[Jordster]

I got a screw in one of my tires. I wanted to get it repaired and was told that run flat tires cannot be repaired. Is that true? The puncture is on the bottom of the tire in between the tread.

I was quoted something ridiculous by the local shop to replace a single tire. They also pointed out that my other tires are mostly worn. I only used them for about 16000 km / 10000mi before I put the snows on. I don't drive like an old lady but nor am I doing burn outs. Is this typical of these tires? In previous cars I've never used up a set of stock tires in less than 50k km. What gives here?

Finally, any recommendations for a high performance all season tire (no run flat!!) to replace it with? Or perhaps a summer tire? I have snows for the winter.

Thanks for any ideas / suggestions. This is crazy!!

[MichiganMike]

Run flat tires can be repaired in many cases, provided that the sidewall and shoulder are not damaged and the hole is not too large. How far did you drive on the tire with low or no pressure? Did your local shop remove the tire and check for damage to the sidewall on the inside?
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete...jsp?techid=226

What is the tread depth remaining on your other tires? Generally treads on new tires are about 10/32 inch in depth. I typically replace worn tires with less than 6/32 inch of tread, but some owners will drive tires to much lower tread depths. If you put on a new tire with a significantly greater tread depth than the worn tires, this may put some stress on the driveline.

http://www.tirerack.com/winter/tech/....jsp?techid=18

[Jordster]

The shop (it's a tire shop, not BMW) just said they won't fix holes on runflats as its not a good practice. I can't really tell if that's true.

I don't actually know how long the hole was there. I found it when switching back from snow tires. I did get a message about the tires last season but thought it was just an error. X3s in Canada don't have TPMS (can't believe BMW cheaped out on that one, it's not required by law, so they use the ABS sensors to somehow monitor the tires, and when they throw an error you get an error message that points to all 4 tires, not the one with the problem).

The tread is 5mm left on what were the rears and 6-7mm left on what were the fronts. Aside from the odd time I've been very gentle on this car!! I don't get it.

I think I'm going to order a new set of Conti DWS06.. .Seems to be a well reviewed tire that fits the car nicely.

[Pinewood]

I had a huge nail in the middle or my rear tyre (275/40/19). BMW, and all the major chains said they would not repair it (health & safety nonsense)
A back street tyre guy repaired it, but when he has the tyre off the wheel, have a real good look around the inner sidewalls for any tears and damage. If there is none, you will be fine.
I did all of the above and it cost me just £15. The tyre has remained on the car for 3 months now with no issue whatsoever.

[Eaglesview]

My Canadian 2015 X3 has TPMS.

The vehicle came with Goodyear run flats. Had a nail towards centre of tread, no sidewall damage, repaired. Was told if tire brand was a Continental or Perelli it woild be non repairable.

[Pinewood]

My tyres are Pirelli P Zero runflats. Perfectly fine since the repair. Also with TPMS on a late 2014 X3 in the UK

[Jordster]

Originally Posted by Eaglesview

My Canadian 2015 X3 has TPMS.

The vehicle came with Goodyear run flats. Had a nail towards centre of tread, no sidewall damage, repaired. Was told if tire brand was a Continental or Perelli it woild be non repairable.

Are you sure? My friend and I both have a 2015 Canadian X3. Maybe it's a provincial thing. We are both in Ontario. No TPMS. His got totalled and replaced with a 2016 - no TPMS on that, either. All 3 vehicles w/ Premium Enhanced.

[MichiganMike]

The linked article below notes reports that some run flat tires do not offer as long a tread wear life as conventional tires.
"Many owners on the AutoGuide Forum Network complained that they were replacing their OEM run-flat tires within 20,000 miles."

http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2...-buy-them.html

FWIW, the same article mentions the recommendation by BMW that OEM run flat tires be replaced with run flat tires.

[Jordster]

Originally Posted by MichiganMike

The linked article below notes reports that some run flat tires do not offer as long a tread wear life as conventional tires.
"Many owners on the AutoGuide Forum Network complained that they were replacing their OEM run-flat tires within 20,000 miles."

http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2...-buy-them.html

FWIW, the same article mentions the recommendation by BMW that OEM run flat tires be replaced with run flat tires.

Of course BMW recommends run flats. They chose to offer the car without a spare tire. They have to recommend run flats by law. The dealers will further pedal this BS because run flats, especially LS2s, and a very high margin item.

BMW isn't the only company selling this cost-cutting, profit boosting measure as a feature, but for all intents and purposes a run flat tire will always be inferior to an otherwise identical conventional tire. Unless you drive a lot in the great wilderness there is no reason you need a spare. BMW assist is safer.

[MichiganMike]

Originally Posted by Jordster

Of course BMW recommends run flats. They chose to offer the car without a spare tire. They have to recommend run flats by law. The dealers will further pedal this BS because run flats, especially LS2s, and a very high margin item.

