[jpSQLDude]

I posted about tire options only a few months ago...
https://x3.xbimmers.com/forums/showt...2#post28714562

I wound up getting staggered 21" Pirelli P Zero PZ4 runflats from Tire Rack. They cost well over $2000 installed. Damn thing drives like a whole different car -- the traction is awesome! My old tires were the factory Bridgestone Alenza pieces-o-crap.

But I just checked and my tires have 2/32 -- they are worn out.

Here are the numbers:

47395 - New tires installed. 3/9/2022

53980 - Those new tires are officially dead. 8/3/2022

6,585 - Total miles.

HOLY CRAP!

And tire prices have gone way up in those few months, so to get another set would be well over $2500. I can't be spending that every few thousand miles... WTF?!

It must be all that driftin' your doin' at the racetrack, right? Nope! Never tracked my car (SUV) in my life, and don't do donuts on the street or any stupid stuff. Just some spirited driving in the mountains around Los Angeles. That's it. No donuts, no drifting, no sliding, not even tires squealing. And I religiously maintain all tire pressures to be exactly what TPMS/iDrive tells me they should be. All tires are worn perfectly evenly. And, of course, these tires come with no treadwear warranty whatsoever.

This can't be right, can it? Does everyone have to replace their Max Performance Summer tires every 6K miles or so? That's nuts!

Oh... and might Michelin Pilot Sport 4S jobbies last longer? I wanted to get them last time because they might be better, but they weren't in stock. And also I actually like having the Pirelli runflats because I am way off-grid much of the time. If I get the Michelin non-runflats I'll have to get and carry a spare + jack + wrench, etc.


Current tread depth 2/32...





Beautiful drive on Maricopa Highway. (it's a paved road, this is just a nice spot to pull over)...

[MontyB1]

It often depends how you drive vs someone else. Do lots of city light to light flat to the floor commuting and sure that doesn’t sound terrible.

However if you are a sit on the freeway / motorway for most then no that seems bad. It’s not a light car so if you use the tyres and the ability of the car throwing it around then that can easily take far more life off the tyres than being chilled and relaxed.

Also some performance tyres can be softer to provide that grip and don’t last as long. So many factors it’s hard to say if it’s bad or not.

[lfdal54]

I just looked those up. Not sure what size you have but it seems treadwear is rated at 280-320 depending on size. Also depending on the size, they can come with as little as 8/32 tread. Traction and temperature are great at AA and A.

From what I've seen of RFTs across 5 different BMWs they tend to wear like crap. My factory tires probably have 12k on them and should be replaced by 15k. In my case, heavy braking is often an issue due to the traffic I drive in. I know that's really tough on tire life but I can't help other people's driving habits.

My spouse OTOH, got about 40k on 2 different 328 wagons. She's much more sedate than I am.

[gphin]

My mechanic told me a while ago that my new (14 months ago) set of 21" staggered summer performance run flats would only last about 10k.....and he was right on. Just switched to 20" staggered all seasons and carrying a flat kit. Have 2k on tires (Sumitomo a/s po3) and no signs of wear. Hated to spend $ on new wheels but really no other choice.

[OciWan]

Originally Posted by gphin

My mechanic told me a while ago that my new (14 months ago) set of 21" staggered summer performance run flats would only last about 10k.....and he was right on. Just switched to 20" staggered all seasons and carrying a flat kit. Have 2k on tires (Sumitomo a/s po3) and no signs of wear. Hated to spend $ on new wheels but really no other choice.

Why not run the 255/40 295/35 AS option on the 21's?

[clivem2]

I run 20s with P Zeros but non-RFT in my case. I’ve just changed mine at 13k miles. The rears were below 2mm, the fronts 4mm. I sometimes drive with the TC off, this won’t helped the wear rate. I’ve never burned though tyres so quickly….but I enjoy the car. These two factors are related!

[Douggie]

Yah, I have the same Pirellis and while not as low mileage as yours, it's definitely THE fastest wearing tyre that I've ever used.

[AlekSC]

Same issue here with my 2022 X3 M40i. I have Yokohama tires (not run flats), and I'm at abt 11,000 miles now, and the thread is at 4/32 🤷🏻.

