Well, guys/gals, I FINALLY got these wheels/tires mounted and installed. After going through a few issues with what I needed for these to work correctly (TPMS related), theyre finally on. I really like the look and stance. Opinions, good or bad are welcome.

I AM having an issue though; and sadly it is still TPMS related. So the tire shop I had these installed at had an issue with the TPMS sensors I purchased from ECS; these were recommended to work with my car. So I ordered them. Problem was, they wouldnt fit the wheel properly: the metal valve stem was too long and hitting the spoke, not allowing the tire to be filled.

So what did I do? I purchased two more TPMS sets; one from O'Reilys and one from the tire shop. The tire shops was the one that ended up fitting, as they had these super short rubber valve stems. Fast forward to today when having them installed. All was fine and dandy until I left the shop. The sensors will NOT connect to the car and read the tire pressure.

These are supposed to be universal sensors. I HAVE to have these short rubber valve stems in order for these wheels to take TPMS sensors and the tires to be aired up, but for some reason these sensors wont connect with the car/or vise versa.

Does ANYONE have suggestions? And what is more aggravating, is I paid way more for these sensors and valve stems at the shop then I did anywhere else. So I was really praying they'd work. Of course, they didnt. My luck.

My second issue is, the rear wheels are super flush with the fender (I love it), but the front wheels stick out about 1/2 or less, but its noticeable. I'd really like the front to be flush with the fender like the rears are. Any advice? Can I have the fronts milled a small amount?

Anyway, here are some pics of the car. Will get better ones once the weather clears up and I can wash it. I recently deleted the rear Cooper badge and also did a KillAllWipers rear wiper delete kit for the F56 (this is a must, IMO!). I really like the way it turned out.

 

2 things:

- Were your stock TPMS sensors close to the car? The computer could be reading them if they were close to the car still.

- Maybe its just the picture but are your rear wheels really pointed in? The camber looks really off. Like I said, it could just be the picture

 

You're the second one recently that I've read about having trouble with the rubber stem "Universal" TPMS. Seems your problem is with the wheel of choice. I've never heard of stem clearance problems before. I sold my stock TPMS with my original wheels. The ones I'm running now are OEM that I got for a good price on Amazon. All the sets I've had had metal stems.

 

The ride home I had the stock wheels/tires jammed in the back of the car, so that could have been the issue then. However, I went straight home, dropped the wheels/tires off, and went back out driving for about an hour just to try and reset the sensors.

Heres an odd thing... I just went to the store and the car automatically started to try to reset the sensors. After about 30 seconds it got to 18%, then I got the failed error. Not sure what was different. So I tried the same scenario again and nothing. Hmmm. Decided to give it one more try and it slowly climbed to 49%, then got stuck there and gave me the failed error. I tried it once more since I had it working twice. It never got past 0%.

My car has the slight rear negative camber that all Mini's have. I recently had it aligned after lowering it, and all camber was perfectly within factory spec. I think it may just be more pronounced because the car is lowered, the larger wheel track and the lower position angle I took the pic from?

 

Interesting. Might have to look into this a little more.

 

What about swapping out the front wheel arches / flares to the JCW arches / flares? Don't the JCW flares have a small additional lip on the upper edges? That little bit may help in terms of appearances of the front being flush.

 

Thought about this last night, as I was looking for options. Might be the way to go, but going to keep looking before I grab them.

 

The tires are inflated a little over, to about 38psi. Factory is 35psi. Do you think this could be an issue when resetting? I wouldnt think so, but at this point Im willing to try anything.

Also, does ANYONE know if there is a way to use short rubber valve stems with the OEM sensors?

 

I couldnt tell from your originial post, do the stock sensors fit/work in your aftermarket wheels?

If so, put those in your wheels and worry about the stock setup later.

 

Sadly, NO. So says the tire shop. If they did, I dont think I'd be having this issue. I had a set of the the VDO sensors I ordered from ECS, which are supposed to be basically the same as OEM, however, they did not fit. The stem hits the spoke and doesnt allow the tire to be inflated.

 

Hmmmm ...... try a new shop maybe? Not saying your place doesnt know what they are doing but sometimes a 2nd opinion is good

 

I usually do when it comes to things, but I thought I'd give them one more shot. Took the car over there about 45 mins ago and they reset the sensors. I drove away thinking it wouldnt work, but IT DID! They read and reset within 5 minutes.

 

Well, heck. Maybe it could have been a stubborn code stuck in the ECU. Fingers crossed man!

 

Thanks! So far so good.

 

A few more pics since the sun is out.

 

Great, would love to see more pics when you can! Maybe a lower angle so the wheels don't look like positive camber.

Find a shop that specializes in wheel machining to ask about milling the backside. In LA, I used JR's Machine- maybe they could at least answer the question, although they probably will say they have to see it. Guessing that it's usually not recommended, unless the wheel was designed to be custom fit... but maybe there is a general rule of thumb for acceptable thickness.

But I'd say as long as it doesn't rub, you're good. JCW fenders aren't any wider, they just have an extra lip on the outside. Might help with appearance. Probably meant to control water spray.

 

Ah you just posted more... nice. Wheels look great. Yeah I see that extra poke in the front... Front camber plates would help as well. I think the only one available so far for OEM mounts is the K-mac.

 

I will get more pics after I wash it, and hopefully the weather is still as nice as it is today. Definitely no positive camber; just offset and width is aggressive. It actually looks better in person, but I still want to see if I can do something about the fronts. There is a slight rub when going over large bumps/bumps with turns, but nothing terrible that I can tell.

I've been looking at the JCW fenders this morning and dont think I will go that route. As you mentioned, I dont think theyre any wider.

 

I will check this option out. Thank you. Also, thanks for compliments to all. I know my personal look isnt for everyone, but hey, isnt fun if you're always like everyone else.


I tried getting better pics of the top. It really just needs to be seen in person. It looks REALLY good.

 

Those wheels look great! I was thinking about getting the same ones and was starting to lean towards the 18s but had worries about 18x8.5 et45 fitting. Your pics may have just steered me back to the 17s!

 

Your ideal situation would have been to get wheels with 5mm less offset, and add 5 mm spacers to the rear.

The rear camber being more negative is making the rear look flush. Unfortunately you can't adjust front camber.

 

Thank you. Good luck. If you need any info on what to get, now I know. Lol

 

Exactly. Unfortunately, they dont make the particular wheel I have in a 17x7.5, or that's what I would have gone with.

 

Maybe just add more camber up front.