[Bustofa]

Originally Posted by Bustofa

I didn't go for run flats - so far. Should I mod my order? A good thing or not? What's the consensus?

Many thanks all for your advice. I think I'll probably stick with the regular tyres, although having no spare and relying on some goo and a mini compressor is a little worrying!

[sfax]

You'll be fine. Had my last car 5 years, low profile tyres, 55,000 miles, ZERO punctures

[torzeck]

Originally Posted by Bustofa

I didn't go for run flats - so far. Should I mod my order? A good thing or not? What's the consensus?

My 02 cents:
No spare and you don't have run flats then you have to use the goo and a compressor if you do get a flat.

My question would be : what sort of tire pressure monitors do the Belgian {non runflat} x3's have?

In the US we have only runflats but ahead of my cross country drive I considered the mobility kit as a backup.My parts department told me not to use the mobility kit as the goo would screw up the TPMS.
Not sure if this is true or not.

Sum up: I think the runflats are by no means perfect but at least you can get off the road to deal with the flat.

To me the best world would be the cars have a spare and runflats.

[Nahoa]

Get off the road to deal with he flat? No, you can keep driving!

[scotsdunc]

As far as i am concerned there is good and bad in the run flat debate. Having driven 190k miles in my 123d coupe over three years I tried all the tyres I could find available. Bridgestones were the OE fit and were reasonably good but as is well stated above very noisy. I then tired Continentals which were quieter but didn't wear as well and less wet weather grip. Michelin were the only other suppliers for a long time that I could find and while they lasted well (too well actauly) the grip was poor and in the wet almost usless. I changed them early to save my life in the wet. The last 10k that I had the car I found Pirelli Pzeros which all round were the best but my time with them was limited before chaging the car for my new X3.
I was pleased to see the OE on my X3 (18" with RFT) was Pirelli and having just got through my first set after 29k miles I am well pleased with their all round performance and have replaced with the same.
In all the time with RFT's my biggest grip is the limited use when you do get a puncture. I often embark on 4-500mile journeys (weekly) and when you get a puncture at 8pm half way through a journey then the limit of 50mph for a short distance is as much good as none. Three times I've encountered this and had to carry on until the tyre finaly started to fall apart or wait all night on a warehouse openeing to get a tyre. Most 24hr call out repair companies do not stock RFTs.
As for flat spots this was a common occurance on my 123d on frosty mornings but would cure itself with in a few miles as the tyres got upto temperature. Same issue with grip on cold mornings with all types you have to take care on the first few corners until they get up to temperature.

[Bustofa]

Wow! You don't half cover some miles! Many thanks for sharing your valuable experience.

[welkerbrads]

I just got my X3 on friday with bridgestone rft. As soon as I get 15 to 20 k on them they will be replaced with non-rft. I did this on my 328i and it made my car ride like a dream.

[Steven40]

I'm happy, the garage will replace my Pirelli runflats for non runflats.
I drove 4000 km (2500 miles) with the runflats and imo they drove
very uncomfortable and every morning flat spots.
What non runflat tires do you prefer ?

[Steven40]

Originally Posted by welkerbrads

I just got my X3 on friday with bridgestone rft. As soon as I get 15 to 20 k on them they will be replaced with non-rft. I did this on my 328i and it made my car ride like a dream.

Why don't you ask to your garage to change them immediately, they are brandnew !

[LANDOFOZ]

We also have no choice in Australia - only runflat tyres available on the 2011 X3. Too risky in our bush environment. A deal-breaker, which led to me keeping my 2008 X3, which has a spare which I carry on the roof-rack when going bush.

[Radioactive]

Just A Warning for those who are going to carry a plug kit and compressor. Plugging a tire is many times easier said than done, especially when the tire is still on the car. For most, unless you are experienced, jumping out of the car with your handy dandy plug kit and plugging that hole quickly is probably not going to happen. I've done several and it can be work getting that rasp through the hole.

[cem82]

I have Pirelli Cinturato P7 RFTs on my X3 and not too happy with them. They developed a noise around 10k miles even at 30mph - a couple of tire dealers said one tire was feathered badly and causing the noise; but all the tires are wearing quickly. One tire dealer said I'd be lucky to get 20k out of them. At 16k miles, they are so noisy I can hardly stand it. I'm thinking of replacing them with another brand. Sounds almost like jeep wrangler tire noise from inside. I've taken it into the BMW dealer 3 times, rotated/balanced twice, had alignment adjusted on right front (right front was out)- even after alignment, the noise persists and worsens. I suspect the alignment issue may have caused the feathering -if so, the damage is done. In any case - not happy and will not put Pirellis on again. Had Continentals RFT on my 335xi last car - great tires. I may look at Continental SSR in 245/50/R18.

[liverman]

Originally Posted by cem82

I have Pirelli Cinturato P7 RFTs on my X3 and not too happy with them. They developed a noise around 10k miles even at 30mph - a couple of tire dealers said one tire was feathered badly and causing the noise; but all the tires are wearing quickly. One tire dealer said I'd be lucky to get 20k out of them. At 16k miles, they are so noisy I can hardly stand it. I'm thinking of replacing them with another brand. Sounds almost like jeep wrangler tire noise from inside. I've taken it into the BMW dealer 3 times, rotated/balanced twice, had alignment adjusted on right front (right front was out)- even after alignment, the noise persists and worsens. I suspect the alignment issue may have caused the feathering -if so, the damage is done. In any case - not happy and will not put Pirellis on again. Had Continentals RFT on my 335xi last car - great tires. I may look at Continental SSR in 245/50/R18.

