Xoutpost.com - Finally! Pics of 20" Styling 132 Wheels

Actually, I haven't even had a chance to post pics of my second X5 (and #5 of six so far with the purchase of my wife's Xmas present 325i last month).

The wheels are staggered 9.5x20 and 10.5x20 Styling 132 (facelift 4.4i SPP wheels) reps that I picked up from OE Wheel (ebay). This is the second set I've purchased from OE and I've had good luck with their products. (Please note - Let's not turn this post into a commentary on replica wheel quality or reseller customer service.)

As I did on my 2002 4.4i, I went with the Goodyear RSA 295/40s front and rear. Before you overwhelm my PM box with questions like, "why staggered wheels but non-staggered tires?" or "dude, you're making a big mistake by not going with staggered tires too," bear in mind that I've done this before and I achieved all my goals with this setup. It looks great. It handles great. With the X5's balance, non-staggered tires handle better, IMO. The Goodyears are a great value proposition. I only got about 20-22k out of the last set of rear tires, but at less than $160/ea, who cares? (And the fronts would go to 35k-40k easily.) They do acceptably well in snow and perform admirably in the wet. Unfortunately, they scored low in TireRack's ratings. Not sure why...this is my second set and I just love 'em. Perhaps the OEM RSA's are subpar.

The wider-than-OEM width up front works well and does not protrude beyond the fenders, while the rears work very well also, filling out the wheel wells nicely without requiring the 4.6is/4.8is lip extensions (which look great, IMO, but I didn't have that mod in the budget) or serving up rocks and other road-borne detritus against the paint on the sides of the car.

Soooooo...anyway, I've attached a couple pics of the X5 with the new 20" reps and three of the car with the OEM 18" SPP wheels for comparison purposes. I love the looks of the 132s and would tell you that if you're on the fence about doing this mod, go for it! You'll not regret it.

A note of caution/personal experience: if you upgrade to ANY wheel in an 18" diameter or larger, BE SURE to have your tires mounted and balanced using a dual-plane spin balancer. Wheels this big will pulsate or vibrate through the steering wheel (fronts) or seat bottom (rears) if single-plane balanced. It won't cost extra for the dual-plane balance and you'll be glad you did it. Thanks for reading this far :)

Mike