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[Satalite]

... Issue resolved. I have 205/50 17" tires square setup. I was just confused as to why my dealer told me that they were staggered. I even had my car in for check ups and there was no mention of rotation.

Now my tires have 13k miles on them no rotation... fronts are considerably more worn, and rears are much better. I guess next time I will have to ride the rears up front for 13k.

[Tom K.]

I assume you have the sport package which would mean staggered 17" as OEM.

The '08 128i manual shows only a staggered 215/40 F and 245/35 R tire fitment for 18" wheels. So it sounds like your 205/35 rears may be undersized for your car. I'm curious as to who sold you a square 205/35R18 wheel /tire setup - especially since Tire Rack does not even carry any tires in this size.

My experience with 5 RWD BMWs is that the rear tires, being the driven wheels, tend to wear much faster than the fronts. The original Goodyear NCT5 rear tires on my ZSP equipped 128i were down to the wear bars at 24,000 miles but the fronts still had 7/32" of tread remaining. So if you really are getting excessive front tire wear, you might want to check your alignment and tire pressures.

Tom

[ptack]

If the tires are square, then rotate away.You can't rotate if they are staggered.

[VMRWheels]

If you're running a square setup you can rotate the tires without an issue. For 18s though a 205/35 is a tad too short.

A 205/35/18 is about 5.7% too short, so your speedometer would be off by almost 4mph when going 60mph. Perhaps you mean 205/40/18?

[Satalite]

Thanks for the help. I am not sure. The stock wheels on the car were 17" 205/35 squared.

[Tom K.]

Originally Posted by Satalite

Thanks for the help. I am not sure. The stock wheels on the car were 17" 205/35 squared.

Are you absolutely sure? Tire Rack lists NO TIRES made in that size.

Assuming you do not have the ZSP and have 17" wheels, your OEM tires were probably 205/50R17. If you have them on all four wheels, you can rotate, but BMW recommends that it be done very often - every 3,000 miles or so. The alternative is to replace tires in pairs.

But your dealer said you have staggered wheel/tire sizes. And you said you had 18" wheels. I'm confused

Tom

[Satalite]

Originally Posted by Tom K.

Are you absolutely sure? Tire Rack lists NO TIRES made in that size.

Assuming you do not have the ZSP and have 17" wheels, your OEM tires were probably 205/50R17. If you have them on all four wheels, you can rotate, but BMW recommends that it be done very often - every 3,000 miles or so. The alternative is to replace tires in pairs.

But your dealer said you have staggered wheel/tire sizes. And you said you had 18" wheels. I'm confused

Tom

Sorry for the confusion. I have the 205/50 square setup. The question was why did the dealer tell me that I had staggered setup when in fact it was square? AND they didn't even bother to let me know about rotating them...

I guess I should have done due diligence and looked at them instead of believing the dealer. (didn't bother to check because everyone with a 1'er runs staggered setup) which I thought I had.

[Tom K.]

Originally Posted by Satalite

Sorry for the confusion. I have the 205/50 square setup. The question was why did the dealer tell me that I had staggered setup when in fact it was square? AND they didn't even bother to let me know about rotating them...

I guess I should have done due diligence and looked at them instead of believing the dealer. (didn't bother to check because everyone with a 1'er runs staggered setup) which I thought I had.

The 205/50R17 size makes sense.

Your dealer did not mention rotation because BWM now recommends not rotating tires at all - previously, they said don't rotate unless you do it every 3,000 miles or so.

I've rotated tires on BMW's with no problems. And for those (with non-staggered) summer tires who switch out to winters each year, rotation is simple. If you don't rotate, then the solution is to replace tires in pairs - which works if you stick to the same tire brand and model.

But as every Bimmer I've owned has worn the rears nearly twice as fast as the fronts, you may wish to have an alignment done.

Also, you'll probably save lots of $$ by having a good tire shop do your tire work, rather than a BMW dealer.

Tom

[Satalite]

Originally Posted by Tom K.

The 205/50R17 size makes sense.

Your dealer did not mention rotation because BWM now recommends not rotating tires at all - previously, they said don't rotate unless you do it every 3,000 miles or so.

I've rotated tires on BMW's with no problems. And for those (with non-staggered) summer tires who switch out to winters each year, rotation is simple. If you don't rotate, then the solution is to replace tires in pairs - which works if you stick to the same tire brand and model.

But as every Bimmer I've owned has worn the rears nearly twice as fast as the fronts, you may wish to have an alignment done.

Also, you'll probably save lots of $$ by having a good tire shop do your tire work, rather than a BMW dealer.

Tom

Thanks! This is my first newer model BMW since my 99' 3 series and I am noticing that I should probably start doing some things on my own as BMW maintenance tends to be on the longer side.

Makes sense about tire wear as these cars are RWD

Looks like ill need to wear them equally to get them back together again...

[geebee]

Originally Posted by Satalite

Sorry for the confusion. I have the 205/50 square setup. The question was why did the dealer tell me that I had staggered setup when in fact it was square? AND they didn't even bother to let me know about rotating them...

I guess I should have done due diligence and looked at them instead of believing the dealer. (didn't bother to check because everyone with a 1'er runs staggered setup) which I thought I had.

I can only think that maybe the offset on the rim itself is different, which while you're running equal sized tires, is not "sqaure" in the sense of front to rear tire centre line.. ?? Just a guess though...