[Pr3dict]

I'm looking to grab an m40i this weekend and was thinking about the car sitting outside with summer tires while it's 20ish degrees outside...

Isn't it terrible for the tires to be subjected to that type of weather? What do dealers usually do if anything this time of year?

[MikesBMW]

My mother in law bought a GLC300 AMG package with 20" wheels and summer tires last JANUARY. It was only her at the dealer and they didn't say anything about the summer tires and she didn't know to ask. She drove it an hour home in below freezing weather and light snow. Incredibly unsafe! When I saw the car and informed her of the summer tires needing replaced immediately, she was upset and we were both super pissed that the dealer didn't say anything upfront.

[nyalpine90]

i purchased X4 back in Jan. 2016 with msport package that had staggered setup with performance tires. They told me it was fine to drive it that xdrive was good enough. I was trading in 2015 X3 with msport pack, "same wheels" but with Contis DWS06 brand new. I ask them to to swap the wheels out, they refused. I left with X4, purchased the DWS06 tires, got $$ for summer tires thru tire shop. smh


you need to purchase winter wheels

[Pr3dict]

I'm definitely going to purchase winter wheels, today... But I'm talking about the tires that are sitting on the lot right now being destroyed in the cold.

It's just normal practice for them to not do anything Ans let you take possession of a defective product

[sloth60]

It is thoroughly unsafe. High performance summer tires should not be driven under 40ish degrees. The rubber turns to hard plastic like a hockey puck. Even off the car, they should be stored in a temperature controlled location that avoids extreme low temperatures. In extreme cold, the rubber contracts and can easily crack. Summer tires exposed to extreme cold should be allowed to slowly warm for 24 hours and be thoroughly inspected for potential cracks before any load bearing, such as driving. If you live in an area with severe cold, it would likely be unsafe to even do a test drive, much less drive the car home. If a car with summer wheels spends a month or two on the lot in Vermont, Maine, etc I would not buy it even in the spring given the potential for cracks having formed that could lead to a blowout driving. BMW has made a big mistake here. I will do a custom order for a M40i but will wait till the spring to order for these reasons as I live in a cold climate.

[sor]

Originally Posted by Pr3dict

I'm definitely going to purchase winter wheels, today... But I'm talking about the tires that are sitting on the lot right now being destroyed in the cold.

It's just normal practice for them to not do anything Ans let you take possession of a defective product

I don't think mildly freezing temperatures actually damage idle tires, at least not in the short, ~4year term. The rubber has an expiration date that might be shortened a bit but I've never heard of good vulcanized tire rubber just falling apart from a few months of cold temps. It's not like they're getting liquid nitrogen poured on them or anything.

Tire Rack says storage of summer tires at 21°F is fine. I'm not sure if sitting on the lot for a few months counts as storage, but surely a few months of non-extreme cold wouldn't hurt.

https://m.tirerack.com/tires/tiretec...jsp?techid=220

[sloth60]

https://m.tirerack.com/tires/tiretec...jsp?techid=273

Permanent cracking at extreme cold temperature requiring tire replacement. This is from tire rack but googling it yields similar results from multiple sources. Maybe they are alarmist but it’s not worth the risk. Even the link you posted says to allow them to slowing warm x24-48 hours if exposed to temperatures below 20F. Is it safe to buy a car in a cold climate with summer tires as the default if it sits outside exposed to multiple days/weeks of sub freezing conditions and likely will be undergoing test drives in those conditions? I wouldn’t risk it.

Originally Posted by sor

I don't think mildly freezing temperatures actually damage idle tires, at least not in the short, ~4year term. The rubber has an expiration date that might be shortened a bit but I've never heard of good vulcanized tire rubber just falling apart from a few months of cold temps. It's not like they're getting liquid nitrogen poured on them or anything.

Tire Rack says storage of summer tires at 21°F is fine. I'm not sure if sitting on the lot for a few months counts as storage, but surely a few months of non-extreme cold wouldn't hurt.

https://m.tirerack.com/tires/tiretec...jsp?techid=220

[sor]

Originally Posted by sloth60

https://m.tirerack.com/tires/tiretec...jsp?techid=273

Permanent cracking at extreme cold temperature requiring tire replacement. This is from tire rack but googling it yields similar results from multiple sources. Maybe they are alarmist but it's not worth the risk.

Yeah, I know it's possible for extreme cold, but you had said "20ish", tire rack says anything down to 20° is fine, and surely there's not a hard stop where 15° is super dangerous but 21° is a-ok.

If you were going to dismount and store them for a few years you'd want to keep the climate controlled. However, every new car dealer in America probably has summer tires sitting on the lot over the winter, every year. Certainly someone has had some experience with this, anyone heard of damaging tires right off the lot?

[sloth60]

Fair enough. I suspect you’re right. But I’m moving up to the X3 from my current sports car to drive 3 kids around. I’m likely a bit alarmist for that reason and overly cautious. I suspect tires mounted on a car are likely less at risk than an unmounted pair sitting outside all winter. But with kids I’m extra cautious. I store my current summer tires for my other cars in the basement, not in the garage to be safe.

[sor]

Originally Posted by sloth60

Fair enough. I suspect you’re right. But I’m moving up to the X3 from my current sports car to drive 3 kids around. I’m likely a bit alarmist for that reason and overly cautious. I suspect tires mounted on a car are likely less at risk than an uncounted pair sitting outside all winter. But with kids I’m extra cautious. I store my current summer tires for my other cars in the basement, not in the garage to be safe.

That's totally understandable. I think the best you can do is to swap them ASAP and get them inspected before remounting. If they haven't been damaged while they're cold (cracking) it sounds like they'll be fine once they're warmed up.

[knepsterd]

Originally Posted by sor

That's totally understandable. I think the best you can do is to swap them ASAP and get them inspected before remounting. If they haven't been damaged while they're cold (cracking) it sounds like they'll be fine once they're warmed up.

I have stored ZR tires on my rims in my outdoor shed for 15 years living in nyc area. Never had cracks nor life expectancy issues. Driving winters above 50 is more damaging in the sense of lowering the life expectancy on them.