[RiCh]

I bought my E90 335d about a year ago now and it came with 19" 225M alloys. The wheels were in great condition and looked as if they were brand new. All four wheels also had brand new Bridgstone run flat tyres.

Back in Janaury after we had all the snow i took my car out and while i was driving i managed to hit a big pot hole, which i couldn't avoid. This casued my n/s/f tyre to bubble on the outer edge. Back then i was thinking about getting rid of all the run flat tyres and replacing them with non run flats. Since all the tyres still had lots of tread left on them it didnt really make sense to replace them all so i just went ahead and replaced the damaged tyre with the same Bridgestone RFT for £230.

The other day i went to check my tyre pressures and wear and i noticed that the o/s/f tyre is completely worn on the inside edge. The inside edge wear is quite deep into the tyre and at first i thought that it has been rubbing against something. So i had it checked out by the dealer and was told that it was due to low tyre pressures and was also advised that the alignment could be out too. It's very annoying because the tyre has over 5mm of tread and now needs to be replaced.

I cant remember off the top of my head what the recommended tyre pressures are but i check my tyre pressures weekly and have always put in 39 PSI in the fronts and 41 PSI in the rear, but it seems that was too low.

Now i'm in the same situation again. I'm going to have my alignment checked but I dont know whether i should cough up £230 for another front tyre or to change over to non run flats, which are cheaper to replace than the run flats.

I bought the car to be able to enjoy it and drive it without worrying but i cant due the worry of the 225M wheels cracking and having to replace the tyres all the time due to the inside edge wear. Whenever i'm out on the road i'm constantly looking out for potholes and cringe everytime i go over a small bump. I know that driving an M Sport with 19" wheels isn't going to be comfortable, but if changing to non run flats can make it slightly better then it might be the way to go.

I dont know what BMW would say if the wheels cracked and i had non runflat tyres on them. But then it might be a good idea to keep them and if a wheel did happen to crack then i would just stick them on before going to the dealer. The only other thing is that run flats are meant to be good if you get a puncture as you can still drive, however the tyre gets ruined and you need to replace it. If i changed to non run flats then i would need to a spare but there's no space in the boot for it.

I'm sure a lot of others have been or are in the same situation. I just wanted to know whether or not i should go ahead and get rid of the runflats or to put up with them incase my wheels end up cracking?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Cheers

[225_AB]

I have same wheels same tyres, similar problems and recently changed to non RFT. Should have done it ages ago. Maybe the turn is not quite as sharp but the ride is vastly improved. Do it you won't regret it.

[buckethead]

95% of puncture's are slow from a nail etc i keep a compressor in the boot and some puncture repair plugs also a can of foam will get you home

i've only had 1 puncture i could not get home on and that was a runflat low pressure warning came on,so i though no worries i'll stop at a garage as soon as i can within a mile at 30 mph the tyre had disintegrated so much for runflats

[Tunbridge]

My new 19" alloys are on there way, fitted with non runflats to replace my current 18" alloys fitted with the usual run flats. I'll report back when they are on the car but I did exactly the same to my E60 530i when I got that and never looked back. The difference in ride quality was dramatic and I didn't notice any difference in the crispness of the turn in, it was still a fine handling car but with much better ride.

I did have concerns over what to do in the puncture situation but I drove round with a can of tyre weld and a compressor. I never had to use it and I intend to take the same approach this time. Yes the run flats might get you home, but not always, and for me the disadvantages far out weigh the advantages.

[BIGTIME]

Rich - I am in a similiar situation as my rears are bald on the inners. If it wasn't for the cracking issues I'd be on non runflats tomorrow. Some people have the opinion that it's the runflats that cause the cracking. However, I think peoples alloys have cracked with non run flats also.

[Chris100]

I was told by my dealer that correct pressures are between 38-40 for the rears and 35-37 for the fronts. I just had to replace my rears, I just stuck with the runflat P-zero's that came on the car. Tyre wear was even across the whole tyre, I had similar problems with my last E92 and a previous E46 so I tend to check my tyre pressures every 2 weeks now.

