Tyre brand advice please

[RichardG]

Nigel, I give up, do what you have to do.
But please do not go off anyones advice either on here or your experts, Please please please read the information in the handbook that matches your car and you will find out in black and white that what you are being told is just wrong.

[Robb]

I'v found dealers will tell you what you want to hear and what suits their margin, iv tried a good few dealerships im my many years of bmw owner ship and found 2 that appear to talk sense, the lack of consistency or perceived knowledge is at times staggering.

M' models dont come with runflats.

[wegras]

Just slipped on my flac jacket and.......................

Home now from a trip to my Dealer to replace the RE050s with Michelin PS2 ZP and I don't know how West Sussex council have done it but the Chichester bypass which is on long truck rut
has by the time I returned home apparently been resurfaced and not a truck rut to be found
seriously I cannot believe the difference car is transformed goes where I point it stable quieter .......I could go on but most important I feel I am in control rather than the tyres
Pricey but what the heck the car is now enjojable to drive

Cheers Gannet

[wantanM]

RichardG, the suspension is set up at the factory in a different way with softer springs etc for run-flat cars. If you specify when ordering a new one that you want non run-flats, it comes out of the factory with different suspension settings and harder springs. If it has run-flats, it was designed for run-flats.

The sport button does have an 'electronic' effect on suspension, according to BMW. It changes the characteristics of when the car changes gear in auto models and the ride gets stiffer; don't ask me how, just what BMW told me. Perhaps phone your local dealer and ask them as that way you will get it from the horses mouth and it will be accurate information.

Every bit of these two paragraphs is complete bollocks.

[johnbmwboy]

Shame I've just seen this thread. I replaced my Bridgestone's with Conti Sport Contact 2 SSR (run flats) and they made the world of difference. Better price than the Michelins too. Who knows if they're as good, but a solid 2nd gen run flat IMHO.

[mmm-five]

I'm out

PS I'm from Liverpool, not Essex, so would more correctly be called a 'scally' than a 'chav' - but I'm sure a mate/dealer/expert has told you that 'chav' is the word you were looking for, so I'll forgive you.

[Nigel-Z4]

Richard, there is nothing in the manual about non run flat tyres.

[a11y]

I give up just reading this thread and not commenting. Is this thread genuine? Not trolling?

Person asks for advice on tyre brands.
Person receives advice based on forum users' experiences and technical knowledge.
Person asks other sources for advice too.
Person posts back on the thread saying all forum users are wrong.
Person calls someone a dick.
Person calls mmm-five a chav
Person says we're handing out abuse - err, see previous 2 lines above.

I think I've summed that up correctly.

Honestly, why bother asking advice on a forum if you're just going to poo-poo whatever advice you're given? Obviously forum life isn't for you if that's the case.

[Nigel-Z4]

I'm on the phone with BMW dealers again, both dealers now giving me different information about bloody speed ratings for tyres.

One says

225/40 R18 - front - speed rating should be Z
255/35 R18 - rear - speed rating should be Z


The other says:

225/40 R18 - front - speed rating should be W
255/35 R18 - rear - speed rating should be W

However, my tyres have on them 88W for front and 90W for rear, WTF.

Neither BMW dealer can tell me what the speed rating should be for non run flats, they only have speed ratings for run-flats.

So, I've asked them to check speed rating for M version of my car with same size rims and let me know what they should be.

If I'm going to spend money, I want to get things like speed rating nailed.

I'm going to bite the bloody bullet and go for a set of Vredestein Ultrac Sessanta as I don't want to spend more than £550 all in, in case the ride is not secure and is iffy, as BMW suggest it will be.

[Nigel-Z4]

I think you are right a11y, forum life is definitely not for me, I have a bit more intellect than that.

I'm outta here, goodbye all, squabble amongst yourselves.

[a11y]

Don't let the door hit you on the way out

[Finisterre]

intellect?
you are on a z4 forum

[wantanM]

Nigel-Z4,

Good luck with the Vreds. I put them on my old roadster and was impressed. But be carefull for the first few hundred miles. It takes a while for them to scrub in. A first seem slippery. Just don't want you to go like the clappers straight after getting fitted in an effort to "test them out" given all of the discussion here, then crash!

Let them scrub in for a couple hundred miles before you push them.

(and be carefull how much faith you put in dealers)

[Finisterre]

I have learnt something anyway. I am definitely going to price up the Michelin ZPs when we next change the tyres. It is a pain driving abroad with a space saver wheel in the boot.

[wegras]

I have learnt something anyway. I am definitely going to price up the Michelin ZPs when we next change the tyres. It is a pain driving abroad with a space saver wheel in the boot.

Like gannet I can unreservedly recommend them , £1056 for full set all in but they are a premium tyre so was happy to pay and enjoy the car compared to the Bridgestones without compromise