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Wheels and tyres. What to do?

Specific discussion about the E89 2009 Z4 (sDrive35is, sDrive35i, sDrive30i, sDrive23i)
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Smartbear
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Wheels and tyres. What to do?

Post by Smartbear » Wed Mar 22, 2017 9:30 pm

Busterboo wrote:
mr wilks wrote:
Busterboo wrote:
None. :D

But I don't need to have proof, because I never claimed that they did.

Let those who make the claim provide the proof.
Have you not made a claim as in " RFT's don't crack wheels " :?
Yes, you're right. I have. And I shouldn't have. So, let me re-word it:

It seems probable that BMW's 296 19" wheels are prone to cracking. So, since "'Tis safer to avoid what's grown than question how 'tis born', avoid them.

Some claim that RFTs cause this cracking. This seems improbable to me, not least because RFTs don't crack other wheels. Far more likely is that the wheels are of poor quality.
It seems to me that its the result of two volatile ingredients coming together that should be kept apart, some 19" wheels are prone to cracking (but only when exposed to rf Bakelite tyres)
Its like combining magnesium & water, fine on their own but explosive together!
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e89 Sdrive 20i, plenty of mumbo & good economy-the thinking bears z4
e89 Sdrive 30i, this ones busted, pass me another...
e85 3.0si sold

willgill
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Wheels and tyres. What to do?

Post by willgill » Wed Mar 22, 2017 9:32 pm

One of my RFTs got a puncture today, but didn't crack the wheel (326 19"). I subsequently decided to replace all four tyres to non-RFTs, shall report back once the tyres arrive :)
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R.E92
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Wheels and tyres. What to do?

Post by R.E92 » Wed Mar 22, 2017 9:52 pm

17" wheels may spoil the cars handling. In my experience small wheels and fat tyres make a car sloppy.
18" might be a good compromise if you have to deal with poor roads.

As for tyres I've been really happy with Michelin Pilot Super Sports, they have impressed me in both wet and dry. I'm moving on the Pilot Sport 4S for my next set as they are supposed to be the successor.

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Wheels and tyres. What to do?

Post by Busterboo » Wed Mar 22, 2017 10:21 pm

R.E92 wrote:17" wheels may spoil the cars handling. In my experience small wheels and fat tyres make a car sloppy.
18" might be a good compromise if you have to deal with poor roads.

As for tyres I've been really happy with Michelin Pilot Super Sports, they have impressed me in both wet and dry. I'm moving on the Pilot Sport 4S for my next set as they are supposed to be the successor.
I had 17" wheels briefly on a 911 and was happy to go back to 18", because of their handling characteristics.

19" on a Z4, however, seem to be more a matter of looks, which are irrelevant to me.
Last edited by Busterboo on Wed Mar 22, 2017 10:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Wheels and tyres. What to do?

Post by Busterboo » Thu Mar 23, 2017 12:03 am

I know this chestnut has been roasted many, many, many times ... but isn't it enough to say that RFTs' poor driving characteristics alone are enough to rule them out from use on a sports car?
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Wheels and tyres. What to do?

Post by Smartbear » Thu Mar 23, 2017 12:07 am

Busterboo wrote:I know this chestnut has been roasted many, many, many times ... but isn't it enough to say that RFTs' poor driving characteristics alone are enough to rule them out from use on a sports car?
No, it would be criminally negligent to not warn of the dangers of them increasing the chances of certain 19" wheels cracking :wink:
Rob
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e89 Sdrive 20i, plenty of mumbo & good economy-the thinking bears z4
e89 Sdrive 30i, this ones busted, pass me another...
e85 3.0si sold

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Wheels and tyres. What to do?

Post by Busterboo » Thu Mar 23, 2017 1:27 am

Smartbear wrote:
Busterboo wrote:I know this chestnut has been roasted many, many, many times ... but isn't it enough to say that RFTs' poor driving characteristics alone are enough to rule them out from use on a sports car?
No, it would be criminally negligent to not warn of the dangers of them increasing the chances of certain 19" wheels cracking :wink:
Rob
Clever, Rob, :D .

But they really are such crap tyres that they have no place on a Z4.
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Wheels and tyres. What to do?

Post by benv6 » Thu Mar 23, 2017 12:54 pm

Busterboo wrote:
mr wilks wrote:
Busterboo wrote:
None. :D

But I don't need to have proof, because I never claimed that they did.

Let those who make the claim provide the proof.
Have you not made a claim as in " RFT's don't crack wheels " :?
Yes, you're right. I have. And I shouldn't have. So, let me re-word it:

It seems probable that BMW's 296 19" wheels are prone to cracking. So, since "'Tis safer to avoid what's grown than question how 'tis born', avoid them.

