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If you have 29,000 miles on the tires, please replace them all. ALL tires are basically junk after 30,000 miles. You also do not want good grip on 1 tire and really poor traction on the others coming into winter. $193 each is an OK price. They are $165 at tirerack.com for the el42 bridgestone but by the time you add mounting+balancing you will be over your quoted price (but make sure your price includes balancing). Also, check out a local Firestone dealer. They carry bridgestone and I know they were on sale last month. You might want the Continental tires in the followng link which have been advised by other posters here.
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Continental&tireModel=ContiProC- ontact+SSR&vehicleSearch=true&partnum=055HR6CPCSSRV2&fromCompare1=yes&place=0&sp- eed_rating=HR&speed_rating=VR&speed_rating=ZR&speed_rating=WR&speed_rating=YR&mi- nSpeedRating=H
I look back on what I typed, and only have 1 after thought. It's the car is a 15+ on a scale of 1-10, and the stupid OEM tires they put on are a super joke.
We need to keep an eye on this technology which will not go away but will only get better as the rubber compounds change to compliment the tire strength and balance the performance dynamics.
Alos, I just got a flat on one of the tire and need to get it replaced (I bought the tire warranty), will it make the car run even worse because I am replacing only 1 new tire while the other 3 are old?
As for the tire warranty, will they replace it with the exact tire, or can I change to a different brand?
My recommendation is to put the new tire on the rear and the 2 with the least visible wear on the front. The car should be more stable.
You will be best off with the same tire replacement to ensure consistent tread pattern for best results.
I went to my annual oil service and got a chance to talk to the service adviser in person (the call never got a good response). I would like to share some info, maybe it'll help each of us to know more about our car.
2006 325i AT, ~15k miles (need ~4k miles for the 1st maint service).
Bridgestone Turanza RFT.
Tires condition:
Front: 29 PSI, 4/8
Rear: 36 PSI, 3/8
I think I have another 10k~15k miles to replace them. No rotation is needed as advised from them. However, my tires did went low on their pressure, make sure you check them at least every two months.
I'm not an aggressive driver, but I do experience the same problems of the RFT after 10k miles on it. I talked to my service adviser about it, it's the tires issue, however, they didn't offer to replace them as I didn't try hard to get it.
I checked with another three of my friends who own the same car, 1st one (~17k miles) had to go to some local shop to rotate the tires after BMW suggested not to rotate them, but the loud noise did come back after a while. 2nd one (~10k), not aware of the noise yet, as he thought it was supposed to sound like that...just like many of us. :P 3rd one (~10k), it's the Conti tires...I tested it...the handling is so much different, i wish I got that tires when i got the car.
I don't think I'm going to get that free replacement from them, but hopefully it's still safe and will not cause any mechanical issue to our car.
I'll ask about Continentals -- my question is, is there anyone who has driven the Conti's for a while that knows they're good? And how many miles can I expect from them?
This technology must improve before complete acceptance by the consumers.
PS I have a 2006 330i and was considering going to a 335 coupe. However the comments on other chat blogs about the Turbo power plant overheating and powering off have backed me off to a "Wait and See Status".
My Turanzas were replaced for free at 18,000 miles. I reported them as bad to my dealer at 12,000 but it took several months for BMW to agree to replace them.
I have 13,000 miles on the replacement set, however this may sound spooky but they are quite, wearing smooth and riding gently. Its almost like they were reconstructed with a new rubber compound?
Both the old and new sets were rotated every 5,000 and balanced at 10,000. I inflated according to the yellow sticker on the door column.
Thats my experience - Owner6.
PS: If I need a new set prior to a new car I will get the Conti's.
Looks like you got 2 bad tires. Make them change all tires for No Charge. Some got dealers to change tires over 10K.
I almost allowed the RFT issue to keep me out of this car, but I'm glad I didn't. This car w/ Potenza's drives great and is quiet. I have 6K miles so far, and also have had no other reason to go to the dealer. My CLK would barely get 20K of miles on a set of tires, and I tried 3 different brands. That's to be expected w/ any car with staggered wheels that can't be rotated with these softer tires. If you dont have SP, then you can rotate and get more.
The car is a little rough with the SP suspension and these tires on rough, patched up roads. But on a decent (not perfect) streets, and some of the new highways we have in Tx, this car is a dream to drive. Smooth, quiet, and it drives straight as an arrow without holding onto the wheel. It seems to drive better at 90 than 40. The cornering just at agreesive peeds is flat and smooth - awesome.
thanks again to all the helpful info that untilmately put me in the ultimate driving machine
Have fun and stay safe.
I saved the EL42 tires, but the dealer said they are not needed. How do you get rid of tires? Will the regular trash pick up take them away? Or do they require a special disposal process like paying a tire dealer to take them?
Thanks
Bruce
You should be able to get a new set of Contie's for 1/2 the price. Out the door for about $600.00 max @ 5 % State Tax. Thats Tire City price in Maryland. Make sure you tell them to be careful withe the Wheels.
Owner6
A Goodyear dealer wrecked my rim replacing an EL42 and the rim costs $350.
