Don't make the mistake I made
Contributors
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 1,102
Likes: 0
From: Northern NJ, USA
My Ride: 2011 M3 Convertible, Alpine White/black, 6 speed
2011 535xi Tasmin Green, Venetian Beige
Originally Posted by Allen' post='552266' date='Mar 28 2008, 11:26 AM
IMHO...if it's not a Michelin...you are not getting the best ride in your car. I've tried Bridgestone, Continental, Pirelli, Dunlop, Toyo and NONE even come close the ride/noise of the Michelin. If I were rich, I would immediately remove these piece of shxx Dunlop RFTs and put Michelins on. It really pisses me off that I have to put up such a crappy tire on a $60K car for another 20K miles or so. Why BMW put on these tires on this car is beyond me. I feel better now... 
Contributors
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 1,492
Likes: 0
From: SoCal
My Ride: 08 535i, A/T & Paddle Shifters, AW, NB Leather, Sport, Premium, Nav, 6FL
Originally Posted by Allen' post='552266' date='Mar 28 2008, 08:26 AM
IMHO...if it's not a Michelin...you are not getting the best ride in your car. I've tried Bridgestone, Continental, Pirelli, Dunlop, Toyo and NONE even come close the ride/noise of the Michelin. If I were rich, I would immediately remove these piece of shxx Dunlop RFTs and put Michelins on. It really pisses me off that I have to put up such a crappy tire on a $60K car for another 20K miles or so. Why BMW put on these tires on this car is beyond me. I feel better now...
Michelins are the best when it comes to comfort and traction. I have tried numerous brands as well and noticed that all these other brands can't be compared to what you are paying for a Michelin. I'm not rich but i don't compromise on a set of tires. Something i learned through experience.
Senior Members
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 770
Likes: 0
From: Charlotte, NC, USA
My Ride: 2008 BMW 550i Sport
Carbon Black Metallic/Cream Beige
Manny tranny and other stuff
Recently gone, but never forgotten:
2005 Ford Mustang GT (hence the name)
Torch Red/Crimson
Manny tranny and every option available for that year
2002 Chrysler 300M Special
Brilliant Black/Light Taupe/Dark Slate
Autostick and goo-gobs of neat features that I will sorely miss
Keep in mind that your RFTs had extremely stiff sidewalls, hence very little flex in cornering and the illusion of better handling. I bet if you could do a side-by-side comparison, your Pirellis are actually handling better but just don't feel like they are. I had a set of P-zero Neros before and they were really good tires. Quiet, too.
Members
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 145
Likes: 0
From: Sydney Australia
My Ride: Current - MY2008 530i comfort access,active steering, HUD, prof nav/TV, bluetootth etc .....
Old - 2006 530i comfort access, active steering, HUD, NAV/TV, Bluetooth
So what was your conclusion on the advice from the guys on e60.net? I see from the above that there is a diversity of opinion.
Originally Posted by juventus' post='552232' date='Mar 29 2008, 12:02 AM
After chewing everone's brain out on this forum regarding which tire was best for a 535i sport, I fell in for the advice by the guy at Tire Rack. ..........
This is what happens when you don't listen to the guys on E60.net
This is what happens when you don't listen to the guys on E60.net
Senior Members
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 601
Likes: 1
From: Birmingham, AL
My Ride: 535i 6-speed
Model Year: 2008
Originally Posted by JeffNNJ' post='552289' date='Mar 28 2008, 11:26 AM
And I TOTALLY disagree. I liked the Pilot Sports that came on my M3 but when I replaced them with Bridgestone Pole Position SO3 the car handled way better. I cannot comment on road noise since Led Zeppelin did an excellent job of masking it.
As for the Bridgestone SO3s...I have those on my 911 and they are a great tire for that car...although I'm am pretty ticked that they stopped making that tire. Now I have to find a different tire for the rears to go with the SO3s on the front...the fronts typically last for 3 or 4 sets of rears.
Contributors
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 5,972
Likes: 0
From: The State of Southern NJ!
I too have used PZero's on my previous car (e38/740i).
I selected them for 4 purposes:
1) high comfort and low noise,
2) good wet braking scores,
3) highway cruising tread life, and
4) four season traction.
Add to that their price is $50-$100 lower per tire than others (Except RFT's and the price difference really grows there)! So, it was a no-brainer for me.
