It seems like the current November "Slammed Month" theme has divided the Speedhunters audience up into two polarized camps. Some of you hold fast to the premise: Form Follows Function and that all upgrades and alterations to a car should be in the pursuit of handing and speed… or at least gives the appearance of this. Others prefer to weigh visual style over performance and are more about show than go. You like cars which place a greater value on aesthetic impact over easy functionality and performance
If Time Attack tuned cars are the athletes of the car culture space, then VIP/Lux/Flush cars are more the fashionistas. And looking at all the disagreements and hating we've seen on the site so far this month, it seems that there isn't much reason for these two camps to like each other very much, let along respect each other's position.
Different styles come and go in automotive scenes around the world, and it seems like this Tight Fitment wheel craze is an upcoming style of the moment in the US scene -its hour has come upon the stage. These are real street cars, which are NOT necessary performance modified and or even VIP/Lux styled either. They are also sometimes relatively simple builds in the grand scheme of things.
Some of you will probably argue that tight fitment cars like this BMW shouldn't be shown on
Speedhunters because it's too straight forward. Why should a site like Speedhunters pay attention to these cars? Where is the custom fabrication? Where is the ten page spec sheet?
For myself, there are several reasons to showcase this low slung machine. The first lies in the above photo. Just look at how this slammed and fitted BMW looks compared to the appliance cars around it. It certainly stands out from the field of automotive mediocrity you find on everyday city roads.
Secondly I like how this Bimmer isn't necessarily made from
unobtainium. It's an example of car that would be a good entry point
for a person on a budget to get into an automotive lifestyle.
This is not a high dollar build, but is a great example of a clean and
simple machine which even non-car-people are going to notice.
This 325is is a work-in-progress that will continue to become wilder and more
extreme with time, but for now I will want to show this set of photos I shot a few weeks ago in the small town of Rosenburg, Texas.
It's a 1995 BMW owned and operated by Texas local, Armando Molina.
You'll notice it sports an unique and perhaps surprising set of wheels. These are Corvette C4 alloys. The rims are 9.5 inches wide on all four corners, which according to
Armando is half an inch wider than what most E46 owners manage to
squeeze into their wheel wheels.
The rims themselves are an off-the-wall choice, but for Armando, they are a temporary setup.
He wanted to get his fitment worked out on a temporary set of wheels, before putting out more cash for a permanent setup. Ideally he'd like to be running Schimdt, BBS RS, or CCW rims.
Armando has changed the looks of the 325is' face with the installation of a M3 front bumper and a blacked out 1999 nose panel.
M3 side moldings, side skirt have also been added. It's a refined OEM look that gives the car the visual weight of the M3 model but without the cost.
He's planning to upgrade the engine soon to either an M3 powerplant or a LS1 swap. The second option would continue the Chevrolet theme on the car!
Check out the "No Bags" tag. This spells out the sentiment of the some of the hard riding, coil-over ride height crew towards those who've gone the air bags route.
lol!
We are currently only giving out these stickers in person, but hopefully we'll have a delivery option to you guys sooner than later!
During the photo shoot, I asked Armando to pull into this gravel alleyway behind the main Rosenburg town center.
And even with a very mildly inclined entrance the car was just barely able to make it into the alleyway.
Armando seems to have some kind of sixth sense to know how much ground clearance the car has over bumps and inclines.
But I suppose this is necessity when running a super-slammed machine… You need to be fully prepared to scrape and scratch your way along the road.
Roll in the comments!
:Rod Chong
OFFICIAL SPEEDHUNTERS SUPPLIERS
Nice. I'm not a fan of the rims that much, but they do look rather good on that car. I'd so rock a slammed car daily.. perhaps when I buy a car, it'll be flush.
Loving the Vette wheels on BMWs!! Keep it up!
????I like the fitment, although it's rather plain otherwise. Big up
Nice! Each facet of car culture is interesting in its own way, and it's good to be able to see such a wide range of tastes and cars on Speedhunters. Keep it comin' guys!
I love it. I wish there were glass smooth roads here so I could roll that lowww!!!!
nice!i have a 318 t.i rolling on 740 rims and it looks smilar to your ride.
I'm all about function over form but I love the idea and the look of these cars. Thats whats so great about this site is to be able to see a diverse range of car culture with a bit of everything. Hopefully sticking a little more to the hella flush, drift and time attack side of things. Dont ever change a thing, best website hands down! I hope it always stays that way.
me likey
I like the wheels and sizing on the car, but I hope he doesnt go chevy powered. Go s/c!
