Winter tires Oh no but it is still summer!

[vanbmw]

I can't decide if I want to go 16's or 17's. My understanding is that the general principal is narrower tires tend to cut through the snow easier than wider tires so 16's would be preferably but not if the tires are going to rub every time you lock the wheel or hit a bump.

If it helps your descision...I ran 17" 225 Blizzaks on my 135 last winter. We had a few good snow storms and I also did a few trips to Whistler in some bad weather. My car was very good. I had to get out of my street in Whistler and there was 30cm of fresh snow and I did it no problem...even up a descent hill with the front air dam having to plow the snow a bit.

ALso...get some Michelin tire bags thru Tirerack or Costco. Worth every penny. They make the wheels easy to carry plus keeps you car and house clean.

[dalrx]

Well I live 1 hr from Port Huron MI, but I am not sure where Tirerack in Indiana (nearest US depot to here) would ship to just Port Huron? Are you saying that your tires in WA are just going to go to some border depot and you can just pick them up? I spoke direct with Gil Gilmer a tirerack sales specialist and guy that has a 135i and the price for the BMW caps were $9 each. How did you get them for $5?
Anyway I am just happy they will come next week and I will not have to do any sort of rush come oct/nov I will just have them ready to go.

[TheMan]

I just buy my winters from 1010tires.com. Every year starting around the middle of September they have free shipping on winter tires and packages. Then it ends up being cheaper than tirerack in most cases.

[Jammer005]

Is there anything wrong with storing the tires & wheels that I don't use outside of my house without any bags covering them?

Also, I did see a thread somewhere else (3 series) that they hubcaps went up in price hence the slightly higher price than $5

One more question - I've got a 128 (yeah I know) and it has all weather tires on it now. On my 330xi all weather was fine last winter, is it imperative that I get snows on the 128 rwd for YVR?

[vanbmw]

Originally Posted by dalrx

Well I live 1 hr from Port Huron MI, but I am not sure where Tirerack in Indiana (nearest US depot to here) would ship to just Port Huron? Are you saying that your tires in WA are just going to go to some border depot and you can just pick them up? I spoke direct with Gil Gilmer a tirerack sales specialist and guy that has a 135i and the price for the BMW caps were $9 each. How did you get them for $5?
Anyway I am just happy they will come next week and I will not have to do any sort of rush come oct/nov I will just have them ready to go.

I got mine from Tirerack last September...maybe the price on the centre caps has gone up or I am remembering wrong! Either way $9 is still a good price.
When I got my tires, they had a free shipping to anywhere in the USA deal. I had them shipped to a receiving agent south of the border (Blaine washington in my case). There are several of these receiving and shipping agents around Blaine. I just signed up in advance (the place I use charges a yearly fee I think it is $10). They gave me their address and I had the tires shipped to that address. When it arrives they sign for them and send me an email saying they have arrived.Then I go down and pick them up. My wheels came in 2 packages (very well packaged so nothing could happen to them). The charge was $2.50 per package for a grand total of $5. I took them across the border and they just chaarged me tax on them, no duty.

[TheMan]

Originally Posted by vanbmw

I got mine from Tirerack last September...maybe the price on the centre caps has gone up or I am remembering wrong! Either way $9 is still a good price.
When I got my tires, they had a free shipping to anywhere in the USA deal. I had them shipped to a receiving agent south of the border (Blaine washington in my case). There are several of these receiving and shipping agents around Blaine. I just signed up in advance (the place I use charges a yearly fee I think it is $10). They gave me their address and I had the tires shipped to that address. When it arrives they sign for them and send me an email saying they have arrived.Then I go down and pick them up. My wheels came in 2 packages (very well packaged so nothing could happen to them). The charge was $2.50 per package for a grand total of $5. I took them across the border and they just chaarged me tax on them, no duty.

Sounds like you got lucky on that. Most tires and wheels are not produced in North America and would be subject to duties.

[EngPhys09]

Originally Posted by Kvnjmpl

Is there anything wrong with storing the tires & wheels that I don't use outside of my house without any bags covering them?

