'm not sure whether the grey will go with either the CF or black look. Apparently there isn't CF rear diffuser for lci models, only pre-lci. I think that would cost too much anyway. If I get the rear painted black then it can match with the black front grill. And the CF rear wing can match with the CF front splitter..? does that sound ok or will it look odd..?

[John_01]

SBC, When adding black accents to the car, I'd try to keep it really simple, ie. as minimal as possible. Once you paint little bits here and there and add on splitters etc, I think it can start to look a bit out of control. If it was me, I would just do the kindey grills and rear wing at the most. Its just my opinion, but I tend to think that less is sometimes better when it comes to mods. On the other hand some people have the standard M-tech diffuser painted gloss black, so you can probably find some examples on the forum to help your deliberations.

[sbce90]

hm the front splitters may be a bit over the top and make it look a bit of a "rice car." Do you think a black spoiler will suit though? Will it not stand out a bit and look odd as if mis-matched? Which type of spoiler were you thinking of? I prefer the "Type II" style from the performance range. I think if i get other lip style spoilers it won't suit as well especially if it is in a different colour to the rest of the body.

[John_01]

Originally Posted by SBC

hm the front splitters may be a bit over the top and make it look a bit of a "rice car." Do you think a black spoiler will suit though? Will it not stand out a bit and look odd as if mis-matched? Which type of spoiler were you thinking of? I prefer the "Type II" style from the performance range. I think if i get other lip style spoilers it won't suit as well especially if it is in a different colour to the rest of the body.

About splitters, 1) I'm not sure if they look good on a car with standard ride height of sport suspension. 2) Might look out of place unless you really want to achieve an agressive look. 3) I already like the standard M-Tech front as it is.

I also prefer the type II performance spoiler. Yes, I think it will stand out, but you already have the black wheels that stand out. Overall, I can't really decide if it is the right look for your car or not. You could say it is moving towards ricey I suppose. Everyone has different views. I have thought about it a lot but I don't think I would go that direction for my own car.

Anyway here are a couple of examples of cars that have been done with agressive looking black accents.
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=295314
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=373083
(Ok, this second one is AW, however it shows the combination of black spoiler and black painted M-Tech diffuser)

BTW, Did you consider some window tinting?

[Brissie]

SBC, I like them, though personally I prefer matte black. Black wheels only disappear when in the photos, in real like you still see the details. Silver on silver is fine, but plain.

[sbce90]

Originally Posted by John_01

About splitters, 1) I'm not sure if they look good on a car with standard ride height of sport suspension. 2) Might look out of place unless you really want to achieve an agressive look. 3) I already like the standard M-Tech front as it is.

I also prefer the type II performance spoiler. Yes, I think it will stand out, but you already have the black wheels that stand out. Overall, I can't really decide if it is the right look for your car or not. You could say it is moving towards ricey I suppose. Everyone has different views. I have thought about it a lot but I don't think I would go that direction for my own car.

Anyway here are a couple of examples of cars that have been done with agressive looking black accents.
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=295314
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=373083
(Ok, this second one is AW, however it shows the combination of black spoiler and black painted M-Tech diffuser)

BTW, Did you consider some window tinting?

The good thing about rims is that they can easily be changed! I like them black for now but later on if i find them too ricey then they can easily be changed anyway, so at the moment I'm not too worried about ricey rims. Thanks for the links too! The silver one is a bit over the top for my liking with the hood and front spoiler and everything. The AW one is more what i could go for (minus the roof though). I'm not too keen on a drop atm as the car already scrapes on numerous roads and driveways, but it definitely would look better lowered a tiny bit. A tint seems like a good idea too, subtle yet effective. Thanks for your thoughts, much appreciated!

Originally Posted by bmw135fan

SBC, I like them, though personally I prefer matte black. Black wheels only disappear when in the photos, in real like you still see the details. Silver on silver is fine, but plain.

Silver on silver is indeed fine, but as you say, quite plain (especially with just 193M rims). Had I got different aftermarket rims or rims that are not particularly common on 3s then I highly doubt that I would have had them painted black.

[MFKN3]

I picked up the BMW Performance glossy grills from the dealer and they look great. Were $245, I asked what price they could do them for and got them at $210. - which is only slightly more than buying them from the US.

[sbce90]

Yeh i think the grills are cheap enough to get them here. Thankfully theyre not a mod costing thousands like everything else..

[John_01]

Originally Posted by SBC

Thanks for the links too! The silver one is a bit over the top for my liking with the hood and front spoiler and everything. The AW one is more what i could go for (minus the roof though). I'm not too keen on a drop atm as the car already scrapes on numerous roads and driveways, but it definitely would look better lowered a tiny bit.

SBC, I pretty much agree with your comments. I didn't like the black roof either. I think the sport suspension is low enough and firm enough for most day to day driving around Sydney.

[chappy]

Jarrad i see you have'nt stopped modding your car yet
I have the bmw performance grills and they look great funny how they are about the same price delivered compared to other bmw parts waiting on wiper blades from england $54 delivered and ordering M3 front suspension bits shortly through ECS tuning USA.

[sbce90]

its like the only ..reasonably.. priced item

[mmmmQuattro]

Originally Posted by chappy

ordering M3 front suspension bits shortly through ECS tuning USA.

Hey that sounds interesting!
Let me know how it goes.