I am considering the LCI 550i sport versus 535i sport. I will be driving mostly in fairly heavy traffic
in Atlanta. Snow & ice are not really an issue in the south USA. I will not be running it on a track.

Since the 550 sport comes with 19 non-RFT and the 535 sport comes with 18 RF tires,
I am wondering how they will compare in ride quality especially since the suspension system
is also different. :confused:

Which will provide the most comfortable ride? Will the difference be very noticeable to most
people or only the most compulsive car guru?

I kind of prefer the RF tires for safety reasons such as when my wife will go on trips in my car,
but I prefer the look of the m172 wheels. Ideally, I would have liked 18 m172 wheels with RFT.


Does anyone have any experience with the differences in ride quality?

Thanks,

Mick

19" Wheels will ride better. Run Flats are very bouncy when you go over bumps. The 19's have less meat then the 18's but the compound of the tire is alot softer. I have not driven a 2008 550i Sport, but I am positive that my assumption is correct!

!

ABC

LCI? Nope.

Wait two or three weeks.

ABC

The official presentation of the LCI is only this weekend.

I wouldn't be surprised if they have improved on the RF front substantially, but let's wait and see.

Get the Run Flat Tire :)..

http://www.bmwusa.com/vehicles/X5/48...ightDetail.htm ---> you can see the benefit from RF tire here. :)

Wow, that video really shows the safety advantages of the RFT.

If there are only minute differences in ride quality between the 18 RFT & 19 nonRFT setup, then I would probably choose RFT for the safety factor.
Does anyone know if they make an 18" version of m172 wheels?

Let's really hope so.

Did change to summer wheels yesterday (still with Dunlop RF's) and they are hard as steel
in the temperatures we now have overhere (4 - 8 C).

Also the tyre noice is at least twice as loud compared to my soft 16" winter tyres and yet,
the tramlinging is so bad, that I have really to grab hard the steering wheel to avoid
the car getting out of lane :thumbsdown:

Thread left on front wheels 4mm and on rear 5 mm, but I have to buy new tyres.

That's a major problem that seems to continue. I had an E90 Sport loan car the other day with RFTs and it was terrible. Rock hard ride with lots of higher frequency vibrations coming off the road. Loads of road noise and tramlining worse than I remember. I am glad I don't RFTs any more!

I would avoid runflats due to the poor ride quality, noise, and skittish rear end cornering over uneven pavement. This is noticeable to passengers as well as the driver. I don't believe that the safety gains are worth the negative aspects. It will take a long test-drive in a car with next generation runflats to convince me otherwise.