Also, I did see a thread somewhere else (3 series) that they hubcaps went up in price hence the slightly higher price than $5

One more question - I've got a 128 (yeah I know) and it has all weather tires on it now. On my 330xi all weather was fine last winter, is it imperative that I get snows on the 128 rwd for YVR?

Well no its not required for any car to get snow tires. Just do you want to be in a ditch or not?
You can make your own decision. $1500 is well worth me not having my car in the ditch, easily the cost of a new bumper.

[EngPhys09]

Originally Posted by vanbmw

I can't decide if I want to go 16's or 17's. My understanding is that the general principal is narrower tires tend to cut through the snow easier than wider tires so 16's would be preferably but not if the tires are going to rub every time you lock the wheel or hit a bump.

If it helps your descision...I ran 17" 225 Blizzaks on my 135 last winter. We had a few good snow storms and I also did a few trips to Whistler in some bad weather. My car was very good. I had to get out of my street in Whistler and there was 30cm of fresh snow and I did it no problem...even up a descent hill with the front air dam having to plow the snow a bit.

ALso...get some Michelin tire bags thru Tirerack or Costco. Worth every penny. They make the wheels easy to carry plus keeps you car and house clean.

Just to clear things up the rim size i.e. 16inch or 17inch has nothing to do with how narrow the tire is. The first number i.e. 215 or 225 is the width in mm. You could mount a 215 on a 17inch rim or a 225 on a 16inch.
But your point is true about narrower tires being better in the snow. My 128 is getting 205s all the way around on 16inch rims, my VW golf only runs a 195 snow.
A 225 is likely a little wide I'd say, but in Vancouver I know you don't get the amount of snow that South Western Ontario does, so they should work fine, much better than the stock Summer 18s

[Lucky1]

Originally Posted by vanbmw

If it helps your descision...I ran 17" 225 Blizzaks on my 135 last winter. We had a few good snow storms and I also did a few trips to Whistler in some bad weather. My car was very good. I had to get out of my street in Whistler and there was 30cm of fresh snow and I did it no problem...even up a descent hill with the front air dam having to plow the snow a bit.

ALso...get some Michelin tire bags thru Tirerack or Costco. Worth every penny. They make the wheels easy to carry plus keeps you car and house clean.

The helps, thanks. I'm assuming vanbmw that you meant you were going up a hill and not descending a hill? If you can climb a hill in a RWD 135i with those tires while plowing some snow then I'm sold. Hopefully as they begin to wear the effectiveness will remain.

Tire rack lists the original tire size on a 128i non-sports pack as: 205/50-17".

I think I will call my dealership and ask what size they recommend and I'll probably go with that, but from the sounds of what people are saying here you can go wrong with the size above. Bridgestone Blizzak's all the way!


205/50-17" should work on a 135i as well right?

[allies_jh]

Originally Posted by Lucky1

The helps, thanks. I'm assuming vanbmw that you meant you were going up a hill and not descending a hill? If you can climb a hill in a RWD 135i with those tires while plowing some snow then I'm sold. Hopefully as they begin to wear the effectiveness will remain.

Tire rack lists the original tire size on a 128i non-sports pack as: 205/50-17".

I think I will call my dealership and ask what size they recommend and I'll probably go with that, but from the sounds of what people are saying here you can go wrong with the size above. Bridgestone Blizzak's all the way!


205/50-17" should work on a 135i as well right?

Yup, you'll be good with those. Thats what I have too.

[vanbmw]

Originally Posted by TheMan

Sounds like you got lucky on that. Most tires and wheels are not produced in North America and would be subject to duties.

In the last 10 years between my cars, my wifes cars and my race car I have brought maybe 10 sets of tires and/or wheels across the border. I always claim them and they make go inside and pay tax/duty. They always look at my sales receipt and they have only ever charged me the Tax. I have never been charged duty. I know of the NEXUS form it specifies made in the USA but the customs agents haven't cared where they are made.

[Ashtangi]

For everyone in the Toronto area -

What has your experience been with regular winter tires like the Bridgestone WS-60 vs. "performance" winter tires like the Dunlop Winter Sport 3D?

We don't get as much snow as southwestern Ontario, and from what I can remember, usually the roads are dry or just wet - my concern is getting caught at work when snow begins and having to drive downtown on lightly snow covered roads - i.e. 2-5cm.

