Hello fellow Z's,
I'm hoping a few of you can chip in with your opinions and knowledge, here's the deal...
I bought my Z4 around a month ago and I was planning on ditching the run-flats as many of you have advised on other posts. Even more so when I found that the rear passenger tyre had been recently replaced with a cheapo budget tyre! So i'm rolling on 3 potenza RFTs and one KJUG3455GOFASTBUDGET GT'S (joke-no idea on the make)
Driving through town this afternoon my RFT warning light illuminated red, i pulled over and checked all tyres which seemed fine (and the drive wasn't affected either, besides the normal harsh ride of RFT'S & Low profiles) I restarted the car and held down the button with the same symbol which made the dash symbol turn yellow then off. I assumed all was fine and continued to drive on, wondering why there was a button for the RFT indicator???
1/2 mile later the car became wobbly and I felt the wallet raping motion of the updownupdown ride when the tyre comes off the rim (alas... it had)
Long story short.. kwik-fit quoted a replacement Potenza @ £275 (Nearly £300 for ONE tyre... almost punched the smiley Kwik-Fit Fitter in his fat face) Budget tyres coming in at £135 (which in my opinion is no real cheap option) the chap advised not to fit non RFT's on those alloys since they may not be designed to fit properly and may be the cause of the blowout.
I had the AA tow me home on a flat-bed and so i can take my time and perhaps order online for a better deal. I'd appreciate any advice or warnings on suppliers, changing from RFT's, size difference etc. I'm not looking to kit the car for performance, i don't corner at a million miles an hour! I just need some reliable tyres for the car considering its a 2.5 and rear wheel drive.
I'm considering a wheel and tyre package from an online company (also listing/trading on eBay) I've found M6 style alloys with rubber for around £450. This seems like an attractive deal since I would be paying out £300 for one corner! I'm obviously going to try to get the best tyre with the package and many are reasonable (Toyo Proxes seems quite common and I've heard good reviews) Another question is if I were to buy a new set of alloys would they need to be the same size difference as my originals? (i.e. I have 18" 8.0 on the front at 47mm offset and 18" 8.5 50mm offset on the rear) Would the new set need to have the same difference in width and offset? I fear this may be tricky when buying 'off the shelf' aftermarket alloys.
Finally, can anyone advise if/how any differences are dealt with in switching from RFT's. Is the indicator/sensor removed with the wheel/tyre? I'm not sure if I'd need to change anything in the process???
Many thanks in advance for any tips or information that may be useful. (Oh and feel free to suggest designs for the new wheels, I'm considering the M6 style or some similar to the early porsche cup alloys since I've always likes their sweeping style)
I'm hoping a few of you can chip in with your opinions and knowledge, here's the deal...
I bought my Z4 around a month ago and I was planning on ditching the run-flats as many of you have advised on other posts. Even more so when I found that the rear passenger tyre had been recently replaced with a cheapo budget tyre! So i'm rolling on 3 potenza RFTs and one KJUG3455GOFASTBUDGET GT'S (joke-no idea on the make)
Driving through town this afternoon my RFT warning light illuminated red, i pulled over and checked all tyres which seemed fine (and the drive wasn't affected either, besides the normal harsh ride of RFT'S & Low profiles) I restarted the car and held down the button with the same symbol which made the dash symbol turn yellow then off. I assumed all was fine and continued to drive on, wondering why there was a button for the RFT indicator???
1/2 mile later the car became wobbly and I felt the wallet raping motion of the updownupdown ride when the tyre comes off the rim (alas... it had)
Long story short.. kwik-fit quoted a replacement Potenza @ £275 (Nearly £300 for ONE tyre... almost punched the smiley Kwik-Fit Fitter in his fat face) Budget tyres coming in at £135 (which in my opinion is no real cheap option) the chap advised not to fit non RFT's on those alloys since they may not be designed to fit properly and may be the cause of the blowout.
I had the AA tow me home on a flat-bed and so i can take my time and perhaps order online for a better deal. I'd appreciate any advice or warnings on suppliers, changing from RFT's, size difference etc. I'm not looking to kit the car for performance, i don't corner at a million miles an hour! I just need some reliable tyres for the car considering its a 2.5 and rear wheel drive.
I'm considering a wheel and tyre package from an online company (also listing/trading on eBay) I've found M6 style alloys with rubber for around £450. This seems like an attractive deal since I would be paying out £300 for one corner! I'm obviously going to try to get the best tyre with the package and many are reasonable (Toyo Proxes seems quite common and I've heard good reviews) Another question is if I were to buy a new set of alloys would they need to be the same size difference as my originals? (i.e. I have 18" 8.0 on the front at 47mm offset and 18" 8.5 50mm offset on the rear) Would the new set need to have the same difference in width and offset? I fear this may be tricky when buying 'off the shelf' aftermarket alloys.
Finally, can anyone advise if/how any differences are dealt with in switching from RFT's. Is the indicator/sensor removed with the wheel/tyre? I'm not sure if I'd need to change anything in the process???
Many thanks in advance for any tips or information that may be useful. (Oh and feel free to suggest designs for the new wheels, I'm considering the M6 style or some similar to the early porsche cup alloys since I've always likes their sweeping style)
