• Hello Guest, welcome to the initial stages of our new platform!
    You can find some additional information about where we are in the process of migrating the board and setting up our new software here

    Thank you for being a part of our community!

$20 BBS wheels mounted on low '77 242: A semi-build thread

eparayno

New member
Joined
May 25, 2014
Location
San Diego
Well, I got these 15x7 +20 BMW style 5's for $80 but I sold the tires they came with for $60 so I think I got one hell of a deal for them. Much much lighter than the 14" steel wheels.

Anyway, onto the car. When I first got my '77 242 the paint was in horrible shape. It would actually rub off after washing her. A few hours later and some Meguiars ultimate compound I was able to save the paint. What was underneath all that oxidation was some very nice Carlsbad Yellow paint! I then got a roof rack and focused on fixing and cleaning the oil covered B21F.

I wish I had pictures before using compound but here are some pictures after mounting the BBS wheels. I used 25mm adapters all around to push the offset to -5. I had some nearly new 185/60/15's laying around so I mounted those. The sidewall sits very flush to the wheel with a tiny amount of stretch:

99af65a2-5a65-4814-b3db-b51c2d3a2236_zpse64893ed.jpg


a6063f18-740e-4419-8db0-da5a4dcd8f10_zps3e8edc5a.jpg



Good improvement BUT the ride height irked me something awful. I planned on doing short strut coilovers for the front and also adjustable rears but I had to do something right then and there. Drove her home and I got to cutting the springs. I cut 3 coils off the front and checked the height. There was about a 3 finger gap still - no bueno. I then decided to just cut the front springs in half. Left with a 1 finger gap and a smile.

The rear springs I cut 3.5 coils off and that got me tucking tire and having a level ride height. I absolutely did not want rake so I was happy. I had to hammer the back part of the rear fenders flat to prevent the tires from rubbing. Those rear fender lips sure are beefy but a 3lb mini sledge took care of them fairly easily. I was surprised though that the rear axle did not move to one side after such a dramatic drop. I measured both sides and the drivers side wheel is only about 2-3mm closer to the fender. I may still buy an adjustable panhard bar though:

photo4_zpsce0ed4c2.jpg


photo31_zpse2630670.jpg


photo41_zps8fde6f16.jpg


photo32_zpsfcb9322d.jpg





I was going to get some front 3/4 shots but there was a school next door and parents started pouring into the parking lot.

I am very happy with the new height. The car has some no name HD shocks in the rear and DeCarbon struts in the front. They should last until I get coilovers since I drive the car maybe 200 miles a month.

I am leaving it like this for now and will be doing a timing belt install as well as replacing the front seals. The crankshaft seal has been leaking since I bought the car and I am tired of it.
 
Thanks guys. This car has become my new obsession. I wish I kept my '92 240 but I bought this shortly after selling the '92.

I would like to space the rears out more but the tire would come into contact with the fender and I do not want to get smaller tires. The tires are Nankang brand, yes not the best, but they have a high load rating which = stiffer sidewalls. They are rated at 88H and for cruising around town they do the job decently. I wanted to try and stick as close to the OE diameter for tires but I knew that would not work too well when lowering the car. My choices were either 205/50/15 195/55/15, 185/60/15 or 185/55/15. The 185/60's are only a 1/2" diameter smaller than the stock 185/70/14s but since I mounted them on a 7" wide wheel the slight stretch gave better clearance.

After the timing belt and front seals install I will be hunting down new seats. The original 37 year old seats are completely flat and the material is literally falling out of the bottom. Once that is sorted out I plan to drive the B21F and BW55 until either ones craps out so I can install a readily available B230FT. I like the nostalgic factor of the K-Jet and it's simplicity but tracing problems and smog(SoCal car) have been a headache.
 
I'm running 225/50R16s in the rear with 8" wide barrels at ET-5. Some aggressive fender lip rolling and axle relocation are required though :-P
 
Last edited:
I'm running 225/50R16s in the rear with 8" wide barrels at ET-8. Some aggressive fender lip rolling and axle relocation are required though :-P

I bet. I almost went with 16x8 style 5's and that extra inch would have made the rears more flush but I wanted tires with a decent sidewall height for a softer ride.

What have you done for your exhaust? I forgot how low it hangs on 240's. It is the lowest part of the car. I want to go custom and try to raise the piping under the car at least an inch.
 

this was -12 on a 7.5 on the rear. good offset for that ride hight

shorten the down pipe like 2" and it will make A LOT of the scraping go away
 
Back
Top