IwannaSportSedan Posted April 18, 2007 Share Posted April 18, 2007 I have noticed that some versions of the Jetta and Golf, such as the R32, have some really nice BBS wheels, RCs, in 18x7.5, which is just about the perfect size for what I want, and I have alwasy been a sucker for BBS wheels. They are available in 5x100... Which is good. However, they are 38 mm offset. Minimum for the Legacy is 40. http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r241/turboboost4me/BBSRC.jpg Image credit goes to a poster on VWVortex, or the owner of the photobucket space... Used without permission. How feasible would it be to ask some machine shop to machine 2-4 mm off of the hub pad, and make them work on a Legacy. I have seen them without the full VW hub cover cap (covers the lugs), and they do seem to fit the standard small BBS cap in the hub center, with a nice deeply hollowed lug area, like the BBS RE. Some small STI caps would set it off nicely. It seems like Ebay, xrims, or vwvortex have several sets available... and not nearly as expensive as Subaru-specific BBS mesh wheels, or new RG-Rs. Are any of the former Audi/VW owners on this list familiar with the back side of this wheel, to say if there is that much material to remove? what about hub bore diameter? Anyone familiar with wheels in general to say that such lathe work would weaken the wheels? I realize this is a crazy idea. It just seems so close to working, that I have to ask. I don't even know that I would risk the cash to try it out with the potential for failure, and possibly scrapping the wheels altogether. If only the legacy had wider fenders... and 38mm offset worked... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krzyss Posted April 18, 2007 Share Posted April 18, 2007 do you like this? http://i14.ebayimg.com/01/i/08/d3/16/fe_1.JPG then look for BBS RK. They do come in 48mm offset. Krzys Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nKoan Posted April 19, 2007 Share Posted April 19, 2007 I've thought about asking a shop to mill wheels for just that exact person. Just thinking about it, I figured it would weaken the wheels, and I didn't want to take the chance. I don't know if they really would be weaker, but I didn't want to take the gamble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brady Posted April 19, 2007 Share Posted April 19, 2007 I want you, for one second, to take a look at what 2mm really is. Take 15 sheets of paper out of your printer tray. Squeeze them tight ... that's about 2mm thick. Depending on which tires you choose, it really is feasible that it will be a non-issue. If you're serious about it, see if you can find a friendly local V-Dubber and see if they'll let you try the wheels on. Now, I'm not really recommending going outside the suggested range, but if you're looking to stretch the limit a bit, why not really go for it? As far as getting a local machine shop to do it, if you're going to spend the money on that, why not just pay the money for the right wheels to begin with? I wouldn't think that ANY machine shop would do it for less than $40 a wheel - and they probably wouldn't want to touch it for liability reasons. My estimation is that the wheel would be plenty strong, but if someone came to my shop asking me to do that, I'd turn them down just to be safe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IwannaSportSedan Posted April 19, 2007 Author Share Posted April 19, 2007 I like the RK. I like the BBS Impreza optional mesh wheels. I wish they were 18", and wider than 7". The RG-R is the right size, but well out of my price range, and doesn't go out to the edge of the rim like the RC. The RS GT is hot, but WAY too expensive. With camber, fender rolling, maybe it would fit, I dunno. 2mm does strike me as a very slim margin, which is why it crossed my mind. But that "safe" aspect is why I probably wouldn't risk the cash without an easy test fit, and I don't know any VW R32 owners around... The right wheel. That elusive search for the right wheel... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el5y Posted April 19, 2007 Share Posted April 19, 2007 I've thought about this before as well. Found a set local for $600 but didn't jump on it (fiance with the purse strings...) Correct me if I'm wrong but I thought the lower the offset the more it will stick out of the wheel well? how adversely affected will the handling be by 2 mm on each corner? