Winter tires recommendation

[BMWMN1971]

After living in MN for almost 10 years and in my 4th X5 using all weather tires year round I am deeply inclined to give up and get winter tires in my 2014 X5. We have icy roads as I never seen before and people are blaming the local authorities for relying on salt and other chemicals to take care of it rather than plowing the roads more often. This last weekend was one of the worst for driving I had in many years. The car just does not stop and it slides sideways in every turn. We got a lot of snow on top of the ice and with temperatures at -10F I am guessing the ice will stay on the roads until next May. Thus, I am thinking about getting winter tires but have no idea which ones to get. I have the 19" wheels on my 35xi Drive. Thoughts?

[coconut780]

I've have pirelli snow and ice scorpions and will be putting them on my 50i when it arrives.

[zarathustra]

What size tires are you getting? What is your OEM size?

[BMWMN1971]

I have 255/50 19 Michelin in my car. Called the dealer and the guy said the recommendation is to get tires and wheels instead of only tires. Of course he is trying to convince me to spend $3k+ on that. I just want 4 RFT winter tires to use on the same wheels I have.

Originally Posted by zarathustra

What size tires are you getting? What is your OEM size?

[BMWMN1971]

I did some research and just ordered 4 Bridgestone Blizzak LM-25 RFT. Will get them in 4 days and see how they perform.

[AEC]

Originally Posted by BMWMN1971

I did some research and just ordered 4 Bridgestone Blizzak LM-25 RFT. Will get them in 4 days and see how they perform.

Please let us know how they do. I agree that the roads here in the Twin Cities are worse than they should be given the relatively small amount of snow we received. My friend has Blizzaks on his Audi and he was sliding around quite a bit as well.

BTW, I used to switch over to dedicated winter tired on my previous BMWs since they came with performance tires. I did as the dealer suggested and had a separate set of wheels and tires with TPMS. I changed them out myself every fall and spring. If you just buy the tires, you have to have them mounted and balanced on the original wheels twice a year, and it's not something you can do on your own. I've heard horror stories of people getting their expensive wheels scratched severely by tire techs who didn't know what they were doing. Make sure you bring the tires and wheels to someplace you can trust.

[MRV99]

I have been running style 211 255/19's winter setup on on the E70(2007,2011,2012) since 2007 and had 19" winters on the 2002 E53 as well. Yes I have to run winters because I have always had 20" summers but I still would have done this regardless.

1) I have been running Pirelli Scorpion ice and Snow RFT's and I have been very happy with them. I have only had Pirelli on the X5 but I did have various snow tires on my 545/550 and M3 and all seem to do an excellent job. I cannot attest to other winter tires on the X5. My gut tells me any good Winter tire will make you happy.

2) I would not recommend mounting and dismounting your winter/summers on a single rim. Not only do you risk damage to the rims every time you do this, the tires really do not like to be mounted and dismounted over and over again. I have a good friend who does tires and he never recommends this approach. If you are worried about cost then I can give you some insight on the economics.

-Mount/dismount twice a year will cost you 60-100 each time so you are at 120-200 Yearly.
-Used OEM rims off a E70 are very easy to find. I actually found 211's with OEM RFT's with less that 500 miles on them out of Las Vegas. bought them for $1400 shipped to my door. Sold the RFT's set for $600 which put me at $800 for the rims. That is 4 years worth of swapping out rubber.
-I had to purchase sensors for the winters which set me back $300ish. I didn't want the hastle.
-Rubber was about $1k.

All together, i had $2200.00 for my winter setup.

When I sold my E53, I sold my Winter setup for $800. I had them for 3 years and they still had 5/32 tread life. so in the long run, my winter setup cost me about 1k total(E53 did not have sensors)

I sold my E60(545/550) 126 winters cost me about the same. I went though 1 set of rubber over the 7 years and sold them with 5/32 on the second set for $1k(with sensors).

In the long run, I only really only paid for the tires and basically got the rims for free. Not to mention my nice rims stayed winter damage free.

[FIRSTX]

I just had Nokian Hakkapalittas 255-19 placed on my rims for my winter set up, they are BAWSE!!!