Mounting/Balancing at BMW should be about 65$ per tire.
Bruce
It looks like the alignment was ~$129 and tax $26 (8%)
OW
After 10000, miles my dealer replaced the tires with the Continentals at no cost to me. I was told BMW will take care of it. My car is not a rental. I don't know if that makes a difference.TireRack list the price for Continentals
RFT $103.00 per tire.So far I like those tires much better.
The quick answer is "No".
That having been said, if you are driving an AWD model or a non-SP model, then I would if I were you. Why? The same reason as one would rotate tires on any other car that has the same size rubber at all four corners, extending the life of your tires and keeping tire noise to a minimum.
As for what the duration should be, well, I used 7,500 miles on my 530i and it worked perfectly.
Keep us posted on what you decide to do.
Best Regards,
Shipo
Just getting old.
I did have to pay for the frontend alignment.
I take it that your car is the most then. :P
Best Regards,
Shipo
As for rotational intervals, I think that the tire compound is more of a factor than whether a car is AWD, FWD or RWD. For my cars that run All-Season rubber, 15,000 miles is my rotation interval out of the gate. For my cars that have softer Summer/Performance rubber I rotate at ~7,500 miles, errr, sort of.
Basically I put winter rubber on in the Fall and then in the Spring I remount the Summer rubber on the same side as where they came from except I switch them from front to back. In the fall I do the same with my winter tires when I remount them.
Said another way, "Relax", tire rotation interval is very much a gray zone and a couple of thousand miles either way ain't gonna make much of a difference. That said, DON'T take that same attitude with your oil change intervals. ;-)
Best Regards,
Shipo
I had the work done at Craven Tire Company, Falls Church, VA (DC metro area). If you're familiar with the area, they are on Columbia Pike just north (?, going towards DC) of Baily's Crossroads.
I need to check my receipt again, as I thought they told me the alignment would be about $200.
Thanks
Bruce
I will rotate tires tomorrow as you specify. I see some slight cupping on outer tread shoulders in front at 11,600K. As you say, tires are 225/45 on front/back so it makes sense to me to do this.
I will switch front to back, back to front on each side.
Why does BMW spevify not to rotate the tires? Was this something new for 2006 or is this somthing to do with the offset sizes on some models? Did this occur in past models?
BTW, I notice noise intermittent at slowdown but never at highway speed with these tires. They are wearing pretty even, however.
Thanks for your advice.
OW
My understanding is that there are two main reasons:
1) Like you speculated below, cars with staggered tire sizes cannot have their tires rotated and as such this is a moot point for most non-AWD SP equipped cars.
2) I've heard suggestions that BMW believes that tires "wear in" to their location on the car and that the cars' balance could be upset by rotating said tires. Personally I believe that this point is a bucket full of bilge water, but hey, I'm not a BMW engineer.
"Was this something new for 2006 or is this somthing to do with the offset sizes on some models?"
Something new for 2006? Nope, it's been around since I started researching the E46 back in 1998.
"Did this occur in past models?"
Yup.
Best Regards,
Shipo
The mounting costs they charged me were less than what is listed on the web.
Bruce
That's half the price I paid for the one tire at BMW in Eatontown, NJ. Craven obviously has the correct machine for the mag rims.
Thanks!
OW
I could not rotate my tires today because there is a center lug underneath the BMW logo cap that needs a special tool. The manual did not warn me but advises to buy special tools from BMW.
Can I get this tool anywhere else?
Regards,
OW
Unless something drastic has changed, there is no central lug anywhere, just the five lug bolts. I suspect that your wheels are simply stuck. Assuming that's the case, all you need to do is to work them a little and off they'll come. Worst case scenario, turn around facing away from the wheel and pop the outer most edge of the sidewall of the tire with your heel, first one side and then the other. The wheel should then come right off.
Best Regards,
Shipo
Since that switch I've noticed:
Ride is quieter
Car handles uneven pavement and potholes without upsetting chassis
Handling is sharper - taking corners at much higher speeds
Road feedback is markedly improved
Mileage has gone up
Acceleration feels different (won't say faster, just different)
Car overall feels more nimble, more point and shoot
Essentially, ditching the RFTs I am reminded of my 03 330i ZHP but the e90 with non-RFTs handles even better.
Anyone unhappy with RFTs, I strongly suggest you consider putting real tires on the car. The change is marked and all for the best...
Michelin's website lists them as options for the 330i. They are not runflats though so that can be a problem.
cbanct
Many folks on bimmer boards have switched to Pilot Sports. The e9x's suspension is FAR better with real tires.
The funny thing is that I was immediately shot down each and every time I made such comments because many folks believed the BMW marketing rhetoric claiming that the suspension of the E90 had been "optimized for Run Flat Tires". Ummm, yeah, right. To my way of thinking, a suspension that can effectively cope with RFTs will improve immeasurably with the lighter and more responsive GFTs, I mean, unsprung weight is still unsprung weight no matter how you cut it.
Best Regards,
Shipo
How often do you get flats?