Alpina and Borrani (CMR) 13” Steel Rims

[matthewjacob]

15 hours ago, Conserv said:

6” Borrani’s are by far the easiest to find of all the CMR steelies.

So now knowing that the 13x6 Borrani Triangle CMR steelies are the easiest, is the going rate still $500 USD a wheel? Just trying to get a general ballpark to start the saving. 

[JsnPpp]

Not mine, no affilation, ya da ya da: 

CMR Alpina Wheels 13

WWW.EBAY.COM

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Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for CMR Alpina Wheels 13 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

Make an offer and see what happens.

 

Regarding price, patience is key here. If you tirelessly look in all areas (not the big selling houses) you will have a decent chance of finding a set (or several partial sets) at a "decent" price within a year or two.

 

Look overseas too - Nick mentioned finding a good price for two. Someone may be willing to ship for you. You just gotta keep looking if you want low price. And keep asking around. 

 

 

 

 

[popovm]

19 minutes ago, JsnPpp said:

 

Look overseas too - 

 

 

just don’t buy anything from Frank Franker 😬

[matthewjacob]

1 hour ago, JsnPpp said:

Regarding price, patience is key here. If you tirelessly look in all areas (not the big selling houses) you will have a decent chance of finding a set (or several partial sets) at a "decent" price within a year or two.

 

Look overseas too - Nick mentioned finding a good price for two. Someone may be willing to ship for you. You just gotta keep looking if you want low price. And keep asking around. 

 

Really appreciate all the great advice. That is the boat I am in. No hurry, will start the search and see what happens as time passes. Always amazed on how great everyone is. 

[JohnS]

Just curious,

  Does anyone know what the offset would be for those CMR 5 1/2 x 13" Alpina wheels.  Are they ET18 like the E21 wheels?

Thanks,

John

[Alpina-A0]

They are something like 21/22 as far as I rememeber!

[Conserv]

18 minutes ago, Alpina-A0 said:

They are something like 21/22 as far as I rememeber!

+1

 

ET22

 

The first post in this too-long thread has a chart of the CMR 13” steel rims, showing what we know about them, including offsets and weights.

 

Regards,

 

Steve

 

 

[JohnS]

2 hours ago, Conserv said:

+1

 

ET22

 

The first post in this too-long thread has a chart of the CMR 13” steel rims, showing what we know about them, including offsets and weights.

 

Regards,

 

Steve

 

 

 

Threads are never too-long.  They're Alive!   💀 

 

Thanks for the info.  You can most likely run a 205/60 13 without any major issues or a 185/70 13 no problem.  Now I understand why folks cherish them so much.  Good to know.

John

[mccusername]

I have bought several sets from Germany but registering for Kleinanzeigen has become way more difficult (you need a Euro phone number) and shipping has gotten so expensive that even with the cheaper prices it doesn't always pencil out. 

 

The Hardy & Beck Tii I bought from @JsnPpp has 160+ HP and a set of 5" Borranis-- they are super fun. With modern formula rubber you don't outdrive the narrow wheels on the street and they keep the car feeling light.

 

I am putting 15" H&B wheels on the car. I was going to keep the 5" Borranis but let me know if you are interested (I won't ask for $500 a wheel!) I won't have access to them in late August though.

6" seem to sell for the most, sweet spot for size. 6.5" seem to go for a good bit less, hard to fit. 

[Alpina-A0]

47 minutes ago, JohnS said:

 

Threads are never too-long.  They're Alive!   💀 

 

Thanks for the info.  You can most likely run a 205/60 13 without any major issues or a 185/70 13 no problem.  Now I understand why folks cherish them so much.  Good to know.

John

Depending on how you are driving and how low is your car!
I run 165/80 13and already have problems on the front fenders when the wheels are fully turned and the suspension is completely compressed!
Also: 5,5 and ET 22 also don't leave enough space at the rear wheel arches with some 185 tires!
So 165 is fine in most cases but everything above can be difficult!