[BMWMN1971]

I found out that BMW offers a winter set with tires and rims on both 18" and 19". They are priced OK and there are some rebates going on now. But guess what? BMW is out of rims until mid January. WTF!!!! I guess I have no option other than installing winter tires in my original rims. Any ideas?

[coconut780]

^ Check some other dealers maybe. How close are you to a Canadian dealer? Both dealerships in town here have winter packages in stock when I went in a week ago.

[AEC]

Originally Posted by BMWMN1971

I found out that BMW offers a winter set with tires and rims on both 18" and 19". They are priced OK and there are some rebates going on now. But guess what? BMW is out of rims until mid January. WTF!!!! I guess I have no option other than installing winter tires in my original rims. Any ideas?

I used to get my winter wheel and tire sets from Tire Rack. Their prices are very good and they come mounted and balanced with TPMS.

www.tirerack.com

[barcelona]

^ A for effort, B + for outcome. In Canada the winter packages are already mounted.
Unlikey, but ask if BMW has the winter set available. If so can the Blizzaks be returned.
Yes, a lot of ifs, but investigate all options.

[BMWMN1971]

Well, I called all BMW dealers in my area and they all told me that the BMW winter package (rims + tires) are sold out. According to them BMW is having trouble to supply the rims and they expect to get it by the 3rd week of January. The BMW winter tire package is offered by BMW and they are giving 10% discount plus a rebate of $100 on the tires. They offered me two different packages (he tires on the winter package from BMW are either Pirelli Scorpion Ice&Snow or Michelin Latitude Alpin.):

1) 18" for ~$2600 (all in) - http://www.shopbmwusa.com/PRODUCT/43...TIRE-ASSEMBLY/

or

2) 19" for ~$3200 (all in) (http://www.shopbmwusa.com/PRODUCT/43...-TIRE-ASSEMBLY)

After reading you guys saying that I should not mount and unmount on the OEM rims I got on my MSport I believe it makes sense to get the winter package from BMW. The Blizzaks alone will cost me ~$1600 mounted. I already ordered them and put $100 as deposited and will lose that deposit but no big deal.

Originally Posted by barcelona

^ A for effort, B + for outcome. In Canada the winter packages are already mounted.
Unlikey, but ask if BMW has the winter set available. If so can the Blizzaks be returned.
Yes, a lot of ifs, but investigate all options.

[barcelona]

Originally Posted by BMWMN1971

Well, I called all BMW dealers in my area and they all told me that the BMW winter package (rims + tires) are sold out. According to them BMW is having trouble to supply the rims and they expect to get it by the 3rd week of January. The BMW winter tire package is offered by BMW and they are giving 10% discount plus a rebate of $100 on the tires. They offered me two different packages (he tires on the winter package from BMW are either Pirelli Scorpion Ice&Snow or Michelin Latitude Alpin.):

1) 18" for ~$2600 (all in) - http://www.shopbmwusa.com/PRODUCT/43...TIRE-ASSEMBLY/

or

2) 19" for ~$3200 (all in) (http://www.shopbmwusa.com/PRODUCT/43...-TIRE-ASSEMBLY)

After reading you guys saying that I should not mount and unmount on the OEM rims I got on my MSport I believe it makes sense to get the winter package from BMW. The Blizzaks alone will cost me ~$1600 mounted. I already ordered them and put $100 as deposited and will lose that deposit but no big deal.

It is best to get dedicated rims. Time frame does seem long but compared to Ice in May, it is relative. You have done without snows for 10 years, perhaps a little longer wait. My plan is to replace the OEM tires in say 3-4 years with Nokian All weather, they do have the 19" that fits. It has the snowflake inside the mountain and can be used year round. It is a compromise, from having two sets. It depends on individual driving habits.

[BMWMN1971]

Agree that I can wait but in 10 years it has never been this bad in MN. Roads are in terrible shape. I am concerned about getting "all weather tires" with snowflake that can be used year round. My concern is that I will lose the nice ride I get from the OEM all weather tires. I had OEM all weather tires in my Infiniti G35x and decided to get a "better grip" Goodyear Assurance that is supposed to be year round. What a mistake. The car that used to drive as a sports car now drives like an army tank. That is why I would prefer to get dedicated winter package so as soon as the snow is gone I can get the regular set back.

