I am refinishing a set of basket weave wheels for my E30. The set did not come with center caps so I purchased a new set. How tight should these center caps be? It takes some force but I can pull them out by hand. The center caps are new so none of the tabs are broken and they're original BBS parts. The rims are completely sanded down with no primer/paint/clearcoat to add some extra thickness. I am afraid that I will lose one when I going down the road and that wouldn't be ideal since I paid $200 for the set.
Are you talking about the factory 14" basketweaves? I only had mine's for about a month, but I thought those snapped on?
I have a set of BBS RS and they screw in. They are not only plastic but also $$$, so I am very careful when tightening them. I use the BBS tool which is just a plastic handle and snug them up. I can probably take them off by hand if I try hard. They never came off.
This is the wrench, is has a very short handle so not to overtorque them.
I think those are the same center caps on the BBS Miata wheels of that era, which I had. I found that installing them correctly was very much a "feel" thing... when they were done correctly, there would be a satisfying click and the cover would sit flush and well aligned. If it didn't click into place properly, they wouldn't sit perfectly to the wheel and would fly off the car in the next 10 miles.
It's been a few years but the set I had that I ran with the caps I used the tool that Slippery pictured.
They're 15" rims but the same style. I am cheap and 3D printed a tool like the one in the picture. The "nut" in the center turns about a 1/4 turn and does have a satisfying click but I still feel there should be more resistance. I can't over torque them because it would break the plastic piece on the back. It's late here in Germany but tomorrow I will post a picture or video to show what I am talking about. I think I am overthinking it perhaps...
I had the 15's on my last 325i, they do feel a little "loose" when on but I never lost a cap and I hooned that car over our crappy PA roads on my 120 mile round trip commute.
I put one coat of primer around the center of rim and tried again. Even with that little bit of paint it created a much tighter fit. I wasn't even able to pull it off by hand.
From your description I think they are normal. Once they click into place they don't feel terribly secure, but that's just the way they are and they don't fall off.
Do you have IX 15" weaves or the coveted Euroweaves? I'm not 100% sure, but the center caps may be different.
captainawesome said:
Do you have IX 15" weaves or the coveted Euroweaves? I'm not 100% sure, but the center caps may be different.
He mentioned he's in Germany so they're probably the 15" wheels meant for a two wheel drive car - the offset on an iX wheel is all wrong for a regular e30. In any case, the iX caps are the same (I'm on my third iX.) They were also used on some 5 series wheels.
In reply to stuart in mn :
Yessir, you are correct. They're just the normal 15" wheels. I'm bringing a Touring back with me to the States when I come this year. I am (fairly) confident that once they're all painted I won't have any issues.
