chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

Ok so I'm sat here drinking a beer thinking I'd like some different wheels for my Bimmer. It's a 57 plate 330D E92 (coupe), currently running 17" wheels (not staggered) and 225/45/17 Continental runflats all round.

So say I found some nice 18/19" wheels; with regards to runflats and handling... what's the score? It's not a money thing tyres wise, more ride and all these cracked wheel rims I see crop up. Is that a runflat thing cracking them or something more sinister...

Currently got style '187' off this link http://www.bmwstylewheels.com and I'm looking at styles '189', '199' and '230'.

Any input on the handling thing or in general welcome, cheers.

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

Get rid of them. I got rid of my Goodyear runflats and got some Goodyear asyms 2's and the the car gripped so much better. Also the Goodyear tyres I bought had a wet grip rating of A where as the runflats had a wet grip rating of C.

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

I added 19" rims to mine and put the biggest tyre on the car I could, I have 255's on the front and 275's on the back. I also added Eiback anti roll bars and I have never had an issue since with handling and I can safely drive fast in bends with no issues and I'm in a huge 530d

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

What do you do with regards a spare then? As my boot doesn't have one or the space for one.

Also, the sensor thing that crops up on the dash when pressure is low. Is that affected by a change to normal tyres?

scoobygaz1

iTrader: (3)

There`s a known issue with run flats and 19/20" wheels on bmw`s where the wheels crack, chap at work had to replace both back wheels cracked and all four tires

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

I have a spare and the sensor is popping up every few weeks, I have set it at a low pressure now so when I blow the tyres up hopefully I will have a few more weeks before it goes off again.

bustaMOVEs

iTrader: (31)

Only upgrade to 18s on that IMO, 19s look silly on that.
Get rid of run flats, the ride and handling will be so much better.
Get some of that foam thingy stuff for when you get a flat.

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

Steve, how do you set a different pressure for the warning mate? Is it something to do with the sticker/numbers on the door pillar? That has the relevant tyre pressures, sizes etc. etc. for different sizes and widths.

Corky, fancying the 18's myself but hose 230 style wheels are 19. Oh and this foam stuff, sir got a link for thee?

bustaMOVEs

iTrader: (31)

It's just stuff like this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/18136...f14=108&ff19=0 most cars without run flats have them without spare tyre as standard like my wife's mini has one too.
Don't forget if you get 19s, they will look a bit odd on a e90 and be a lower profile tyre so more risk of damage and make it drive lardy. If it's not a standard option tyre then I wouldn't bother, the 18s are a popular choice in them and suit the car spot on which still makes it look good without turning it Chavy so to speak.
I take it your cars a ' msport'?

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

No mate, mine is a 2 door coupe, SE model. The 3 styles all suit and fit the E92, E90 was saloon.

bustaMOVEs

iTrader: (31)

Simlar thing
The reason I ask if msport, as they got msport suspension, a bit stiffer and more capable of bigger wheel upgrades.
Putting 19s on SE suspension won't be good IMO.
But your car, your choice

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

I have no idea as the idrive goes wild, I have always agreed the tyre pressure after I have blown them up so a couple of days ago I decided to set the pressure as is, so hopefully when I blow them up the car won't bother me for a while

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

Mine is an SE but for some reason it has a sports suspension so when I have 19's fitted most think my car is lowered but its totally standard

bustaMOVEs

iTrader: (31)

It IS regarded as the better suspension (maybe someone payed for a upgrade) but dosent go too well with run flats as you've probably know.

With yours being a 5 series, you can get away with 19s, above that then you look silly (unless m5 etc)

Simlar to audis, SE and Sline suspension.

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

Cheers Corky/Steve. I'll see what comes up at what price, but assuming I got a puncture with non-runflats on, that foam stuff and some air will suffice.

If a good set which hadn't been cracked, repaired and the like came up, I'm easy with 18" or 19" as the car doesn't get battered about.

bustaMOVEs

iTrader: (31)

Yep, unless you get a blowout then you need recovery. Or buy a spacesaver/spare wheel that fits and keep in boot.

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

Obviously it has to be said, if you intend to have runflats you must have run-flat compatible wheels. They have deeper profiled ridges where the bead of the tyre sit to prevent a flat tyre coming off the rim when cornering.

I have to say this in case you are looking at replica wheels.

Run flats themselves; I hate them, if I had a spare wheel well on the GT they'd be in the bin (or on ebay). We've not broke/cracked any wheels....but three are bent. Potholes? Tyres? 20" wheels with silly-low profile tyres? Probably a combination of all three IMO.

Normal tyres are cheaper, and give a better ride....but could be a headache if you get a shredded tyre leaving you stuck in the middle of nowhere with a useless can of tyre weld.

You are also not supposed to repair them if punctured. Although, if it hasn't been driven under-inflated, then in theory the carcass shouldn't have been damaged - and could be repaired....talk to your insurer about that first though.