Though rated highly across all categories at tirerack.com I knew full well the Pzero's could not out-perform a high end brand tire categorized as an Ultra-High Performance Summer Tire. That is simply NOT what they are! And if I had a non-sport 528 I'd give them another shot. However, for the 535 or 550's ... well you get the idea!
I selected them for 4 purposes:
1) high comfort and low noise,
2) good wet braking scores,
3) highway cruising tread life, and
4) four season traction.
Add to that their price is $50-$100 lower per tire than others (Except RFT's and the price difference really grows there)! So, it was a no-brainer for me.
Though rated highly across all categories at tirerack.com I knew full well the Pzero's could not out-perform a high end brand tire categorized as an Ultra-High Performance Summer Tire. That is simply NOT what they are! And if I had a non-sport 528 I'd give them another shot. However, for the 535 or 550's ... well you get the idea!
Senior Members
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 1,845
Likes: 1
From: Atlanta, GA
My Ride: 2008 535i:
(8/07 Build) Metallic Bronze, Beige NASCA Leather, Ventilated Seats, Sport Pkg, Cold Wxr Pkg, Logic-7 Sound, HUD, Night Vision, PDC, Split Rear Seats, NAV, Premium Pkg, Comfort Access, HD Radio, Sport Auto Trans
Current mods: M-Aero Kit, JB4, Motorcepts 6000k HID Foglamps
Umnitza ICE-Lite 10w LED 6000k AE's
1992 Camaro RS:
Fully Restored w/Custom Interior, 5.0L V8, T-tops, OEM Z28 Foglamps, Inst Cluster, & Spoiler, Custom Sound, Too many engine mods to list
Originally Posted by juventus' post='552255' date='Mar 28 2008, 10:55 AM
The car handles like crap in crosswinds whereas with the RFT's it was rock solid. On certain road surfaces it does not grip as well as it should. This was never the case with the RFT's.
I don't think it needs reallignment since the steering wheel seems centered ok.
I don't think it needs reallignment since the steering wheel seems centered ok.
I've experienced crosswinds going over Autobahn bridges at 100mph - the Pirelli's weren't a problem.
Contributors
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 2,573
Likes: 0
My Ride: 2006 530i Sport
Silver Gray - Black Leather - Anthracite Maple
Manual Transmission
Premium Audio
Cold Weather Package
Rear sunshade
Sirius Radio
Autobahnd Roadblock (3M) film kit
Originally Posted by GT Premi' post='552320' date='Mar 28 2008, 01:47 PM
Keep in mind that your RFTs had extremely stiff sidewalls, hence very little flex in cornering and the illusion of better handling. I bet if you could do a side-by-side comparison, your Pirellis are actually handling better but just don't feel like they are. I had a set of P-zero Neros before and they were really good tires. Quiet, too.
I think the Dunlop RFTs are actually really good tires in terms of performance. They just don't maintain civility for the life of the tire. As long as you can get them replaced free, why stray? I'm on my second pair and they still drive like a dream.
Thread Starter
Senior Members
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 298
Likes: 0
From: White Hall, Arkansas
My Ride: Retired 2008 535i Titanium-silver with sport, premium, steptronic, NAV, HUD
Retired 2006 525i
Originally Posted by faarcanal' post='552321' date='Mar 28 2008, 11:56 AM
So what was your conclusion on the advice from the guys on e60.net? I see from the above that there is a diversity of opinion.
Michellin PS2.
I don't understand what the problem is. Even my balding RFT's were better. I feel so insecure.
Contributors
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 2,573
Likes: 0
My Ride: 2006 530i Sport
Silver Gray - Black Leather - Anthracite Maple
Manual Transmission
Premium Audio
Cold Weather Package
Rear sunshade
Sirius Radio
Autobahnd Roadblock (3M) film kit
Originally Posted by juventus' post='552470' date='Mar 28 2008, 06:26 PM
Michellin PS2.
I don't understand what the problem is. Even my balding RFT's were better. I feel so insecure.
I don't understand what the problem is. Even my balding RFT's were better. I feel so insecure.
I love the RFTs and I'm no fan of Michelin... there has never been wide concensus regarding tires here though. Will TireRack let you swap them? They just might...
I'd look at these if I were you - http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?ti...Model=HTR+Z+III
This is the DSST Dunlop tread...
Turn one upside-down and they're pretty similar.