Rod, I really dig the writing on this post. I'm one of those dudes with a tight budget and its good to know that we budget builders can still get respect by building clean, simple, well thought cars. I personally like both camps, Track style and Street style. Those vette rims give it an almost DTM wheel style from the mid 90's. I dig!
great! i like
I wonder how fast he can manage to go on a highway. The nose of my Evo is about 5" off the ground and I'm constantly staring at the road conditions. With a setup like this Bimmer, it must be nerve-racking. That looks low to a point where it's just not fun anymore.
I actually think this car is awesome. I like the big-dollar, airbagged trailer queens a lot less. This, on the other hand, is excellent. BTW, I'm still looking forward to the RWB Porsche desktop
haha, flushed out
As Rod said, People who drive cars this low have a sixth sence... We know what to look for on the road ahead, so there isnt much nerve racking.. Sure you get moments where you clench and brace for impact, but Im sure there are times on the track where function over form guys have similar experiences... Love your work Rod!
Nice write up Rod,, love Armando's ride..
Very nice bmw!!
Rims look nice. Very nice! But maybe a color would be nice. Or black or something.
I love it!
???? indeed! static drop is my favourite kind
very good feature and enjoyable read again speedhunters!
desktop please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
perfect car! This post was awesome speedhunters.
yeaah repping wrong fitment crew!!! woot! i cut that sticker. lol
Totally Agree with neil, im more inclined to the time attack/track style/jdm (i own a r34 skyline :)) cars but I still appreciate and enjoy the articles on all the different car cultures that this site presents. Keep up the good work rod and don't listen to the "haters" lol!
P.S i want that "No Bags" sticker lol
This is what it's all about... Doing what you love doing with what you got... I am the same way. I have a mildly modified Suzuki reno but one thing I didn' compromise on was a set of coilovers that I could slam to the ground... Like Rod said, It's a car that even non-car people will notice, if for nothing else than it's a simple, non flashy, super clean, style driven build. It's the same way I like my T-shirts, no logos, just perfect fit and style...
You forgot a category of readers Rod, those in between, those that might have very specific preferences, but still like or adore seeing different styles and cultures in the auto scene.
I for one enjoy the time attack side of things and am crazy about drifting and all, but I so wouldn't mind riding in a max slammed down ride, be it air bagged or on coils, although, the roads where I live in won't let me rock coils for too long...
On another note, have u checked your inbox latelly? I have sent you some shots of local slammed rides. Thought they are Speedhunters material:)
Thanks
Looks good with the vette rims, forget the BBS'
did he run spacers or is it just straight wheel??? i know the lug pattern lines up, but that is so close to the fender compared to a C5 wheel on an E36 my buddy has local here.
ahh...what a refreshing car.... take the bumpers off and no more worries =)
The only problem I see is that it probably drives poorly. Is that a problem?
The car actually drives great, yea I have to be careful where I go and comin in and out of driveways but it's all worth it! I mean you don't see the guys with drift/time attack cars takin it easy on their cars just because of the risk of possibly breaking something right?
Thanks for all th possitve feedback everyone I really appreciate it!
The wheels are a 56 offsset so after the 33mm adapters it's now 23
FUGLY
Corvette wheels on a BMW? Really?
REALLY?
what's with the Vette wheels lately? - FAIL!!
everything about the car is absolute sickness but come on, Vette wheels, not funky fresh, just funk'd
props to the coilover driven height!
DSDone Balleur Built!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Well I'm glad the slammed BMW post from yesterday has gone down a treat... you can never tell with
Well I'm glad the slammed BMW post from yesterday has gone down a treat... you can never tell with
I too am on the fence with the two camps thing rod, i lke a all out track/drift car for the weekend and a slammmed car for during the week.And lovui=ing the vette rims so much i want them when i get an e36.
so my bf really does know how to kill the game
I really dont think the vette wheels is what the car is about, its about that fitment that he worked so hard to get just right.
And it definetly takes skill to drive a car this low =)
good job balleur
ps: who says "fugly" anymore?
nice ride, but i don't like those wheels.
I don't get it.
The wheels are old and don't look great, and the car is bland.
Its on this site because its slammed to the ground????