[K_02RS]

Hey guys, providing this info here in hopes that it can help others down the road. In going down the lug nut rabbit hole, I came across a great accessible option that resembles the original Alpina lugs without the cost/time to track down an original set.

 

Wheel Lug Nut | 611-253.1 | Wheel Nut M12-1.50 Acorn - 21mm Hex, 31.5mm Length | Dorman Products

WWW.DORMANPRODUCTS.COM

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Wheel Nut M12-1.50 Acorn - 21mm Hex, 31.5mm Length

By no means a "perfect" substitute, but definitely an option for folks looking for something that seems like it belongs with the wheels. Thank you @Conserv and @pehlivanov_tii for all the help the past couple months trying to piece together a set of these fantastic wheels for my car!

 

Edited June 27 by K_02RS

[JohnP_02]

As someone that has gone through the restoration process with a few sets of these rims including very recently I just wanted to add my 02 cents. I agree with what has been said about being patient to find a reasonably priced set, but like most accessories those opportunities are drying up quickly. On the flip side, I would also be very wary of paying top dollar for a set of Borranis with a suspect restoration. Just like with our 02's sellers tend to cut corners and the restoration quality of these can vary widely, so it is a good idea to get as many details about who did the refurbishing and what they did exactly. One tip I can offer is first, to have them painted and not powdercoated. Paint is more original, looks more period correct IMO and is certainly much easier to do correction. Secondly, if you do have them painted, make sure its not put on too thick in center hub otherwise the center caps will not fit - at all (ask me how I know). It also nice to see the stampings on the wheel, so if the paint is too think it will cover all the desired information that we all geek out over. As Michael mentioned, buying rims from oversees is almost as problematic/expensive or even more so than buying a whole car nowadays. These wheels seem indestructible, but they are no match for frustrated or careless postal workers that let them drop from the truck/plane/etc and wind up with massive dents in them (again, ask me how I know). The cost of straightening, cleaning up, and painting these wheels now can easily run in to several hundred dollars per wheel if you are having the work done correctly. Then of course there is the difference in the value of the triangle vs the Alpina round hole. Even though I have a set of both and paid considerably more for the Alpina round hole type, in my opinion there is nothing better looking than a set of 6" triangle hole Borranis painted light grey on a 2002. I've had my set on my 02 for almost 10 years and they are still my favorite thing to look at on my 2002!  

 

[markmac]

Sound advice, I would say first, have a 'pro' check them to make sure they are round.  What appears to be round to you (and not dented or dinged) may in fact be the opposite.  You do not want to have finish paint on them and then have to straighten them out.  I had this happen with a set of tii alloy wheels, they all looked good, every one of them needed something.

 

Goodness, what a thread this is, started in 2012 - pretty unreal. 

[Conserv]

14 minutes ago, markmac said:

Sound advice, I would say first, have a 'pro' check them to make sure they are round.  What appears to be round to you (and not dented or dinged) may in fact be the opposite.  You do not want to have finish paint on them and then have to straighten them out.  I had this happen with a set of tii alloy wheels, they all looked good, every one of them needed something.

 

Goodness, what a thread this is, started in 2012 - pretty unreal. 

+++++1

 

I’ve discarded 2 steel rims in my life. Both were 6” CMR Borrani steelies.

 

CMR rims of the 1970’s are heavily built, and heavy! But that doesn’t mean that they’re indestructible. Dents at the margins of the CMR rims, on the lips, can often be eliminated or reduced. The number of shops with expertise in repairing steel rims, however, is small compared to the number of alloy rim shops. Many of these steel rim repair shops specialize in trucks, where steel rims remain popular.

 

But if your CMR rim does not run true — before or after cosmetic repairs to edge dents — you’ve got a challenge. 
 

Two steel rim shops determined that my two discarded Borrani’s could not be made satisfactorily true. And that sent them to Rim Heaven! 🙏 Of course, one became a hose reel according to the shop to which I donated them, so there’s a bit of solace! 😋

 

Regards,

 

Steve

 

[bob02]

And JohnP has nailed the detail often overlooked; the ALPINA(metal) valve stem! Very nice!!!

 

 

 Bob