On the positive side, runflats do appear to be indestructible. Pictured below is a runflat driven with no air for so long that its worn through the carcass, and still stayed intact...All the driver felt was the handling was a little "odd".....she ignored all the puncture warnings on the dash (typical "lady" )

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

Re suspension....funnily enough I rang today about a 535d on the sole basis that its one of the few out there that has the active suspension (dynamic damping)....which ours doesn't.

Not driven one, but from what I gather, it has softer settings (comfort mode) which can be stiffened if required (sport mode)...this could be the answer to the runflat ride quality problem. It also has 19" wheels...ours has 20" wheels.

Lesson in life....ensure a dealer's test drive route doesn't take you down freshly surfaced roads. :faceplam:

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

Ah, cheers for that Al, the oracle has spoken

I'm not looking at replica wheels mate, most probably a 2nd hand straight set of genuine BMW ones (BBS did a lot didn't they around the E63, E9x series?), which maybe need a refurb at worst.

Looking the usual sites and scouring forums too. Don't mind a good drive out for a nice set either.

What's the deal on repaired or cracks wheels. My instincts naturally tell me to be wary after seeing/cutting out cracks on loco wheels etc. at work.

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

Knowing how die cast alloy behaves once its cracked (brittle), I wouldn't trust it.

donny andi

iTrader: (3)

My missis did nearly 70 mile on a blown out rear tyre.
When I asked her what she thought the big stupid red symbol was I got in return....'how the fk do I know'
The above happened on a Wednesday and I found out on the Saturday as I wanted to use it.
£220 for a tyre that she still hasn't paid me back.

Run flats do have a use but make the car feel like a boat

jonc

You can get a sparewheel kit like this:
http://www.alloywheelsdirect.net/opt...are_wheel_kits

Or you can have a couple of these in your boot:
http://www.halfords.com/motoring/bre...tyreweld-500ml

I went with the tyreweld option. With regards to the tyre pressure sensor, the way it detects low pressure is the rotational differences between a normal tyre and flat/low pressure tyre. I set the pressures as per the settings detailed in the drivers side door and just check the pressures regularly on each axle match.

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

Nice one, will look into that. Cheers.

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

Just obviously a tyre in teh boot does make it a bit of a pain when you need to use it for other stuff.

The ABS based tyre pressure monitoring is pretty accuarte...I lost 10psi out of one tyre and that was enough to trigger it - so there is plenty of warning for you to pull over and check. BUT you must always re-intialise it (reset) whenever you adjust the tyre pressures or swap a tyre to stop false alarms.

AndyC_772

iTrader: (2)

I had a puncture on my F10 530D a few weeks ago. The first I knew of it was a polite 'ping' and a warning came up on the instrument panel, and frankly the worst of it was having to stick below 50mph on the A30 which didn't make me too popular. Apologies to everyone whom I held up.

That was with 20" wheels and Dunlop run-flats. Rather than just replace the tyre, I swapped the wheels for a set of 18" that I had in the garage and had been planning to fit anyway. The new wheels have Continental tyres on the front, and they're horrible; they follow ruts and cambers in the road, and seem ultra-sensitive to wheel alignment and pressure. They remind me a bit of the '05 JDM STI I used to own, with its Japanese spec Bridgestone tyres which I also hated.

Unfortunately I don't know whether the handling issues are due to the smaller diameter wheels or the make of tyre. I'd swap back to Dunlop again in a moment if I knew they'd fix the problem, but it's an expensive experiment if it turns out they don't make a big difference.

john banks

Interesting that the F10 might be worse due to 18" vs 20". My S8 is going to have 21" on it, but not RFT, standard is 20", have some 19" winters. I thought it would be inevitable that I'd want to find some 20s for summer use, but it is a big bus with a lot of power. My GTR on 20s is much more comfortable, quieter and better in the rain on non RFT Michelin Pilot Supersport than OEM RFT Dunlop, but on a dry smooth road is not as good. Seems to make a difference what the car was designed for.

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

This was why I asked, John. As my car being one of the E9x series may react differently from a swap to non-runflat than one from a newer generation of 3 series.

A chap at work has a 57 plate 123d and was adamant when swapping his rears (same size as mine), he'd stick to runflat due to upsetting the handling.

bustaMOVEs

iTrader: (31)

That will be the tyre I reckon, with these German cars and the width tyre they run, tramline is very popular, so you need to rule out the tyres that tramline on these cars, I've heard of the continental tramlining.
Dunlop sport maxx gt work great on my b8 with 19s

ScoobyJawa

E series = ditch RFT
F series = RFT fine

Carnut

I'm not sure if things have changed recently but last time I checked if tyre weld is used then they are unable to repair the puncture, assuming the damage is in a fixable place obviously which means new tyre rather than £10/15 repair.