[Lucky1]

Originally Posted by Ashtangi

For everyone in the Toronto area -

What has your experience been with regular winter tires like the Bridgestone WS-60 vs. "performance" winter tires like the Dunlop Winter Sport 3D?

We don't get as much snow as southwestern Ontario, and from what I can remember, usually the roads are dry or just wet - my concern is getting caught at work when snow begins and having to drive downtown on lightly snow covered roads - i.e. 2-5cm.

Don't know much about the tires but I've always thought the of the idea of "performance winter tires" as an oxymoron. All I'm concerned about in the winter is not getting stuck, and more importantly not spinning out and crashing into something. I'll save performance based fun for the summer time. Any tire that claims to be a performance oriented winter tire would be a hard sell for me. Even if I am caught in only one major blizzard the whole season I'd rather have the safest. So unless a performance winter tire can provide the same traction as a non-performance winter tire in snow and ice I wouldn't consider it even in Toronto. Plus do you think you'll really be driving in a way that requires a performance tire in that season? I don't think you should be.

Even with good winter tires on my Honda Civic in FWD I could end up in a bad slide even at low speeds and small amount of snow. Not worth the risk getting anything less than the best IMO.

[mshahidz]

alrighty...i have the 261M sport wheels, and the stock tire size is 225/245. Im a little bent on what I should be getting! Im thinking of just rocking 225's all around if possible, but im not sure if thats a good idea. The idea of getting brand new wheels as well is a big pill to swallow at the moment. Instead, i'm thinknig of buying the best winter tires I can get my hands on, rather than wasting 1000 on wheels! ahhhh!

[Ashtangi]

Originally Posted by Lucky1

Don't know much about the tires but I've always thought the of the idea of "performance winter tires" as an oxymoron. All I'm concerned about in the winter is not getting stuck, and more importantly not spinning out and crashing into something. I'll save performance based fun for the summer time. Any tire that claims to be a performance oriented winter tire would be a hard sell for me. Even if I am caught in only one major blizzard the whole season I'd rather have the safest. So unless a performance winter tire can provide the same traction as a non-performance winter tire in snow and ice I wouldn't consider it even in Toronto. Plus do you think you'll really be driving in a way that requires a performance tire in that season? I don't think you should be.

Even with good winter tires on my Honda Civic in FWD I could end up in a bad slide even at low speeds and small amount of snow. Not worth the risk getting anything less than the best IMO.

Fair enough. Personally I'm looking for something that gives me decent winter traction, and decent dry performance - for those times that I want to do some "spirited" driving. Because each snow tire has it's own characteristics, I'm looking for something that's well suited to the Toronto highway environment - where the majority of driving will be on dry and wet or slushy roads. From what I've read, the WS-60 are ideal for deep snow packed roads - which thankfully I will always try to avoid.

[aerobod]

Originally Posted by Lucky1

Don't know much about the tires but I've always thought the of the idea of "performance winter tires" as an oxymoron. All I'm concerned about in the winter is not getting stuck, and more importantly not spinning out and crashing into something. I'll save performance based fun for the summer time. Any tire that claims to be a performance oriented winter tire would be a hard sell for me. Even if I am caught in only one major blizzard the whole season I'd rather have the safest. So unless a performance winter tire can provide the same traction as a non-performance winter tire in snow and ice I wouldn't consider it even in Toronto. Plus do you think you'll really be driving in a way that requires a performance tire in that season? I don't think you should be.

Even with good winter tires on my Honda Civic in FWD I could end up in a bad slide even at low speeds and small amount of snow. Not worth the risk getting anything less than the best IMO.

It all depends on the road conditions in your area to determine which is the best winter tyre.

The WS60 and other tyres using the sponge-like "porous" rubber compounds are very good over a narrow band of winter conditions - 0C to about -15C with snow and ice on the ground, when pressure can be applied to the ice or snow to produce minute amounts of water. Below those temperatures the silica or other abrasive compound treads as used in performance winter tyres do just as well. Above 0C the performance winter tyres have much more grip and tread life than tyres such as the WS60. On clear or wet roads at any temperature, the performance winter tyres are far superior to the "porous" compound tyres.

