Kell

I've been saying for a while that I'd like to run a set of winter tyres for our car and, given the conditions in the UK at the moment, am now regretting not doing anything about it sooner.

However, does anyone do this and which tyres did you opt for and how much were they?

Also, if they're not RF, do you then carry another spare?

narvselius

As I'm still on a loaner waiting for my car for the final fix (long story - don't ask), I'm currently driving a 523iA with RF winter tyres... and they are the worst I ever had! I hope other RF winter tyres are not as bad as these - there's absolutely no grip. :thumbsdown:

"Normal" friction tires normally does the trick; there are several good ones out there. My own car has GoodYear and they work fine. Blizzak has also been around for a long time and they are generally good. Nokian and Pirelli are also abele to produce good winter tires, whereas Michelin Max Ice has received some lukewarm results in the tire tests I've read this year.

Dandle

I ran Continental Wintercontact TS810 sport tyres a couple of winters ago on my A3 and they were absolutely stunning. I just couldn't believe the grip the gave on ice and snow. They weren't cheap though and don't last at all long as the temps go up. Conti actually say that for constant temps below 7 degrees winter tyres are advised.

Patrick E61

I have those winter tires on my E61 now, and I love them.

higher

I don't fit winter tyres to my E61, but I do carry a spare wheel, even though the car has run-flats.

I purchased the emergency wheel (space-saver) from BMW for 170 UK Pounds, It fits in the existing tyre well in the trunk.

The run-flats are not different to normal tyres when they get a puncture, except you can go maybe 10-20 miles max, to get off the road and replace it. I would highly recommend the spare.

I do think that in the UK, we should adopt the European standard of changing to winter tyres in Nov. It would mean the chaos of the last few days with 700 abandoned cars would not occur anymore, when we have snow and stop the black-ice deaths we see every winter on untreated roads.

xBMWx

+1 :thumbsdown:

I put some 17" OEM rims with Dunlop RFT winter tyres on my 2008 E60 when I returned it (company car) and drove them in snow... without a doubt the worst winter tyre I have ever experienced.
My 275 wide 19" Dunlop WinterSports which were already on my 2005 E61 went through the same snow conditions with minimal fuss.

I have to admit that I simply bought the "BMW Mobility kit" for the E61, but probably should have bought the space-saving spare wheel from BMW -- I just wasn't prepared to pay the 300+EUR they wanted for it from the parts dept. Maybe your dealer will offer you a better price?

higher

Appears like even where winter tyres are available making the correct choice of tyre / wheel is important otherwhise there is minimal benefit - I didn't realise that !!!

Wow ! 300 Euro for a spare wheel is expensive I got mine from the dealer for (190-200 Euro) Make sure they specify what they call the 'emergency wheel' there is a kit that included the wheel, plus, brace, jack etc. If only the wheel / tyre then cost is only 150 Euro.

There is also a more expensive 'kit' (300 Euro) that includes some crappy carpet to replace the current one in the trunk but that is not required. So, there are three possible emergency wheel purchases:

(1) only wheel and tyre 150 Euro
(2) Wheely, tyre, jack, brace 190-200 Euro
(3) All the above plus crappy carpet for trunk 300+ Euro (usually specified by BMW unless you tell them only wheel / tyre required)

Personally, I should have gone for just the wheel / tyre, because there is no way I am changing a flat wheel, that's what I pay emerency breakdown cover for - so jack, brace etc is useless. Our VW Touran has a foam kit and we replaced with a spare netted down in the trunk for 130 Euro.- not jack, brace etc.

Anyway a bit off the point of winter tyres, but hope it's useful.

xBMWx

^^
That's good to know - thank you!
(Thankfully I now have a spare wheel with my current E60)

Kell

Thanks for the replies so far.

I'm thinking about smaller wheels too to make it cheaper to buy the tyres and so that I don't have to go through the hassle of getting the tyres changed twice a year.

IIRC the PCD for the E61 is 5x120. Does that sound right?

xBMWx

It might be worth while you looking for a set in Germany, where this is business as usual and lots of competition on prices.

I bought a set of OEM 17" Winter wheels (RFTs) from Ebay Germany when I returned my 525d company car (and kept the 19s). I paid about 400 Euro and they where I great condition. (But as I wrote above, the RFTs were :thumbsdown: )

You have loads of winter wheels for sale on Ebay Germany, including a number of companies. Just type in BMW E60 17" winter and that should be enough to bring up a big list. PM me if you decide to do this and need any other help navigating through the German language.

I paid 50 Euro in total to have them shipped within Germany, but not sure if it would be much more expensive to the UK?

You could also look at Salesafter.