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OzSTi Posted April 19, 2007 Share Posted April 19, 2007 A few years ago I had a second generation Mazda RX7 and had 17X8 on the front (17X9 rear) and the rim shop had 3mm milled from the rear of the hub to get the correct offset at the front. No issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IwannaSportSedan Posted April 19, 2007 Author Share Posted April 19, 2007 the big question is, how it would fit. 38mm is pushing the wheels out pretty far from stock 53-55mm. questions are, will it fit under the fenders, or will the fenders need to be rolled? additional camber, and what will that do to handling and tire wear, and more importantly, will it wear excessively on the not-overly-robust wheel bearings. but on the other-hand... they look so good, and are available used... maybe not worth it... mostly a hypothetical excercise, unless someone knows for sure that they will fit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fox06LegacyGT Posted April 19, 2007 Share Posted April 19, 2007 ahem!!!! HP Design HPR5's 18x8 with 225/40/18 tires 38 offset wheels: http://farm1.static.flickr.com/190/441076720_df92430840.jpg http://farm1.static.flickr.com/176/449629806_1e5243acf0.jpg if u want more i can dig some up they did rub ever so slightly in the rear, mostly on the driver side...but I got the fenders rolled and they rub no more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndas Posted April 19, 2007 Share Posted April 19, 2007 How about these...? Niiiice work Creo! J I believe a +50 offset! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndas Posted April 19, 2007 Share Posted April 19, 2007 Linky... http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/results.jsp?filterSize=18&filterFinish=All&filterBrand=BBS&filterSpecial=false&autoMake=Subaru&autoModel=Legacy+Wagon+2.5+GT&autoYear=2005&autoModClar=Limited&sort=Brand Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fox06LegacyGT Posted April 19, 2007 Share Posted April 19, 2007 a +50 offset is completely different than a +38....plus, those VW rims are BBS's and wont cost $500 a wheel and their beautiful. My cousin has them on his GLI IWannaSportSedan- I say go for it. Worse comes to worse your roll the fenders. Cost me $50 a fender, and I only did the rear. At the price you'll save for picking those up used, you would end up with some sweet rims at a cheap price Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndas Posted April 19, 2007 Share Posted April 19, 2007 "a +50 offset is completely different than a +38....plus, those VW rims are BBS's and wont cost $500 a wheel" Really...thanks for pointing that out...! I stand corrected... J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fox06LegacyGT Posted April 19, 2007 Share Posted April 19, 2007 "a +50 offset is completely different than a +38....plus, those VW rims are BBS's and wont cost $500 a wheel" Really...thanks for pointing that out...! I stand corrected... J i wasnt attacking you, im just saying...i think his point was getting a nice set of BBS rims for cheap, and what you offered was paying for a brand new set that would cost well over $2k but whatever. this is his thread, and his decision Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jingjing Posted April 19, 2007 Share Posted April 19, 2007 do you like this? http://i14.ebayimg.com/01/i/08/d3/16/fe_1.JPG then look for BBS RK. They do come in 48mm offset. Krzys heres mine http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y86/jingjingecr3/Picture374.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndas Posted April 20, 2007 Share Posted April 20, 2007 i wasnt attacking you, im just saying...i think his point was getting a nice set of BBS rims for cheap, and what you offered was paying for a brand new set that would cost well over $2k but whatever. this is his thread, and his decision True enough...I was just pointing to a different style more than anything... Wasn't really considering price...although that is a good point...! J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NSFW Posted April 22, 2007 Share Posted April 22, 2007 Few people know that Bosco once had a stalker. In fact I don't think he really realized. You see, I was looking at a 40 offset wheel, and he had some 17x7s with a 40 offset, so I took notes when he posted... http://www.legacygt.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=29827&d=1167698885 I think it looks just right in the rear (the rears are always a little tucked in if the offsets are the same front and rear) but the front tire looks too close to the fender IMO. Then he got 48s: http://www.legacygt.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=30027&d=1168120588 Notice how flush the front wheel is. Now imagine 8mm further out. No, 10mm further out if you go with unmodified 38s. That picture is the reason I quit stalking him, and never got those 40s I was considering. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EL PAALO Posted April 22, 2007 Share Posted April 22, 2007 if the width on the second set is not the same then the offset change isn't nearly as useful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NSFW Posted April 23, 2007 Share Posted April 23, 2007 Kinda, but IMO the position of the wheel face is much less significant than where the tire itself ends up. The tires are 225s in both cases, so if you look at where the shoulders are in each picture, you can see what the offset change does to them. That's the widest part of the tire/wheel assembly, it's where the clearance issues will be, it's where you have to think about dirt slinging up from the tires onto the body, etc. And IMO it's the most visible part of the package. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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