Here in Calgary, the performance winter tyres are a very good choice due to the extremes of temperatures in the winter, with relatively few days in the 0 to -15C temperature range with snow and ice on the ground.

[Lucky1]

Interesting point, that throws me off a little. So what type and make of tire is best all-around for zero degrees celsius and lower temperature? I'll have to go to the weather archives but I'm fairly sure it can range from 0 to -25 celsius in Toronto and sometimes there is snow and ice, sometimes there isn't. I'd rather be prepared for the worst, how bad can the traction be for a winter tire on dry roads in 0 degrees celsius?

[Lucky1]

There are a few articles on winter tires here: http://www.canadiandriver.com/produc...ws/wintertires

Some are dated but some are also recent. I read both the Bridgestone and Michelin reviews. Michelin's claim of 75% better tread life for their X-Ice Xi2 winter tire versus their nearest competitor (I'm assuming that's Bridgestone but they don't come out and say) is appealing, especially if they offer the same performance.

[aerobod]

Originally Posted by Lucky1

Interesting point, that throws me off a little. So what type and make of tire is best all-around for zero degrees celsius and lower temperature? I'll have to go to the weather archives but I'm fairly sure it can range from 0 to -25 celsius in Toronto and sometimes there is snow and ice, sometimes there isn't. I'd rather be prepared for the worst, how bad can the traction be for a winter tire on dry roads in 0 degrees celsius?

From what I know of the winter weather in Toronto when I've been there, the WS60 is more appropriate than in Alberta, but it really depends on too many factors to make a choice for you. Any winter tyre will work better than any all-season on a given vehicle when the temperature drops below 0C. The WS60 will be good if you spend a lot of time in deep snow, the performance winter will be good if you spend a lot of time on the highway or if the temperature often gets above +10C or so in the winter.

[vanbmw]

LUCKY1...I had a set of really soft Blizzaks on my wife old G35 sedan. I think they were the older equivalent of the WS60 blizzack. They were really really soft. The tire wear in the dry was BAD. The rear tires were in bad shape after only one winter, granted my wife has a heavy foot on the throttle. We have a place at Whistler so they got lots of use in snow and cold. Their traction in snow was great. Their traction in ice was AMAZING! I would be driving around Whister watching cars slide past stop signs or have trouble going (most would have snow tires on up there) but the G35 would stop and go with no ABS or traction control intervention. The tires performance in the rain was great and in the dry was also good. Treadwear was a problem. In comparision, the "high performance Blizzak winter tires" I have on my 135 are good in the snow and rain and fine in the dry. Treadwear is not a problem. I used them last winter and my rears had maybe 10% more wear then the fronts. Compared to the softer Blizzaks, I'd say my snow traction was vertually as good but they were not as good in pure ice. I used them in a few light snowfalls but also in a few really heavy snowfalls last year. I made it out of my place in Whistler after 30cm of fresh snow no problem and all the way back down the famous Sea-to-sky highway in that same heavy snow no problems. The only place I found they fall short of the softer Blizzaks (such as a WS60) was in the ice. Those soft Blizzaks did miracles on ice.

[dalrx]

Well got the tires delivered yesterday. I must say that Tirerack.com is the best tire outfit to deal with. They put anything in local shops here in london to complete shame. You go to any of these places and tell them the car you have, they have little experience dealing with BMW, they hum and haw and look through all their books (ie. Kal Tire) and can't give you a strait answer on anything. To boot they are all way over priced. Go to tirerack.com and you can see a multitude of tires and wheels for your car and reviews from others as well. On top of that you can talk to Gil Gilmer who owns a 1 series and is a sales rep for them. Everything in the process was flawless, I got them all in one piece no prob, and just have to bolt em on come the snow. Here are some pics. Overall anyone looking for winter's the tirerack is the way to go imop.

[Jammer005]

Sweet. They look nice.

WRT Tirerack.com I am extremely impressed with how intuitive their web site is. Being able to view the wheels on your car and also select the model of your car and colour is pretty cool. The site goes down as one of my top 10 in terms of usability.

BTW, I just ordered (from Amazon) my first jar of Poorboy's wheel sealant and after 2 weeks I'm impressed, you might want to apply a few coats on your new wheels before you mount.