FWIW, I believe that manufacturers may also supply cars with conventional tires and a pump sealant kit for repairs instead of a spare.

http://techmax.ca/run_flat_tires.htm

At least in the USA, BMW suggested prices for its approved tires seem high compared to competitors. This is not limited to run flats.

[Pinewood]

Originally Posted by MichiganMike

FWIW, I believe that manufacturers may also supply cars with conventional tires and a pump sealant kit for repairs instead of a spare.

http://techmax.ca/run_flat_tires.htm

At least in the USA, BMW suggested prices for its approved tires seem high compared to competitors. This is not limited to run flats.

That is a great article, and resounds with me a lot. If a M car can use normal tyres, why not the rest of us.

[Braumin]

Assuming you didn't drive on it flat, there's no reason it can't be repaired. Generally nails don't cause instant deflation and the TPMS or wheel speed sensors will tell you quickly when the tire is low.

If it was driven on flat, then they would have a point due to the heat buildup in the sidewall.

[Greg2010]

I have 30k miles on my OEM RFT Goodyear Eagle LS2s (with 25-40% tread life still remaining)...and noticed a nail embedded in the tread on one of the front tires a few weeks ago. Finish nail head, no loss of tire pressure, so not too worried.

Strange thing is that these all season tires seem to ride really well when combined with MSport suspension and DSP (although they don't seem to perform well on ice and snow as far as I can tell).

When it comes time to changing tires, I'll probably go with RFTs again, probably Bridgestone Potenza Pole Position tires, which are rated much higher by X3 owners on TireRack.

[squeaky]

There's another thread discussing the Bridgestone RE960AS. We've been happy with ours, even though it's a runflat.

[Jordster]

Originally Posted by Greg2010

I have 30k miles on my OEM RFT Goodyear Eagle LS2s (with 25-40% tread life still remaining)...and noticed a nail embedded in the tread on one of the front tires a few weeks ago. Finish nail head, no loss of tire pressure, so not too worried.

Strange thing is that these all season tires seem to ride really well when combined with MSport suspension and DSP (although they don't seem to perform well on ice and snow as far as I can tell).

When it comes time to changing tires, I'll probably go with RFTs again, probably Bridgestone Potenza Pole Position tires, which are rated much higher by X3 owners on TireRack.

Wow... 30k miles and still 25-40% left! Do you drive really gently? I don't have the M-sport suspension or DHP, and I drive gently 95% of the time.

I don't know about other RFT, but I think the LS2s are awful. You can feel the crappiness of the tires when you steer away from center. I also didn't realize just how harsh they were until I put on the snows and the car became so much smoother over bumps and less finicky around center.

I have an appointment tomorrow and I'm putting a new set of Conti ExtremeContact DWS 06 (performance all-seasons, not run flat). I'll report back when I have some impressions of that new tire.

[Greg2010]

The X3 has been my daily driver up until about 6 months ago....primarily used for driving back and forth to work in semi-congested traffic...and with the family over the weekends...so I'd say it had been driven pretty gently (70% comfort; 30% sport mode). I typically use manual shifting as well.

I too am surprised how well the LS2s have held up (and as I said, the harshness of the tires seems to be dampened out with DSP/MSport suspension).

[Jordster]

For what it's worth, I just replaced the run-flats with some high quality, high performance, non-RTF all season tires (Conti ExtremeContact DWS 06) and it feels like I cured the car of a disease. It's an incredible upgrade - the car is both smoother AND gripper, quieter and more comfortable.

I can't believe BMW put these crap tires on the car to begin with. Worse still, I can't believe how many of you are convinced that the LS2s are perfectly good tires. They aren't. They are ruining your $50k luxury ride.

[Pinewood]

I had a similar experience on my E60, but that had space for a space saver. The F25 doesn't!
As discussed on another thread, i will arm myself with slime, compressor, phone, AA and credit cards
When going somewhere alone and far - carry one of my 17" winter run flats.

[BatteryPowered]

Slime is not the answer. What you need are pliers and plug kit. Been replacing run flats with regular tires on BMW for 5 years now. Had a blow out on highway, sidewall cut, regular flats etc. Nothing that can't be fixed with plug kit.

I replaced stock runflats on X3 first week of ownership with performance all season tires. Makes ride much smoother and controllable. Each tire is 5-6lbs lighter too.

[lukeeesteve]

Originally Posted by Jordster

For what it's worth, I just replaced the run-flats with some high quality, high performance, non-RTF all season tires (Conti ExtremeContact DWS 06) and it feels like I cured the car of a disease. It's an incredible upgrade - the car is both smoother AND gripper, quieter and more comfortable.

I can't believe BMW put these crap tires on the car to begin with. Worse still, I can't believe how many of you are convinced that the LS2s are perfectly good tires. They aren't. They are ruining your $50k luxury ride.

I could not agree more. The LS2 tires are an older generation run flat and beat the crap out of your kidneys on relatively small road imperfections.

I have replaced them with one of the stiffest sidewall non runflat tires (Yokohama avan v105) and these tires glide over over imperfections I used to avoid. handling performance is definitely up a notch or 2 with these new tires.