I'm pretty happy with the P-zero runflats, however I didn't like the bridgestones that came on my last E92. My advice would be stick with the runflats and go for the P-zeros, only problem is that they are £300 each which wasn't nice.

[chris_s1]

This is has been discussed many times on here, RFT's always wear the inside edge.
I guarantee there is nothing wrong with your alignment or your pressures.
When I removed my RFTs the rears were through to the canvas on the inside edge and the outside still had about 5mm on it. Since I switched to non-RFTs my tyres have worn evenly and normally.

[gaza01]

Originally Posted by chris_s1

This is has been discussed many times on here, RFT's always wear the inside edge.
I guarantee there is nothing wrong with your alignment or your pressures.
When I removed my RFTs the rears were through to the canvas on the inside edge and the outside still had about 5mm on it. Since I switched to non-RFTs my tyres have worn evenly and normally.

What he said! There is nothing wrong with your alignment etc etc
Everyone has the same issue with 19'' tyres and RFTs. As all have previously said just get non runflats and all your problems will be solved!

[MB London]

Here a picture of one of my back tyres which was recently taken off my car – it’s a runflat. I was in exactly the same boat as you, I have an e90 and have 19’ 225’s on it. Clearly my tyres needed to be replaced and I was debating what I should do for the best run flats or non-run flats I decided on the latter and put 4 continental sc 5’s on and it has made the car a much better place to be.

[HighlandPete]

Originally Posted by BIGTIME

Rich - I am in a similiar situation as my rears are bald on the inners. If it wasn't for the cracking issues I'd be on non runflats tomorrow. Some people have the opinion that it's the runflats that cause the cracking. However, I think peoples alloys have cracked with non run flats also.

I believe there is more evidence for the RFT causing/contributing to the early demise of the rims. A lot depends on the true cause of failure, I've often commented I suspect impact fatigue, as some rims have multiple cracks, I've observed up to 5 cracks on a rim. That teaches me it is more likely the continued cyclic impact of the hard sidewalls, more so than single pothole type impacts. Plus to my eye as an engineer, the cracking appears to be of fatigue appearance, rather than impact.

I know some have had cracks on non run-flats, but were the rims originally used on RFTs, before the tyre change and therefore already weakened? Not sure we'll ever know exactly what has caused 100% of the cracking.

HighlandPete

[chris_s1]

If you're that worried about warranty issues, just keep the old RFTs in the garage and pay a local fitter £40 to stick them back on if you have to take the car to the dealer.

[Jules6]

Originally Posted by gaza01

What he said! There is nothing wrong with your alignment etc etc
Everyone has the same issue with 19'' tyres and RFTs. As all have previously said just get non runflats and all your problems will be solved!

+1
Once I switched to Conti non RFT the inner edge wear issues disappeared, as did the harsh ride.

[kirps15]

Hi Jules6,

I have 225 wheels and have been told 3 of the 4 rft's are shot and need new tyres. So i have taken the opportunity to order a set of conti 5p's, i have gone for 235/35/19 at the front and 265/30/19 on the rear. The tyres are being delivered to the garage on Monday, when i hope to have them fitted.

I have a couple of questions, if you do not mind answering:
- Is the size up OK? I am assuming you have have 225 wheels and sized up also. Apologies if i am mistaken.
- Is there really that much of a difference in ride?
- What PSI are you running?
- Did you have any warning lights come on after the tyre changes?
- Anything else.

Thanks in advance if you are able to reply.

[MB London]

Originally Posted by kirps15

Hi Jules6,

I have 225 wheels and have been told 3 of the 4 rft's are shot and need new tyres. So i have taken the opportunity to order a set of conti 5p's, i have gone for 235/35/19 at the front and 265/30/19 on the rear. The tyres are being delivered to the garage on Monday, when i hope to have them fitted.