[fastX3]

The sooner the Pirellis die the better. A great opportunity to upgrade to Michelins!

[gphin]

Originally Posted by OciWan

Why not run the 255/40 295/35 AS option on the 21's?

Yeh, when I was doing research and trying to determine options, I remember coming across this option and others here saying it works. Both my dealer and Tire rack however advised against it so I decided to go with new 20" wheels and having a wider range and more cost reasonable 20" tire options. I'm good with the way it rides (the run flats were tough besides the fast wear) and handles now and have gotten compliments on the Savini wheels. Too bad this seems to be a common issue with the X3, regardless of the motor, especially as the OP noted with the ridiculous prices of tires these days..

[OciWan]

Why did both of them advise against it out of curiosity

[BigMart]

20" P zero non RFT
Rears 4mm
Fronts 5mm
14k miles

[X3rd Time Is a Charm]

Pirelli,s have been known to be soft tires for many years . Definitely give you good traction but don't last long . They came as OEM on my 1974 MGB (ha ha showing my age now )and didn't last 12,000 miles. Changed over to Michelin's as I have always favored them .

[Larryatl]

Never go full run flats.

[bbb83]

soft summer performance tires wearing fast.... stop the press!

[Alias1431]

Originally Posted by jpSQLDude

because I am way off-grid much of the time.

What are you driving on, old lava fields?? Even for summers, this is absurd.

[jpSQLDude]

Originally Posted by Alias1431

What are you driving on, old lava fields?? Even for summers, this is absurd.

AGREED!

If this link works, then you can see the exact spot I took that pic, in Google Street View. It is just a regular road surface, not coarse-grit sandpaper! I climbed up that pile of dirt to take the pix, and you can even tell I'm looking down on my X3...
https://goo.gl/maps/11uAuZAUBtBEeuDW6


Again if the link works, here is that same exact spot from Google satellite. You can see it is right-smack-dab-in-the-middle-of-nowhere, in Los Padres National Forest. Again just a regular road, but "off grid" -- absolutely no cell signal or anything...
https://goo.gl/maps/csRuLw63PQ5qy7w8A

And look at all them twists and turns! And the views. That's what makes it such a great driving road.

If the links don't work, here are the actual GPS coordinates... 34°39'53.8"N 119°22'31.1"W

[lfdal54]

How hot are the roads you drive on? If you pull up tire temperature, what is the temperature range? Hot rubber wears even faster when it's a softer compound.

[Tokke]

Did you get the Pirelli's in the SportsCar version or the Luxury Saloon version?
Bot exist with BMW star mark. The sportscar version has a faster wearing, softer compound. They also have a different thread on their outside shoulders.

I'm on my 3rd set of Pirelli PZ4 LS. They last me about 55000km.

Keep in mind that on OEM tyres in my experience there is a soft compound outside layer which wears fast. Once the tyres go down to 4-5 mm you get to a much harder compound which wears much slower.
I go from 8mm to 5 mm in 15000 km. Then the next 40000 km they go down from 5mm to 4mm.

[smanji]

I got to 12000 on fronts and 16000 on rear factory fitted 21" pzero's (Miles). Dry steering into tight UK parking spaces didnt help… along with some spirited driving!

[r0gue]

Just realized my 20" staggered Yokohama Advan Sport tires are a 240 treadwear. This is not going to go well. Just flipped 1,000 miles yesterday.

[jpSQLDude]

Originally Posted by lfdal54

How hot are the roads you drive on? If you pull up tire temperature, what is the temperature range? Hot rubber wears even faster when it's a softer compound.

This was yesterday. Ambient temp was 85F. (pretty low for Southern California at this time of year) Is 133F high? And I have no idea why the temps are so different, both side-to-side, and front-to-back!

Tire pressures were all exactly the same as the recommended -- when I was at home. They always diverge from the recommended when they heat up.




Just another cool pic along that road.
https://goo.gl/maps/HMPwCip1S2FaE2gY7
GPS coordinates 34.531772, -119.252403