Some claim that RFTs cause this cracking. This seems improbable to me, not least because RFTs don't crack other wheels. Far more likely is that the wheels are of poor quality.
Many independent reputable specialists advise against RFTs and this is nothing new !!

Read this: http://bmwspecialistreading.co.uk/why-w ... lat-tyres/

PS: I am still on RFTs and I know I will regret it very soon !! atm every time I hit a pothole my heart skips a beat atm !!
Now: BMW 335D Touring
Previous: 435D Coupe, BMW Z4 E89 35i, BMW Z4 E85 2.0, BMW E46 330CI

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Wheels and tyres. What to do?

Post by R.E92 » Thu Mar 23, 2017 2:42 pm

I don't know why anyone still bothers with RFTs.

Poor ride, poor grip, cost more, tramline and cause wheels to crack. The only benefit is you can drive a few miles if you get a puncture which is still not much use if you are 100miles from home.

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Wheels and tyres. What to do?

Post by craigj » Thu Mar 23, 2017 2:45 pm

mrwilks: Thanks, I appreciate the link to the http://www.cmwheels.com/ website. Those are beautiful wheels, but I think that I'd like to keep the car OEM and go with BMW-manufactured wheels if possible.

To answer your question, the car is in "Deep Sea Blue" colour with the "White package" interior (cream leather sports seats + wood dash).

Thanks for all the advice so far, so my thinking has progressed to:
  • I'm sold on going for non-RFT tyres.
  • I'm sold on NOT getting ugly 17" 290-style wheels
  • I would like to keep the car "OEM" i.e. with BMW-manufactured Z4 wheels.
After browsing the http://felgenkatalog.auto-treff.com/ site, I can see that my options (assuming I want to stay OEM) are:
  • 18": Either the 293, 294, 295, or 325-style wheels
  • 19": Either the 313 or 326-style wheels (I'm not getting another set of 296s!)
I think my preference would be to get the 325-style (18") wheels with non-RFT tyres, but I'm struggling to find a source for these. Gumtree and eBay seem to be drawing a blank on these...

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Wheels and tyres. What to do?

Post by R.E92 » Thu Mar 23, 2017 5:03 pm

craigj wrote:mrwilks: Thanks, I appreciate the link to the http://www.cmwheels.com/ website. Those are beautiful wheels, but I think that I'd like to keep the car OEM and go with BMW-manufactured wheels if possible.

To answer your question, the car is in "Deep Sea Blue" colour with the "White package" interior (cream leather sports seats + wood dash).

Thanks for all the advice so far, so my thinking has progressed to:
  • I'm sold on going for non-RFT tyres.
  • I'm sold on NOT getting ugly 17" 290-style wheels
  • I would like to keep the car "OEM" i.e. with BMW-manufactured Z4 wheels.
After browsing the http://felgenkatalog.auto-treff.com/ site, I can see that my options (assuming I want to stay OEM) are:
  • 18": Either the 293, 294, 295, or 325-style wheels
  • 19": Either the 313 or 326-style wheels (I'm not getting another set of 296s!)
I think my preference would be to get the 325-style (18") wheels with non-RFT tyres, but I'm struggling to find a source for these. Gumtree and eBay seem to be drawing a blank on these...
Normally I'd agree with you about keeping with OEM parts but having had two cars with cracking wheels from BMW I honestly don't trust any wheels they make.
Get an OEM design, but made by someone who knows what they are doing, like BBS.

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Wheels and tyres. What to do?

Post by Nictrix » Thu Mar 23, 2017 7:34 pm

craigj wrote:mrwilks: Thanks, I appreciate the link to the http://www.cmwheels.com/ website. Those are beautiful wheels, but I think that I'd like to keep the car OEM and go with BMW-manufactured wheels if possible.

To answer your question, the car is in "Deep Sea Blue" colour with the "White package" interior (cream leather sports seats + wood dash).

Thanks for all the advice so far, so my thinking has progressed to:
  • I'm sold on going for non-RFT tyres.
  • I'm sold on NOT getting ugly 17" 290-style wheels
  • I would like to keep the car "OEM" i.e. with BMW-manufactured Z4 wheels.
After browsing the http://felgenkatalog.auto-treff.com/ site, I can see that my options (assuming I want to stay OEM) are:
  • 18": Either the 293, 294, 295, or 325-style wheels
  • 19": Either the 313 or 326-style wheels (I'm not getting another set of 296s!)
I think my preference would be to get the 325-style (18") wheels with non-RFT tyres, but I'm struggling to find a source for these. Gumtree and eBay seem to be drawing a blank on these...
Cant help with where to find your wheels but here is a pic of ours with 325 wheels
Image
E89 2014 35i M Sport Black with Black leather :)

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