I have a couple of questions, if you do not mind answering:
- Is the size up OK? I am assuming you have have 225 wheels and sized up also. Apologies if i am mistaken.
- Is there really that much of a difference in ride?
- What PSI are you running?
- Did you have any warning lights come on after the tyre changes?
- Anything else.

Thanks in advance if you are able to reply.

Why have you sized up, I have just put conti 5's on and got oem sizes ?

[zaheer]

Hey trust me the amount of issues Iv had with 225m's and the Bridgestone run flats is unbelievable. its the same issue everywhere, the rims crack, only the rears, and you wear out very good tyres from the inner edges that make the tyres illegal, and the cost a bomb to replace!

Iv been through three sets of run flats in over a year, due to puntures that could not be repaired and inner edge wear. my alignment had been done and made no difference.

Iv just totally ditched the 225ms and the runflats to aftermarket wheels and Pirelli non runflats and wish I had done so earlier, the grip on the Pirelli's are so much better then the Potenza's and much much smoothier drive.

Thought Id just share my story as ive been so pissed off of the 225s + RFTs this car has come with!

[kirps15]

Hi MB London,

Well, I recently had my car serviced by Birds, who incidentally told me about the worn tyres. They recomended that I size up if i go for the Conti's, i think it has something to do with rim protection. Mind you they were talking about Conti 3's, and when i spoke to the Tyre company, they said the size up should be fine.

Erm what should i do, i just had a call from the tyre company saying the tyres have come into stock?

Your advice would be very helpful.

[Hotcoupe]

Originally Posted by kirps15

Erm what should i do, i just had a call from the tyre company saying the tyres have come into stock?

Get them fitted, +one sizes are run by countless people on the forum including myself.

If upsizing is good for Alpina, why not your 3 Series, OK the suspension on Alpinas is different but I've never suffered any problems.

Alpina go one step further on the fronts, both the saloon and coupe on the D3 come with 245 fronts and 265 rears, and they run 19" rims.

[kirps15]

Originally Posted by Hotcoupe

Get them fitted, +one sizes are run by countless people on the forum including myself.

If upsizing is good for Alpina, why not your 3 Series, OK the suspension on Alpinas is different but I've never suffered any problems.

Alpina go one step further on the fronts, both the saloon and coupe on the D3 come with 245 fronts and 265 rears, and they run 19" rims.

So does the oversize make any difference to getting the OEM sizes fitted to the car?

I have read quite alot on the forum about oversize being OK, but i dont want to make an expensive mistake, especially if Conti do provide the standard oem size fitments. Maybe i just take the plunge.

[Hotcoupe]

Originally Posted by kirps15

So does the oversize make any difference to getting the OEM sizes fitted to the car?

No,I've fitted 235/35/19 front & 265/30/19 rear to my 225 rims (MV 4) in the past with no problems.

Alpinas run the same OEM wheel sizes - 8"x19"front & 9"x 19"rear, and as I said earlier run the wider tyre sizes.

I'm sure Continental do manufacture the OEM size, personally I'd still upsize.

[kirps15]

Originally Posted by Hotcoupe

No,I've fitted 235/35/19 front & 265/30/19 rear to my 225 rims (MV 4) in the past with no problems.

Alpinas run the same OEM wheel sizes - 8"x19"front & 9"x 19"rear, and as I said earlier run the wider tyre sizes.

I'm sure Continental do manufacture the OEM size, personally I'd still upsize.

OK, thank you for the helpful advice! Much appreciated.

[MB London]

Each to their own i guess and if you cant get oem sizes then upsizing by a size would be ok, but surly if you can get oem sizes then that must be the logical choice

[kirps15]

Originally Posted by MB London

Each to their own i guess and if you cant get oem sizes then upsizing by a size would be ok, but surly if you can get oem sizes then that must be the logical choice

The issue i have is that i have put down a deposit for the size ups, and i am unsure how much rim protection the OEM size ones provide. Would you be able to comment on this point?

If there is sufficient rim protection, then i guess there is no harm in asking whether the tyre provider would consider ordering the oem sizes.