I just got my new wheels mounted and balanced by none other than a BMW custom shop!! I looked high and low for a competent installers, and after having a nightmare of a time with a highly recommended shop that tried and failed to install them.... only to leave me with a scratched lip in two places (unnoticeable when looking at the wheel). Previous to my G I’ve driven BMW's for years and loved them. I decided to see if this BMW performance shop (specializing in Dinan tuning) would mount my tires, even though in their ads they specifically state that they only work on Beemers. So, I took my car to them, and after walking through a slew of Dinan tuned M3's and M5's (amazing cars!) I got to the front desk and asked if they would mount my tires?? I was greeted by the service manager who said he saw me drive in and thought my G was awesome. He said he would be happy to mount and balance my SF Challenge and install them on my G. When I returned to pick up my car, all 8 employees at one time or another came up to me and told me how incredible the wheels looked and how awesome the G is. Here in St. Louis not many people have SF challenge, so maybe is was just a novelty...but I like to think it was mutual admiration and appreciation of two different marques....Here's a quick pic, more will follow....



299666-3quarternet.jpg

I'll try to answer all the questions at once: The drop is about 1.1 inches in the front and approx. 1 inch in the back (Eibach pro kit). The wheels are Volk SF Challenge with a mercury silver finish. The size of the wheels are: 19 x 8.5 +21 offset front (63 mm lip), and 19 x 9.5 +23 offset rear (81mm lip). There are no clearance problems with the brembo's or the fenders. The tires are Michelin Pilot Sport PS2, 245/35 front, 275/35 rear. The best deal you will get is from Jeff, (not me), at Evolution Autosports 703.961.9090 He's very knowlegable and easy to deal with. I hope this answer's most questions....When I was in the market for wheels these were the same questions I would ask, so I hope this helps!....



299896-frwheel2.jpg

one more...



299897-sideview2.jpg

I was concerned about that as well. The tire pressure monitors stayed in the stock 18" rims that I took off. No attempt was made to transfer them. From the forums that I posed that same question to, I learned that the monitors only give a warning only after 30- 40 minutes of driving, when you travel over 30mph, and have very low tire pressure. I figured it's not worth the hassle to try to transfer them, especially when I can monitor tire pressure the old fashioned way...with a hand held tire guage. Thanks to everyone for all the positive compliments on my G, they are greatly appreciated!!!



300349-42CE0091a.1.jpg

I really don't know the difference between silver and Mercury silver. My decision was based on two factors....1) I searched for pics of SF Challenge wheels on the forums and all I found was Mercury silver. I knew how they looked, and I could imagine how they would look on my G so I decided on the Mercury silver. 2) All the guys that I talked to when researching theses wheels told me that the majority of people buy Mercury Silver vs. Silver because they look so much better. The regular silver don't look as nice. Now, I don't know this for a fact, because I've never seen them....I'm only going on their recomendations. At the time I ordered my wheels I could have had either color, so that wasn't a factor in my decision. If you do find any pics of the regular silver vs Mercury Silver, pass them along. I would be interested in seeing the difference. Hope this helps, more than confusing the issue?? The wheels, especially the polished lip do take alittle more care to keep them looking good. When I got my wheels, before they got mounted, I applied three coats of zaino to the wheels. This really seemed to help keep the wheels somewhat cleaner, when compared to my stock 18" wheels. Although, again the polished lip needs TLC...