[hydrazine]

Hi Luke, I have a white 2001 E46 330Ci .. my car came standard with a set of 205/50-17 wheel set. While I was surfing tirerack.com, I noticed that the Borbet Type E and T may look nice for my car. This time I'm looking for probably some width 225 wheel sets at 17 inch. Please answer some of my questions below, thanks !

First of all, can you explain what it means to be "17x8" or "17x8.5" ? And which do you think would be more suitable for my case of getting width 225 ?

Also, what would be the tire figures (such as 225/45-ZR17) that you'd recommend for my car ? My driving style is safe but sometimes very aggressive. Should I go 225 front and back, or should I consider 225 front, 245 back like the cars at the BMW Driver Training do ?

How'd you think of me getting some Borbet Type E or T for my White 330Ci ? I'm leaning towards a simpler design, much like the Hamann PG2 .. which other rims do you think might look good on the white 3er coupe ? How'd you think the weight of these rims would enter the picture compared to more expensive & lighter rims, and cast vs alloy ?

I'm also looking into the tire choices. A friend have suggested me the Dunlop SP9000, and I've also had a great experience with the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S at the driver training. How'd you think of these 2, and which one would you recommend for my situation ? Are there other good tire choices that you think I should look into ? Another friend recommended the Bridgestone SO3PP too but that's outta range .. =P

Thanks a lot Luke, please try to answer the ones you see as important .. and I'm looking forward to my shopping experience at Tirerack !

Thanks again,
Michael