Like I said, I don't get it....and I'm glad I don't.
love the vette wheels, ive been thinking about the c4"s on my rabbit, i just didnt know what the offset was. big ups to balleur!!! fugly isn't even a word
lol, try driving that low in shitty roads like maryland. the stories must be true that texas roads are nice
ah, but it is about the wheels and not just offset/fitment. Wheels can make or break a project. If you want a different look there are plenty of other options that would be more unique and better looking temporary wheel than late model Vette. It's a package deal - wheels, fitment and stance, if one is off it kills the whole thing.
Like I said, i love the stance and fitment on a body style that I never really appreciated until I saw Sean Dub's white M3 and now Armando's.
Again nice job!!
Dude car is looking legit! love the vette wheels. and Fitment is more then spot one.
Why does everybody think their roads are the worst in the US and everywhere else has perfect roads? Excuses... Mandos car has been all over Texas through bad and worse roads.
Right now a Vette owner is hanging his head in shame... LOL
Diggin the no bags sticker on the back this car just looks so sick never knew you could pull off vette wheels on a BMW so well keep up the work bro
@ Oscar
It's because it seems that a lot of u US guys can afford driving 0 ground-clearance, slammed cars as your daily drivers. For some of the rest of us, our areas have such shitty roads that if you'd use a slammed ride like that, you'd get nowhere with it and you'd have to wait and see your grandkids grow up by the time you'd find a suitable parking spot. From my point of view, I'm not saying that US roads are perfect, far from it, but u sure do have a lot more space to play with than, let's say, us Euro guys. Some of your residential roads are the size of some boulevards down here in Europe.
BMW E36 should only be on BBS LM.
"...If Time Attack tuned cars are the athletes of the car culture space, then VIP/Lux/Flush cars are more the fashionistas."
An epic quote right there...
lol at stephane's comment =D
texas roads are not near the smoothest ive seen in this country, but if you wanna ride low you just gotta nut up or shut up. you have to know where you can and cant go, which cars you take to what places.
mando, car looks great homie. Rod forgot to mention that when trying to get up that little incline in the driveway it flexed the bumper hard enough to kick off one of the fogs. gotta pay to play boys and girls.
@Chris Davy, my comment was directed at other US cars that think they have the "worst" roads. Nick up there put it well to drive slammed you have to nut up or shut up.
@ "perfect roads" i cant even count how many times a day i scrape or bang out my frame rails, hell even gettin in and out of where i work is a P.I.T.A (and oscar can vouch for that) here in san antonio there is tons of construction and the roads are no where near perfect. They might be better than some roads overseas and i guess that why most of you guys are on bagged set-ups. I dont mind bags but they just arent for me, my favorite part of the car is when its rolling, how it looks like its just coasting or floating along, i love it lol. thanks again for the possitve feedback and lots of credit has to be given to the mastermind behind the lens and the computer screen, Rod Chong, thanks again for giving me this opportunity and helping us texas boys get our cars out there... we cant let the west coast have all the fun
i dont like corvette wheels on it, anyway nice set up!
I likethe comment on the corvette rims and the LS1 swap.
It would piss people off and if someone told me about it, I would think it sounded stupid but looking at this car, I am actually digging the vette rims on a BMW. It is like a middle finger to snobs.
Can you please make a desktop version of this pic?
http://ll.dev.speedhunters.com/u/f/eagames/NFS/dev.speedhunters.com/Images/Rod09/Cars/vette%20bmw/IMG_8020.JPG
Awesome dude, never thought I'd like vette wheels on a VW and then my buddy did it awhile back @ H20 and I was floored.. I'm having the same reaction w/this.. fitment+stance+wheels=awesome. Too many people obsess over the wrong things (body kits, paint, ultra-rare parts) and forget about the fundamentals..
Awesome dude, never thought I'd like vette wheels on a VW and then my buddy did it awhile back @ H20 and I was floored.. I'm having the same reaction w/this.. fitment+stance+wheels=awesome. Too many people obsess over the wrong things (body kits, paint, ultra-rare parts) and forget about the fundamentals..
car looks great as it sits, haha guess the only excuse to not ride low is roads blah blah learn how to drive or just say i dont wanna ride that low if not then let it be
i love it...
i am really digging slammed month!!!
What size tires do you have on them?
oh my god the drop is total superbadass !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! damn i like your car
Sexy. props to Armando and to you, Speedhunters for finding a defined ride worth noting in my neck of the woods (Texas). I am slowly realising that the preferred mode-of-transportation is a slammed Euro saloon (although I like this coupe'). I thoroughly enjoy the pix and ideal plans shared for his Bimmer. Nice!