[Rotzy]

Originally Posted by Kdawg1966

Hi all,

I'm new here and have been perusing the site, as it looks to be a wealth of information regarding all things BMW X5. I have been an Audi guy for a while but have recently test driven a X5 and am strongly considering switching things up.

I have been looking at a few '14 X5's for sale locally and have quickly decided that I like the aggressive look of the bigger tires and wheels on the X5.

I've done a few searches on this site and a lot of reading but can't seem to find the answers to a number of questions:

If I buy a '14 X5 with standard OEM 19's on it, is it as easy as removing them and then replacing them with the bigger tires and wheels?

Yup, it's just that easy.

I've read multiple threads where folks talk about "staggered" vs squared. What is "staggered"? Is there a functional reason for it?

Do all the 20 inch setups have bigger tires and wheels on the back vs front? Is there a functional reason for this?

Staggered on our cars means the rear is wider than the front. All 20" setups on the X5 are staggered, with the front rims being 10" wide and the rears at 11". As crackerjack15 said above, the reason is mostly performance. Wider drive wheels (rear) help put down the power. A staggered setup will always have different size tires as well, and those sizes are also listed above.

I've also read some threads where folks talk about using spacers. Why would this be necessary?

Spacers are not needed. They are "disks" that mount between the brake rotor and the rim to push the wheels out a bit further. A few members do this because they like the way it looks with the rims/tires pushed out a bit further. It will provide a small handling benefit since you are widening the footprint, but again, it is not needed and most of us do not do it. One additional consideration is that the more you push/space the wheels out, the more road debris, nicks and scratches you are going to get on the side of the vehicle.

Are there any other things I need to know when considering buying a X5 with 19 inch wheels, with the intention of switching it over to a 20 inch package?

The only other thing I can think of is the speed limiter difference mentioned above. Other than that, there is really no difference in the vehicle.

Now, here's a wrinkle for you: If I had it to do all over again (and my vehicle wasn't equipped with the 20" rims from the factory) I would still use the 19" rims as a winter setup with dedicated winter tires, but I would buy 21" or 22" rims for the summer. They look even better than the 20" and really fill the wheel well nicely.