jsal

I am finally getting around to getting my car in for the new Dunlop replacements. The car now has 16k, so I am both excited about getting a quite ride, but also new tires after 16k - I may actually getting decent mileage before I pay for a set of tires.

The question is the alignment. In fact, I think I have commented in the past that I think it is worth it for a new set of tires on this vehicle, and I have seen posts that recommend it.

But, then I found out the cost - almost $400 with the active steering.

I guess when you consider the cost of tires ($1200+ per set), it is not that big of a deal. But, out of curiousity, I checked the tires before I dropped off the car tonight and the wear was incredibly even on both the front and back - I was surprised. My guess is that I could probably get about 22k out of this set.

So, the million dollar question for you guys is, do I do the alignment to be on the safe side or wait and monitor the wear?

bankerboyz

Jsal, if you are having the tyres replaced by your dealer, its unlikely that they will do so without doing the alignment also. At least that has been my experience. The service guys at my dealer told me that because of the active steering it was necessary to do the alignment and it also cost me $400.

mrbelk

I just picked up my 545 after having the tires replaced under the SIB. There is no mention of an alignment adjustment either on my invoice or in the SIB.

-MrB

tab545

I take my 545 sport in for routine oil change (it blinged up on the screen last week at just about 12,000 miles), and I've told them I'm hearing road noise from the Dunlop runflats, and I heard these tires have wear issues. He said they'd take a look at it. Is my complaint enough to trigger the replacement?

Can somebody coach me to say the right things to guarantee fresh tires while they're free? They really are getting slightly louder, but given my snow tire season, they probably only have 7,000 miles on them, so I'm worried that no uneven physical wear will have manifested itself.

gwf545

Look for the related Service Bulletin information elsewhere on this site. BMW now requires a specific wear pattern check in order to replace the tires under warranty. If you have noise, you probably have the wear pattern. Also elsewhere on this site is mention of a Dunlop manufacturing date and the date Dunlop changed the design to eliminate the problems. However, I saw nothing about that in the Service Bulletin. Good luck!

UUronL

I've learned from several sources that dealers and many other shops only align to within certain tolerances. According to what I've been told, these tolerances can still leave you out of perfect alignment - which seems ridiculous considering a dealer will likely charge you ~$200 for the job.

Best bet is to try to find a good shop that you know will do it right - the place I know of near me generally keeps vehicles on the alignment machine for a few hours trying to get it just right.

Rudy

Yeah, but there are special procedures and equipment for cars with active steering so it's probably best to use a BMW dealer for a proper alignment if you have AS...

UUronL

Ahh, good point.