Drifting on the Highway
#1
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My Ride: On Order as of May 6- 2007 530i Titanium Grey and Grey Leather, with Sport Package, Premium Pkg, Cold Pkg.
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Well I had the pleasure of driving my three week old 530i on a road trip from New Jersey to North Carolina.
It was the first significant distance drive for my beauty on the highway and I seemed to notice it was rather hard to keep on track. It seemed to drift in the lane. After a few hours my fiancee took over and noticed the same behavior. At the next stop at the gas station I pulled out the guage and found the tires were filled to 46 PSI!
I thoght holy fock!
Looked at the manual and it clearly stated 29 PSI front (Cold) and 36 rear. Slightly higher for more passangers and higher speeds of over 100 mph. But this is the US and I rarely get the chance to pull speeds that high and not for any length of time.
Needless to say I dropped the pressure a bit and it drove like a dream.
Anyone have the same experience?
It was the first significant distance drive for my beauty on the highway and I seemed to notice it was rather hard to keep on track. It seemed to drift in the lane. After a few hours my fiancee took over and noticed the same behavior. At the next stop at the gas station I pulled out the guage and found the tires were filled to 46 PSI!
![Blink](https://5series.net/forums/images/smilies/imported/blink.gif)
![Embarrassment](https://5series.net/forums/images/smilies/imported/ohmy.gif)
Needless to say I dropped the pressure a bit and it drove like a dream.
Anyone have the same experience?
![Think](https://5series.net/forums/images/smilies/imported/think.gif)
#2
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My Ride: I have a 2007 Black Sapphire BMW 530i with SMG. It has the auburn interior, has PDC, Sports Package, Premium Package, rear automatic sunshades with manual side sunshades, 35% black tint, Upgraded angeleyes from Angelibrights, and Logic 7 Sound System
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sorry, not yet.
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My Ride: 2007 E63 AMG | Obsidian Black | Schwarzes Nappa | Black BirdEye Maple | Premium II Package | Electronic Trunk Closer | Parktronic
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Originally Posted by nickolas_g' post='308161' date='Jul 7 2006, 09:11 PM
Well I had the pleasure of driving my three week old 530i on a road trip from New Jersey to North Carolina.
It was the first significant distance drive for my beauty on the highway and I seemed to notice it was rather hard to keep on track. It seemed to drift in the lane. After a few hours my fiancee took over and noticed the same behavior. At the next stop at the gas station I pulled out the guage and found the tires were filled to 46 PSI!
I thoght holy fock!
Looked at the manual and it clearly stated 29 PSI front (Cold) and 36 rear. Slightly higher for more passangers and higher speeds of over 100 mph. But this is the US and I rarely get the chance to pull speeds that high and not for any length of time.
Needless to say I dropped the pressure a bit and it drove like a dream.
Anyone have the same experience?
![Think](https://5series.net/forums/images/smilies/imported/think.gif)
It was the first significant distance drive for my beauty on the highway and I seemed to notice it was rather hard to keep on track. It seemed to drift in the lane. After a few hours my fiancee took over and noticed the same behavior. At the next stop at the gas station I pulled out the guage and found the tires were filled to 46 PSI!
![Blink](https://5series.net/forums/images/smilies/imported/blink.gif)
![Embarrassment](https://5series.net/forums/images/smilies/imported/ohmy.gif)
Needless to say I dropped the pressure a bit and it drove like a dream.
Anyone have the same experience?
![Think](https://5series.net/forums/images/smilies/imported/think.gif)
![Nono](https://5series.net/forums/images/smilies/imported/nono.gif)
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Yes. Air under heat expands same pretty much for all other gases (yes even N2) but air expands more. So to check the pressure exactly after you've pulled over from a highway journey is not a correct way to get an acurate reading. None the less that doesn't mean your tires were overinflated. But it's in a way too much to say that car drifts on a highway? I mean come on...maybe gets slightly more instable but drift?!
#5
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Originally Posted by BetterMakeWay' post='308228' date='Jul 8 2006, 07:18 AM
Yes. Air under heat expands same pretty much for all other gases (yes even N2) but air expands more. So to check the pressure exactly after you've pulled over from a highway journey is not a correct way to get an acurate reading. None the less that doesn't mean your tires were overinflated. But it's in a way too much to say that car drifts on a highway? I mean come on...maybe gets slightly more instable but drift?!
All I can report is what my fiancee and myself felt when driving it. The next morning I reset the tires to the correct cold PSI per the manual and it drives great now.
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#6
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Nick,
I just drove from Charlotte, NC to the SC coast (~200mi) this past Monday, and returning in a few hrs.
Next month I will be driving from NC to Maine.
FWIW over 4 BMWs (and 4 VWs) I use the 100mph setting for trips and return the inflation to normal upon return. I usually have four of us and heavily load and traveling at night esp NC-Maine I can run high speed.
I only notice the "drifiting" you mention on rutted roads (SC) solely due to the low profile tires.
Hope you enjoyed your time here.
I just drove from Charlotte, NC to the SC coast (~200mi) this past Monday, and returning in a few hrs.
Next month I will be driving from NC to Maine.
FWIW over 4 BMWs (and 4 VWs) I use the 100mph setting for trips and return the inflation to normal upon return. I usually have four of us and heavily load and traveling at night esp NC-Maine I can run high speed.
I only notice the "drifiting" you mention on rutted roads (SC) solely due to the low profile tires.
Hope you enjoyed your time here.
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My Ride: 2008 Porsche 911 Carrera S Convertible. Midnight Blue, 6 Speed.Retired - 2007 997 Carrera S, Midnight Blue, Grey leather, premium audioRetired - 2007 550i, Monaco Blue over Beige, Navigation, Logic 7, Cold Weather Pack, Comfort Access, Sport Package
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Yep, mine were over inflated too. I followed Ray Hull's advice and dropped them to just over the minimum recommended pressures and it made a big improvement as you say.
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I picked up my car from Atlanta on 6/30 and drove it to Fayetteville, NC approx 450 miles and the initial interstate ride was very smooth, so smooth that when I was doing 80mph it felt like I was only doing 40, 50mph.
After a week in NC I drove my car from there to NJ approx 620 miles. The drive was similar very smooth, despite the rough roads in SC and parts of NC. Maybe because I don't have the SP or lower profile tires than 50.
I got a total of 1210 miles on my car as of now. My break in period was a quick one![Smile](https://5series.net/forums/images/smilies/imported/smile.gif)
In the end I didn't notice any *drifting* on my journey. I didn't check the psi on my tires but according to the tire label it says that the max psi is in the 51 range.
After a week in NC I drove my car from there to NJ approx 620 miles. The drive was similar very smooth, despite the rough roads in SC and parts of NC. Maybe because I don't have the SP or lower profile tires than 50.
I got a total of 1210 miles on my car as of now. My break in period was a quick one
![Smile](https://5series.net/forums/images/smilies/imported/smile.gif)
In the end I didn't notice any *drifting* on my journey. I didn't check the psi on my tires but according to the tire label it says that the max psi is in the 51 range.
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It should be well known by all that checking tire pressure is almost number one on any and all new car pick up check lists.
That air pressure is the shipping pressure. Your dealer has not prepped the car properly. They should have let OUT the air pressure to the proper setting. It's usually about 50 PSI as shipped from Germany
That air pressure is the shipping pressure. Your dealer has not prepped the car properly. They should have let OUT the air pressure to the proper setting. It's usually about 50 PSI as shipped from Germany