The time has come to replace the Contis on our beloved E83, which we've had for a few years now. In so doing, I'm discovering what many of you likely already know. . .Based upon the staggered wheels/tires, it seems as though I'm limited to Pirellis only and those are summer tires! Worse, it seems as though the Contis that came with the car shouldn't be on there at all! I read on a different forum site of one owner complaining of rear differential clunking and T/C activation over minor bumps at speed, attributing these oddities to the wrong tires, all of which has occurred on this vehicle. Anyhow, I'm wondering what current thinking/strategies for replacement tires (wheels?) folks are enjoying out there? We live in a four-season environment and therefore really would like to find all-season tires and I'm especially fond of the Michelin label. I'm going to contact our friends at TireRack but thought I'd tap into this member forum as well. Thoughts?
So, after a phone consult with the good folks at TireRack, I'm advised that I can put together pretty much any tire/wheel package I wish in 18" x 8" and their system will automatically provide appropriate diameter tire/wheel packages for my X3. I'm wanting to get away from the Pirelli Rosso only choice and be able to select an all-season tire for the region in which I reside (CO). If that means abandoning the factory staggered 19" wheels, so be it. So, below is what I'm considering and would welcome any and all thoughts regarding this reasoning. Thanks! MONTE TITANO MT8 OVELLA · 18x8 · Finish: Matte Titanium Price EachItem(s) TotalFor 2008 BMW X3 3.0si Sport Package $147.00$588.00 TPMS Kit (Per Wheel) 4$49.00$196.00 Optional Titanium Grey Valve Sleeve/Cap-Requires TPMS Sensor 4$2.99....Included Hardware No wheel installation hardware is included with this wheel. The wheels you chose are engineered to use Original Equipment lug hardware and therefore lug hardware is not included with your order. Important NotesVehicle won't automatically learn sensors, but can be registered following directions in owners manual. No dealership visit required. If TPMS sensors are not installed in the wheels, the TPMS warning lights will stay permanently illuminated. An audible chime may also be heard at start-up. Reuse OE bolts Availability: In Stock How soon can I get this? MICHELIN PREMIER LTX · 235/50R18 · · Sidewall Style: Blackwall · Serv. Desc: 97V $187.55$750.20Free Road Hazard Protection ($58.56 value. Exclusions apply.) Special Offer: Buy a set of four (4) and get a $70 MasterCard Reward Card by mail. Hunter Road Force™ Mounting and Balancing included free of charge with your Tire & Wheel Package. Read More> Save for Later Sub-Total: $1,534.20
One thought, you could go the set of dedicated snow wheels/tires for winter, & run the 19's for non-winter months. Being in Colorado, maybe having all-wheel drive and snows would be advantageous, would certainly allow you to be in the position to have your X3 do all it can. Food for thought. As for wheels, depends on how you prioritize things - I tend to want the lightest, least-expensive, easiest-to-clean, optimal-offset wheels I can get that have an aesthetic that I like or that's at least acceptable. The ovella's are nice-looking wheels, look easy-enough to clean. If you never wash your car by hand and just run it through a car wash, easy-to-clean might not be much of a priority. There are some of us that curse and spit when we see BBS cross-spoke wheels from the past angst of the tediousness of cleaning those damned small-cross-spoke BBS or BBS-style wheels that were the shiznit on bimmers of yore. I digress... A couple of other 18's I'd be tempted to consider - the bright silver 5-spoke Sport Edition P4 in 18x8 42mm offset at sub-21lbs (20.85) on sale for $112 & in-stock... fits all my preferred criteria, even though there are wheels with an arguably better aesthetic. Still... $112... The light-grayTR Motorsport C4, akin to Brando, could be a contender - more $$ at $135/per, slightly lighter at 20.6 lbs though, and nominally better offset for stance @ 40mm vs. 42 (the lower offset means the wheels will be more outboard vs. the 42mm offset wheels - very small difference though, so not particularly gaining much handling advantage there). Why lighter? The less unsprung weight there is, translates to the suspension working better - maybe not so much with runflats, but, if you move to 18" tires with their taller sidewalls (higher aspect ratio) you're trading metal for rubber and air, definitely lighter than 19's. Should translate to