Winter Tires and Rim's

[warmtoes]

I have heard you need to be careful below 5 degrees and anything near zero is not good for our summer tires. The tire compound gets incredible hard at 5 degrees and below.

[Bye Bye GTI]

when i ordered from tire rack it took 5 days from order placed to being on my doorstep. You should be fine.
you can track your order too once they send you a confirmation email.

[EspressoBoy]

Originally Posted by warmtoes

I have heard you need to be careful below 5 degrees and anything near zero is not good for our summer tires. The tire compound gets incredible hard at 5 degrees and below.

That is good information if true, any idea where it's from?

I just did a google on that, and could not find anything. I will say that the tire can't perform like a winter tire. Are you saying it does perm damage to the summer tire? Would that also not mean storing your summers in a heated garage/house?

Thanks

EspressoBoy

[warmtoes]

I'm not saying it does permanent damage at all. Its just that summer tires are not really meant to run at near freezing temperatures so the tire compound does tend to get hard at those temperatures. When this happens your handling and stopping ability obviously suffers.

It's not something I read on the internet. It was through conversations with a Honda engineer.

[never]

I don't think warmtoes was trying to say that driving summer tires in in less than 5C would be bad for the tires, it'd be bad for the car and occupants.

[warmtoes]

^^^What he said!

[never]

Haha, no, what the other guy said!

[EspressoBoy]

OK then, we are on the same page...

Summer tires for summer...
Winter tires for winter....

Summer tires are made specifically to take advantage of their season. Outside of that, you get the reverse. K great! Now everyone should be using the correct tires. LOL if only it was that simple.

warmtoes, Love your choice of car. Do you like the PDC? I would guess with the top down, backing is a bit easier? I didn't see how sweet the Cabroilet was till after I got my Coupe. I love the safety feature where the roll bars pop up when the car rolls. So no big bars behind the seats. Is there a way to actually "test" they work?

EspressoBoy

[warmtoes]

EspressoBoy,

Thanks, having the Vert has been amazing even with the spotty summer we've had. The PDC works well and I got it because with the top up the rear window is small and the C-pillar blind spots are huge!.

Don't want to run over any little kids backing up you know. With top down it's completely unobstructed and easy to backup.

I don't know of a way to test the pop up roll over protection other than to drive so fast that you can lift a wheel! They will pop up quite quickly and you better have your roof down too because from what I heard at the 1 driving event it will go up high enough to hit or go through the roof.

[EspressoBoy]

Now way! Really, hmmm I wonder who will be the first to test the pop up roll on youtube... hmmm Anyway thanks for the info.

EspressoBoy

PS
I think the soft top is a lot more sexy than a hardtop vert. Plus you keep your trunk to boot!

[warmtoes]

And, the vehicle doesn't weigh almost 4000lbs like the 335i vert.

[tnawab]

A question for all those that bought the winter tires from tirerack.com

1) the 135i has two different sizes of front and back rims (18inch). On tire rack, if i bought the same size 17 or 18 inch rims, will it cause a problem?

2) My car has TPMS, although i saw in many posts that in canada the 135i doesnt. I do, and BMW says the same. Whats all this talk about the canadian versions not having TPMS?

T

[EspressoBoy]

tnawab,
you should have TPM(SYSTEM), not the TPM(sensors) in the tires. If you have a 135i purchased in Canada, they use a system where they check the tire using an external method. Read about it at wikipedia.org (tpms)

If you still doubt what you have, call service at a few dealerships. Maybe the person you spoke to does not know. I had also gone through this; do I have it or not!

Gill at Tirerack knows this stuff. Mind you when I first called and he was not in, the other salespeople not familiar with BMW 1 in Canada, said I do have the sensors in the tires and wanted to sell me the extra stuff. These are the sensors that go in the tires. (they were wrong)

I was told an easy way to know for sure is;

go see your tires plugs,
metal - you have the USA method (TPMSensor)
rubber - you have the Canadian method (TPMsystem/TPW) however you want to call it.

Mine are black rubber, so I have the TPW, not the one where I need to spend an extra $200 for sensors that have to be ordered and installed in the tires.

