elie7

Hello! I just found out that 2006 530i I just purchased last december, rear has non rft tires and front has rft tires. Is this ok to have mix matched tires. What would be the correct tire pressure on these tires. Thanks

JSpira

You should have the same tires all around.

Tire pressure should be indicated inside the driver?s door.

devioustrap

I beg to differ. Of course it's ideal to have every tire on the car matching, but there's no reason to go and throw out a pair of tires just to make them match. As long as the tires on each axle match you're not in any danger. RFT and non-RFT will mean that the front tires will have stiffer sidewalls than the rear ones, but if you're running summer tires in the rear then they'll already have a relatively stiff sidewall. If you have some money burning a whole in your pocket, by all means change them, but the only side effect of the mismatched tires right now is that your handling is going to be a little different than stock (not but even remotely dangerously so).

In a rwd BMW you are most likely to wear your rears twice as fast as your front tires. Chances are that the previous owner went through his rear tires and replaced them with non-runflat tires. Next time you have to change your tires, you'll most likely be due for 4 new tires; at that time you should buy matching ones.

v_therussian

And the general concensus seems to tip toward the non-RFT tires. I've had a thread on this issue a few weeks ago and most people agree that going from RFT tires to "regulars" is one of the best moves you can make. Just make sure that when you purchase the tires, you get the tire protection plan (pothole insurance) and you should be just fine.

BTW Have you driven other 530's with all RFTs - how's the handling different on yours? Maybe there's a benefit in running stiffer sidewall up front - is what I'm trying to figure out here.

smarty156

I had exactly the same problem when I bought my E61 530D. The rears were non-RFTs and the fronts were RFTs (both the same make and model Bridgestone RE050As). My guess was the previous owner asked for RE050As and didn't specify run flats. I had driven it about 4,000 miles before I noticed. Got the dealer to replace the rears with RFTs at his cost but I can honestly say I didn't notice any difference in handling afterwards.
I'd say it's up to you - just a word of warning though. If you don't have RFTs on the rear, do you have either a spare wheel or a tyre inflation kit? If not, you're driving illegally.

Dr Dave

its not illegal in the UK to drive without a spare, you also dont have to have one for an MOT test, thats a continental law hence the germans having runflats to get round the TUV laws regarding tyres (read BMW saving a heap of money)

elie7

What if I move the rear non rft's to the front and fron rft's to the rear, will that make a dramatic improvement on handling.

Dr Dave

wouldnt make any noticeable difference....just get rid of them.

melimel

you cant do that.. arent your rear wheels and tires a different width? or no...?

Dr Dave

i dont think he has staggered rims??