You are right - Once your tires are asymmetrically worn, it will make noise even AFTER you correct the alignment issue.

Had this happen to me on my E83 X3. I put up with the noise and ran 'em until the tread was gone and then replaced them. I don;t think I can blame the tires in my case. The suspension was out of alignment.

From then on, I check my tire wear every few thousand miles...att he slightest hint of uneven wear I get an alignment. I get an alignment about once a year whether I detect wear or not. And every time I replace the tires, I make sure the alignment is up-to-date.

The X3 will eat tires if not aligned - regular or RFTs. And it does not have to be much out of alignment.

[cfos]

I've not had any problems with run-flats. Have a set of winters (for winter) and all-seasons (for not winter). Also use run-flats on the Wife's car and on our 3rd car. Maybe it's me, but I don't understand all the posts regarding ride quality or how to reconcile all the posts (not just this thread or just this forum) that suddenly become mpg conscious -- about better mileage, etc. -- when on the other hand there is such hate for the Eco system (granted, the Eco purpose isn't just to be an mpg saver, though I typically see +15 miles per tank and am up to 21.1 mpg city driving in the mountains) or the number of posts describing how "hard" and "fast" people push their cars. Sure, I don't drink tea in the fine china while driving, but what am I missing? I mean, I think there are some good roads and bad roads where I live and I really don't understand the "ride quality" that I'm missing by using run flats. Could someone please qualitatively elaborate?

[plymjack]

had runflats for a year - no problem. Have the tyre guarantee so happy to see how they go. Maybe will revert to non runflats later depending on costs.
Here in UK dont think runflats are an issue as you're never far from "civilisation" but I can see that a long road trip across Australia would be something else.

[woodchuck1]

Originally Posted by torzeck

My 02 cents:
My parts department told me not to use the mobility kit as the goo would screw up the TPMS.
Not sure if this is true or not.

My understanding is that the latex coating will screw up the TPMS sensor, but if you peel the dried latex off the sensor when the tire is off the rim, the sensor will be operable again.

[Chitown-Irish]

My problem with BMW using RFT's is that we are not given any factory option to have non-RFT's. I understand the safety and convenience points of RFT's but they more expensive to replace and usually not repairable. Non-RFT offers more options to brands and the types of tires.

[Chitown-Irish]

Originally Posted by cem82

I've taken it into the BMW dealer 3 times, rotated/balanced twice,

I thought BMW was against rotating tires? Does anyone have their tires rotated?

[cem82]

Originally Posted by Chitown-Irish

I thought BMW was against rotating tires? Does anyone have their tires rotated?

Yeah, they don't really 'rotate' ... meant switch from front to rear.

[roadkillrob]

Originally Posted by cem82

Yeah, they don't really 'rotate' ... meant switch from front to rear.

The manual advises against moving the tires between axles (meaning front to rear and rear to front). If you have non-directional tires, you can swap them left to right (directional tires have an arrow for direction of rotation, non directional tires will just say outside and inside on the tires). If you have non directional, swapping them side to side helps even out the wear a bit that makes them noisy.

Not sure why they advise against moving between axles, it says it may cause vehicle stability issues, maybe it is because some models and markets come with a staggered setup and they want to make sure that setup is not switched, but if all 4 wheels are the same size and setup, makes no sense why it would cause stability issues if you rotated!

[cem82]

Originally Posted by roadkillrob

The manual advises against moving the tires between axles (meaning front to rear and rear to front). If you have non-directional tires, you can swap them left to right (directional tires have an arrow for direction of rotation, non directional tires will just say outside and inside on the tires). If you have non directional, swapping them side to side helps even out the wear a bit that makes them noisy.

Not sure why they advise against moving between axles, it says it may cause vehicle stability issues, maybe it is because some models and markets come with a staggered setup and they want to make sure that setup is not switched, but if all 4 wheels are the same size and setup, makes no sense why it would cause stability issues if you rotated!

Yeah, the manual is very clear to advise against swapping tires between axles. Thanks for clarifying. The BMW dealership did the 'rotation' swapping so I expect they knew what they were doing and probably swapped left/right - I must have misunderstood. In any case, I believe feathering on the front tires is from an earlier alignment issue and the cause for the excessive noise with these Pirelli P7s.

[S70IP]

Originally Posted by sfax

You should also bear in mind that most tyre fitters won't repair run flats so if you do get a puncture you'll have to replace the tyre at great expense. It's something to do with liability and the fact that they can't test for side wall damage in the same way that they could if it was a normal tyre. Even if the tyre can be repaired, they will often refuse to repair it - or so I've heard.

This is what happened to me the other morning. I was driving to work, got about 1km down the road and the tire (tyre if you are European or Asia... ) sensor went off. About another 1.5km I pulled into a service station. Sure enough front left tire was at 15 psi. I topped it up to 40psi (recommended pressure from dealer by the way, contradicting the manual). Reset tire monitor. Waited 5 mins, tested pressure. 39 psi. Being 4:00am couldn't do much so drove to work another 25 km. tested pressure (now a "hot" tire. Pressure 39psi.... Hmmm
Went to work left car in carpark.
Came back from my two day trip (I'm a pilot) tyre pressure 37 psi. Drove to service station pumped up tire to 40psi.
Drove home. Pressure was 40psi.... Hmmm
Next morning tested pressure. 37psi. Drove to a tyre centre asked them to investigate. Found a large bolt with the top sheared off in the tyre. They removed it plugged the tire.
Haven't had an issue since. 40psi every morning (except after about 3-4 weeks when all the tyres drop to 39 psi as they have always done especially with ambient temp variations at the moment).

Long story but the short is they can be repaired.