improved ride quality and not being as hard over bumps - trading off, although probably not much noticeable in street driving, turn-in response and maximum lateral grip. Unless you're flinging your X3 around with reckless abandon on a regular basis, I'd have to guess not so likely you'll be noticing that much. As for tires, I'd be inclined to go for something with a lower UTQG than the Michelin LTX, which would be trading off treadlife in favor of grip. Remember that switching to a square setup, now you can do tire rotation every 3k-5k miles to even-out treadwear front-to-back and get max life out of your tires. Would take a conversation w/ the Rack folks to get a comparison with the other michelins as to ride quality, quietness, and all-season/winter performance. For instance, the latitude tour HP looks to me like a better all-season tread pattern, but, I'd like to think the ultra-hi performance Michelin pilot sport a/s 3 is the far superior all-season and winter tire, despite it's less-snow-capable-looking tread pattern (it's possible the a/s 3 is a newer design and much better rubber compound vs. the tour HP, for instance - I don't know, but Tire Rack would). I tend to be willing to trade off the least-cost, maximum treadlife for everyday grip, albeit more-expensive, with the notion that shorter stopping distances and lateral grip are worthwhile trade-offs even if it means somewhat more frequent tire replacement. Frankly, might be best to see what someone from Tire Rack suggests within the constraints of your tire budget after the wheels. I think Conti Contacts have been a popular choice for a lot of BMW's, but, I know Michelin and others are quite competitive &/or maybe better. I didn't see anything in particular that popped-out tire-wise as _the_ must-have tire.
Also - not being familiar with X3-specific foibles, I'm slightly puzzled as to why a particular tire poses a problem if it's the correct size? Forgot to mention, if you switch to 18's for all-the-time usage, consider buying an extra wheel as a backup in case one is damaged and not easily replaced. There's been a couple times I bought wheels only to need another one or two within a year to be disappointed to find they were discontinued. Then the only option is to hope one pops up on ebay that's not only the right size and bolt pattern, but offset and hub-bore diameter. Ugh.
I second looking at winter tire and rims and doing the seasonal swapping this will give you the best of both worlds. All season tires are a good compromise. But winter tires preform much better. Plus the looks of the 19 you can't beat. As long as you stick to the staggered size or match all 4 tire sizes you should t have any drive line issues. Just my 2 cents.
Wow, did I hit paydirt in the replies from the two of you!!! MGarrison your reply in particular, is worthy of an article in Roundel, so well-written, friendly and INFORMATIVE it is! Thank you both, so much, for your helpful responses! And I certainly appreciate your recommendations of installing winter tires on a wheel selection. I've utilized Blizzaks on a previously owned A6, the performance of which was impressive. However, what I seem to be running into regarding exact replacement of the current tires (they are, in fact, ContiProContacts), is a very limited selection. My prior research has tended to reveal only Pirelli Rossas as an option, which is what TireRack recommends. Of course he Contis on there expand the options to two brands/models. Adding to this perceived limited tire option has been some user reports of seemingly odd rear differential activation over minor bumps at speed, which I experience, but have attributed to normal operation, as well as a pronounced clunking in the rear differential while rolling around 5mph. This, I have also attributed to normal operation as the differential decides whether or not to "activate," likely engineered into the rear end. And perhaps all of this information is co-incidental to the tires but it got me thinking more about the best tires for the car, given the sophisticated drivetrain. Might you have any thoughts in this regard? And perhaps I'm making too big of a deal regarding proper tires and perhaps the car could care less! Anyhow, I now have enough information to make a decision regarding snow tire/wheel combinations, which would address my immediate need. And I certainly can look into the summertime purchase of new tires for the Sport wheel package that's on the car currently. Thanks again for your input, which epitomizes what I've come to know of CCA members!