Originally Posted by barcelona

It is best to get dedicated rims. Time frame does seem long but compared to Ice in May, it is relative. You have done without snows for 10 years, perhaps a little longer wait. My plan is to replace the OEM tires in say 3-4 years with Nokian All weather, they do have the 19" that fits. It has the snowflake inside the mountain and can be used year round. It is a compromise, from having two sets. It depends on individual driving habits.

[RickP]

What about buying 2014 X5 take-offs 18" rims? http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-53...mtid=824&kw=lg

[BMWMN1971]

Good idea but I am nervous buying anything from eBay even more wheels since I need to make sure they do not have any issues. BTW, I went to that link and checked the compatibility with my car and got the following: This part is not compatible with 2014 BMW X5 xDrive35

Thoughts?

Originally Posted by RickP

What about buying 2014 X5 take-offs 18" rims? http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-53...mtid=824&kw=lg

[chrisny]

Originally Posted by BMWMN1971

I did some research and just ordered 4 Bridgestone Blizzak LM-25 RFT. Will get them in 4 days and see how they perform.

Mind if I ask where you ordered from and the pricing? TireRack doesn't seem to have the LM-25's in 19" for the F15 and the LM-60's are non-RFT only for 19", at least so far..

I too am considering the 19" cold weather wheel & tire package from BMW, but not pleased with the prices I got from my dealer today (same price as the internet price, yet pretended he was giving me a discount because the web price "isn't mounted and balanced," despite the site saying they are all set up.. I was expecting at least a 10% discount or something but wasn't offered so will keep looking.

FWIW, they did have the 18" setup in stock right at the dealership.

[BMWMN1971]

Here it is where I ordered: http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/fin...=MNMINT&cs=255

They have a bunch of stores in MN but this was a special order. According to the guy he had to order directly from Bridgestone. The price was the cheapest I found anywhere. Had to put $100 down for deposit. However, I am now trying to get the winter set from BMW so I don't have to worry about mounting and unmounting the tires twice a year.

Regarding the 18" winter set from BMW, both dealers here said they have to order from BMW directly and they are not available until mid Jan.

Originally Posted by chrisny

Mind if I ask where you ordered from and the pricing? TireRack doesn't seem to have the LM-25's in 19" for the F15 and the LM-60's are non-RFT only for 19", at least so far..

I too am considering the 19" cold weather wheel & tire package from BMW, but not pleased with the prices I got from my dealer today (same price as the internet price, yet pretended he was giving me a discount because the web price "isn't mounted and balanced," despite the site saying they are all set up.. I was expecting at least a 10% discount or something but wasn't offered so will keep looking.

FWIW, they did have the 18" setup in stock right at the dealership.

[chrisny]

Originally Posted by BMWMN1971

Here it is where I ordered: http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/fin...=MNMINT&cs=255

They have a bunch of stores in MN but this was a special order. According to the guy he had to order directly from Bridgestone. The price was the cheapest I found anywhere. Had to put $100 down for deposit. However, I am now trying to get the winter set from BMW so I don't have to worry about mounting and unmounting the tires twice a year.

Regarding the 18" winter set from BMW, both dealers here said they have to order from BMW directly and they are not available until mid Jan.

Thanks. I've looked at that site before, but never ordered from them. Did you try calling them to see if they have wheels and could do it as a wheel and tire package, shipped mounted and balanced with the sensors already on, etc..?

[BMWMN1971]

I did ask them about BMW rims and they said they could get from the BMW dealer. Well, there are none in stock.

After talking to the BMW parts department this morning I am inclined to order this winter package: http://www.shopbmwusa.com/PRODUCT/43...-TIRE-ASSEMBLY

The guy said he expects to get in ready to install by 2nd week of January. Final cost including tax is $3,130+$40 to install. I also get a $100 Visa card from BMW on the mail. I guess it is a decent investment since I will use this set for at least 6 months of the year.

Originally Posted by chrisny

Thanks. I've looked at that site before, but never ordered from them. Did you try calling them to see if they have wheels and could do it as a wheel and tire package, shipped mounted and balanced with the sensors already on, etc..?

[AEC]

Are you buying from Motorwerks or BMW of Minnetonka?