I’ve been looking for some replacement wheels and have found these on t’ebay. 

 

The photo is of the actual wheels.  I know they will fit but the seller doesn’t know what the offset is.  If the ET is 35 I’m aware that they might rub when the car is fully loaded.  An offset of 40 and 45 are better but even then, the 45 wheels I have now do occasionally rub under full load.  The question is what’s the lowest ET people are running on an 18” wheel that is 8.5j wide?

Thanks in advance.

Easy to find out the stamped ET at the backside of one  spoke with a little mirror !

He sent me some pics of the rear of the wheels but I couldn't make it out.  I don't think he knows what I mean by offset.  I won't buy them if I don't know the dimensions as it's an expensive mistake if they will cause issues.

If you want a no hassle fitment. 18 x 8J with a offset of 45mm or, if you want to run OE rims or similar 18 x 7.5J ET51 with 12mm spacers work perfect! no rubbing and the spacers help fill the arches nicely. I have also run 18 x 8J ET45 with 235/40/18 tyres again with zero problems.

 

You enquired about the SEAT rims I have advertised on here. I ran them with 12mm spacers - these rims are the same sizes as Skoda 18'' OE rims.

 

If you've not done so already, this is a good place to start: 

http://www.willtheyfit.com/index.php?width=225&aspect=40&diameter=18&wheelwidth=7.5&offset=39&width2=225&aspect2=40&wheel_size=18&wheel_width=8&offset2=45

For the existing set up I have included the 12mm spacers for the offset to make it ET39 instead of ET51

 

I have also tried 8.5J ET45 rims . To make them work on the front nicely ( rears are fine ) you would either need to roll the arches slightly or fit adjustable top mounts so that you can run a bit of camber to tuck the top of the wheels in otherwise you are left with a bit of 'Poke' past the arch which in my mind looks a bit daft!

 

Note: The above is based on my own findings and experimenting on my own car! I have no doubt others out there may have different opinions and ideas.

 

18 x 8J ET45

 

 

 

 

Edited 12 February, 20188 yr by MAW

Thanks for the info.  I've just picked up your PM & will be in touch later on today.