Front Tyres Rubbing....

[benaldo]

Hi all - I've recently got an E46 M3 and changed the standard 18" wheels to some lovely new genuine 19" CSL's. What I have noticed now is that I can sometimes hear some strange rubbing noise coming from the front when sharply steering (usually under load) - it doesn't seem to be a problem if I put full lock on and slowly go forward / reverse from stationary, but can happen on a roundabout for example.

I'm thinking it could be springs or shock absorbers ?

Any suggestions or has someone had a similar experience?

[RatBoy M3CS]

Have a look @ the wheel arch liners.. you will soon see some scuff marks if its been rubbing anywhere.. mine does sometimes over bumps.. but not on lock to lock..? are you running 235-35 section fronts, and 265-30 section rears...?

[Neil.D]

The wheel arch plastics/belly plate may have had a screw pop out. My E36 M3 had one or two work loose causing a slight sag in appearance which in turn made slight contact with the tyre. Put an old tshirt on and have a look under there.

[GTWayne]

The front track on an M3 E46 is not as wide as an M3 CSL hence the M3 CS having 8" wide front rims in the CSL wheel design as opposed to the 8.5" fronts found on the M3 CSL. You will need to fit hub eccentric spacers of at least 10mm to gain clearance

[RatBoy M3CS]

Yup... I agree with GTwayne here.. when i put CSL fronts on mine there was next to no clearance between the inner lip of the rim and the strut.. it almost touched.. take the rim off and check for wear marks on the strut and wheel arch liner.. you will soon see evidence of where its been hitting.. the CSL fronts have more outboard offset, but are 1/2 inch wider..
But your going the right way.. the steering is much better.. to recover your clearances on lock to lock get some 10mm track track spacers from thorneymotorsport too, they are about 25 quid.. and the steering is better again..
As it is now you have lost about 3 mm a side inboard clearance, and its rubbing somewhere..
Track spacers will also give the car the same front / rear track to the nearest mm, and if you get on a racetrack you will see what i mean.. its almost a neutral balance.. slight bias towards understeer but stloads better than stock..

Edited by RatBoy M3CS on Thursday 11th September 10:14

[benaldo]

Thanks - sounds like good sense. I guess the reason I am only noticing it sometimes especially under load is that the clearance is now down to such a small margin that it is bound to touch every so often.

I've spotted the spacers on Thorney :
http://www.thorneymotorsport.co.uk/products/produc...

It sounds like it is a very simple DIY job - is that correct?

Also - for the handling - will I only need to have front spacers or all round?

Edited by benaldo on Thursday 11th September 13:24

[rassi]

Would you not also need new bolts, 10 mm longer?

[E30M3SE]

rassi said:

Would you not also need new bolts, 10 mm longer?

The link states;
"- Requires Extended Wheel Bolts (Not Included)"

[rassi]

E30M3SE said:

rassi said:

Would you not also need new bolts, 10 mm longer?

The link states;
"- Requires Extended Wheel Bolts (Not Included)"

Sorry, hadn't seen that! But better safe, than sorry...

[RatBoy M3CS]

Yup.... you do need longer bolts.., thorney has these too.. just spacers on the front.. the rear track wont have enough clearance under the arch on full bump.. and your trying to dial out the understeer, so work on the front end..

[benaldo]

Thanks Ratboy !