BTW it's better to have the TPW method as it's simple and works well and cheaper!

As for tire size, you have a choice. Most if not almost all the people say go with 17" winters as you will need clearance for snow and ice between your tire and wheel well. That's how I understand this.

As for Gill, he is a nice guy who is VERY knowledgeable of winter tires and rims. If you have questions, remember you can just call and ask away. I will warn you though, they have limited winter tires and those that get it too close to winter, may have less to choose from.

If I had to re-order, I would not get the extra BMW rim caps as the ones that are on your existing rims are fine, and better quality than the ones at tirerack. I would also check around on which rim you want. I would suggest that you don't go for the cheapest as a few bucks more and you have some really nice rims... Each to his own. Also I got the tire totes, nice to have and only 20 for 2.

I got runflat winters as I have tire insurance that will cover them. I don't want to mess around in the cold with a flat. That is me; obviously the consensus is to not get runflats. Just remember though if you do manage to get a flat, you will have to find a way to fix it. In my case, supposedly I can be towed to a dealership, and they will not patch but replace the tire for free.

I was told there are a limited number of winter tires out there, when they are gone, you are forced to order another type. So don't wait too long.

EspressoBoy

Note:
TPMS on wikipedia says this stands for Tire Pressure Monitor System (includes both mothods)
TPMS that most in the site call it, Tire Pressure Monitor Sensor (uses sensor in tires only)

Most on the site use TPW and has NO sensor, but does still check for air pressure using an indirect method.

Confusing YES, unless you know the details. I also think most Countries use our method (tpw) not the moethod in USA. (cheaper and easier= TPW)

[tnawab]

Thanks ExpressBoy:

I just checked the caps on my valves. They are metal?? Weird since you say that in Canada the 135 should have rubber caps.

Anywayz, what about the fact that the rims are different sizes on the back, i.e. the width? I dont think it should be a problem, but the packages on Tirerack pick a size of 225/40-18 for both front and back, and the original is 215/40-18 on the front and 245/35-18 on the back??

Thoughts?

T

[EspressoBoy]

not the caps! The tubes/valves that the caps fit on. If the tubes/valves are metal then you have sensors. Remember this is what a salesman told me at tirerack when Gill was not there. I ended up not calling him back on the Monday, I called Gill and he knew right away I do not have sensors! Plus he is the one who went to the trouble to post here, and is willing to answer all your tire questions, even if we decide to not order from him.

Call him if you are not sure, or a few dealership service people.

EspressoBoy

I have metal caps that are painted green as I have NITROGEN in my tires. If you get nitrogen in tires, they like to put green caps. Also done at costco, green caps, mind you plastic! *smile*

[tnawab]

ok. Thanks!

[EspressoBoy]

I ordered new rims... it's a big hassle to swap.

[EspressoBoy]

Originally Posted by tnawab

ok. Thanks!

So are you tubes/valves rubber or metal?

[EspressoBoy]

My advice is call Gill and order over the phone. He gets the commission and you then have a person you can call with questions. VS the net. I don't think there is a discount via ordering on the net. Plus I personally don't like my credit card floating on the net. Again that's my choice, each to his own.

EspressoBoy

You can also post in the tire section and Gill will answer there, but don't expect such a fast reply. Calling is easier, and it's a 1800 number.

[tnawab]

They are rubber.
I will call him. But basically you are saying not to get any monitoring system. Will my car be "bonging" all the time because it cant detect the sensors/system?

[tnawab]

BTW: I bought the tire and rim warranty from BMW. So if i get runflats and new rims for the winter will this warranty cover the new items, or only the stock items?

I am thinking only the stock items.

[VFX]

Originally Posted by tnawab

BTW: I bought the tire and rim warranty from BMW. So if i get runflats and new rims for the winter will this warranty cover the new items, or only the stock items?

I am thinking only the stock items.

Check with your SA or check your paperwork thoroughly to know for sure.

Not every tire warranty seem the same.

I was told by my SA that it would cover any wheel/tire combo I fit to my car, as long as it had been fitted by a BMW dealer or BMW authorised agent.

Others on this forum say that their warranties cover ANY wheel/tire combo fitted to their car.

.