How to Get Flush Fitment: A Step-by-Step Guide
So, you got a new ride or want to give the old one a better look?
You’re on the right path. Filling that ugly fender gap makes a huge difference, but you need a proper wheel fitment. Slammed, tucked, poke fitment, stance fitment, etc., with so many different styles, it’s easy to get confused.
But don’t worry, we’ll focus only on how to get flush fitment.
I’ll take you through the steps I’ve taken to do that on every car I’ve owned over the last two decades. JDMs, Bimmers, Teslas, it’s always the same pattern.
Let’s see if we’re on the same page about what you want to achieve with your car.
What is Flush Fitment?
Flush fitment is getting the wheels and tires aligned with the fenders but without going deep into the wheel wells or poking out.
It’s the preferred style by most enthusiasts, giving their rides a more aggressive appearance and better performance on the open road.
In my opinion, this is the perfect fitment for modded street cars. Here is how it’s done.
The Flush Wheel Fitment Guide
The guide consists of 5 steps describing how to get flush fitment when starting with a stock vehicle. You might’ve done some things already, but I encourage you to read each step.
I’ll keep it short and simple, and as opposed to all the other guides you’ll come across online, no measurements will be involved. Let’s get into it.
Get Your Car Lowered
Yep, that’s right. Lowering your car is a must. While you can reduce the fender gap by installing bigger wheels or taller tires, you can’t get a flush fit with stock ride height.
There is no need to slam it to the ground unless you want to attend car shows or become an Instagram influencer. If that’s your plan, then you want tuck fitment with airbags.
I lowered our Tesla Model 3 with the Eibach Pro-Kit springs and installed a set of 19-inch BBS wheels. That combo got the job done without ruining the ride comfort.
The other option is coilovers adjusted for the road conditions in your area. I have a KONI kit on my BMW 3-series, but it’s a weekend toy. I wouldn’t sacrifice my 7-series ride quality.
Pick a lowering kit according to your desired ride height and move on to the next step.
Figure Out the Wheel Offset
Now that you know how low you’ll go, it’s time to think about the proper wheel offset for your flush fitment. You can find the current offset on the back of your wheels or by doing a quick online search.
For example, “BMW E92 stock wheels specs”, or if you’re running an aftermarket setup, search for the particular rim model and your bolt pattern. You’ll see numbers and letters: “ET” or “IS” and two digits, the offsets.
If you choose lowering springs and have a stock or close to stock wheel width and offset, downsize the current offsets by 10-15mm and up to 20mm on the rear if you have a square setup.
If you go for a coilover kit, you might not have to adjust the offset. Set your preferred ride height first, and then see if you still have room to increase the track width by decreasing the wheel offset.
Either way, you have three options: wider wheels, wheel spacers or lower offset rims.
Decide on Stock wheels or New Rims
The decision comes down to whether you like the look of your current wheels and what suspension upgrade you picked.
For cars lowered with mild springs (30mm/1 inch), flush fitment is achieved by upsizing the stock wheel diameter by 1 or 2 inches.
For example, if your stock wheels are 17s, you can go up to 19s.
If you install sportier springs to drop your ride height by 40-60mm/1.5-2.5 inches, upsizing your factory wheel diameter by 1 inch will be the safer bet.
When buying new rims, you need to pay attention to two things: width and offset.
To get a flush fitment, you need a wider wheel with a similar offset or a wheel with the same width but a lower offset. Sometimes, you can slightly increase both metrics.
For example, if your stock wheels are 8.0 wide with a +35 offset, you can get 8.5/+25 or 9.0/+30.
When sticking with factory-spec wheels (stock or aftermarket), you can only get the correct offset with wheel spacers. I’d recommend hub centric over lug centric spacers.
Bigger wheels can also be used with coilovers, but you’ll be limited when adjusting the ride height. And the whole point of paying big bucks for coilovers is the ability to play with the lowering settings.
As I suggested earlier, install and adjust the lowering kit first. Then, check the clearance between the tires and the fenders. At that point, you’ll know if fitting a bigger wheel or lowering the offset is possible.
Use the Proper Tire Size
If you have to change the rubber, get the right size per your vehicle manufacturer’s guidelines. On most cars, there is a sticker with the wheel and tire sizes on the inside frame of the driver’s door. If not, you can always find it online.
Fitting your vehicle with the wrong tire size can lead to so many issues. Yet, people still stretch tires and wrap those around negative offset rims when aiming for a better stance. Not a good idea!
Have a Wheel Alignment Done
After completing the above steps, getting a wheel alignment is a must. I’m doing it every spring when switching from winter to summer setup.
When upgrading the suspension, it’s better to drive the car for 100 miles or so and do the alignment after everything has settled.
The only exception would be if your car was already lowered, you kept the same wheels, and installed only spacers to change the wheel offset. Adding just wheel spacers won’t affect your alignment, and there is no need to do it.
Wrapping it Up
I hope this wheel fitment guide was easy to understand, and soon enough, your wheels will sit flush with the fenders. I’d love to see some photos.
Something crucial I emphasize in all of my car customization articles is to buy aftermarket parts from reputable companies.
Every car owner knows what high-quality tires are, but people often get attracted to low-priced suspension mods. Trust me, these will cost you more in the long run.
Finally, if you’re going to tweak the wheel offset with spacers, check out my Best Wheel Spacer Brands post. You’ll find a lot of great options for the popular cars and trucks.
