nexus66

Ok, different to the usual "How big an alloy wheel and tyre can I fit?" posts, how SMALL an alloy/steel wheel can I fit??

Thinking of getting Winter Tyres to prevent my 5 being unusable when we get some snow. I've got a 525d LCI (3.0 litre diesel) with 19" MSport alloys (and summer Conti tyres). Now I know the 18" wheels will fit as these come as standard, but will 17" alloys from lower range 5's (or non-sport models) fit? Doesn't BMW tend to fit bigger brakes to 6-cylinder models - meaning a 17" from a 520d wouldn't fit??

One wheel & tyre website listed 7x16" wheels with 225/55 tyres - but I'm not convinced they'll fit the back nevermind the front!!!

Anyone know for sure what'll fit?? 19" winter tyres are too expensive and I don't really want to be subjecting my alloys to a tyre change twice a year!

mmitev

I have the 7x16" wheels with 225/55 winter tyres on my 530d pre-LCI.

I am almost sure they will fit your car, unless BMW has increased the brakes drastically on LCI cars.
In this very unlikely case, you will need 17".

nexus66

As you say, I'd be surprised if they changes the brakes at all for the LCIs. Good to know that the 16" fit.

What winter tyres do you have fitted and have they made a significant difference to driving the car in the snow and ice?

mmitev

Any winter tyres will make a drastic difference vs. pure summer tyres. This is both because of the rubber mixture (soft at low temps) and thread pattern, which is optimised for more grip on snow and ice. And size - the narrower the tyre, the better it is in snow as it "cuts" through it.

In contrast, summer tyres are made of rubber mixture which has to be soft at 20-40 C road surface temp, and at zero degrees it becomes hard like plastic. In addition, the thread is optimised to have grip on tarmac, and "cut" through water during rain.

I personally run a set of Firestone Winterhawk II XL since last year, and I am very happy with them. However, these are middle-tier tyres, cost about 350 GBP for a set. The more expensive ones should be even better.

Age is of huge importance for winter tyres, as the rubber mixture becomes harder with time. So a cheap set that you run for 3 years might be better on the road on average than an expensive set that you run 4-5 years. And given the short winter in the UK, you probably wont wear them out completely in that time frame either.

vkhong

I looked up the E60N LCI 535i. Smallest size for winter wheels and emergency steel wheel for the 535i is 17-inch and for the 528i, it is 16-inch. I would look at RealOEM for your vehicle and go with the BMW recommended measurements for winter wheels.

Select your vehicle then choose Main Group, 36, 36 95.

You can read my winter wheel setup here.

nexus66

Good call on RealOEM. List both 16" and 17" options - so I guess the 16's will fit!

I'm thinking of only really using them when it snows - we don't get months of sub-zero temps, but in the recent snow spell which lasted ~2 weeks my 5 was useless. So I guess I'd only really be putting them on when the conditions were really bad. Our winters are mainly 0-10 degrees and wet!! Should I go for a really cheap set of Asian manufactured tyres, or stick with premium brands?

I might even keep the rear snow tyres in the boot so that I get home if the weather suddenly turns, then I could fit the other 2 at home. (I know you should fit 4, but I'm thinking just to get me home and then fit the other 2!!) I can't see me wanting or needing to run 16" steel wheels for ~4 months!

mmitev

First, you can get a set of used OEM wheels with winter tyres through Ebay from Germany - prices are really good, and choice usually huge. Ideally you do that in the spring/summer.
Second, you can select a set of 17" which you actually like, and then its not such a pain to have them on for 2-3 months.
Then, funnily enough, you do also "learn" to like the small wheels, be it 16" or 17" - they are not beautiful to our modded eyes, but they are purposeful, which makes you like them. In a weird way, the car gets some of the charm of a tractor - inherently it's a freakin' ugly machine, but you know it'll get you anywhere, and that makes you like it somehow lol.
Then, you can fit thick spacers to these wheels, and you'll be surprised how much that improves the look. (You can also use the spacers for the summer wheels).
Just throwing ideas around, here in continental Europe we are long used to these problems, we confront them every year

530D Lee

I have a 530D M sport and use OEM 16" style 134 alloys for my winter alloys, bought them from Ebay for £50 and they included some decent goodyear tyres with 6mm tread on all of them, ditched the goodyears to a mate for £30 for all four, made my alloys worth £20! and then I shod them all n Nokian WRG2 winter tyres.

inktoxicated

10's

530D Lee

Helpful post! :thumbsdown: