[the_skyliner]

Originally Posted by graaja

Back to RFTs, I have found two options in RFTs

1. 225/50/R18 Conti Sport Contact 5, 245/45/R18 Conti Sport Contact 3
2. Pirelli P7 CINT 225/50/R18 and 245/45/R18

Pirelli are good in grip but burn out faster.

If you do not have complaints regarding ride quality from your co-passengers then stick to RFTs else switch to tubeless.

I only carry air pump in truck and can keep the space saver at home whenever I want but with tubeless this won't be a good idea.

[graaja]

Originally Posted by the_skyliner

If you do not have complaints regarding ride quality from your co-passengers then stick to RFTs else switch to tubeless.

I have not had any complaints on the RFTs from any of the passengers. Even I have found the Conti Sport Contact 5 to be as good as the Michelin PS3 that I had in my Jetta.

I am not sure if this comfort level is specific to Conti Sport 5. If yes, then changing to any other brand of RFT may make the ride harsh as everyone else has mentioned.

[the_skyliner]

Originally Posted by graaja

I am not sure if this comfort level is specific to Conti Sport 5. If yes, then changing to any other brand of RFT may make the ride harsh as everyone else has mentioned.

Contis are better in ride quality which I can tell from my personal experience. But I do miss the superb grip of Pirellis.

But yes, Conti is a better choice overall and provides best of both worlds.

[Mission_PGPX]

Originally Posted by graaja

I have not had any complaints on the RFTs from any of the passengers. Even I have found the Conti Sport Contact 5 to be as good as the Michelin PS3 that I had in my Jetta.

I am not sure if this comfort level is specific to Conti Sport 5. If yes, then changing to any other brand of RFT may make the ride harsh as everyone else has mentioned.

Even michelin offers RFT in certail sizes. Why dont you try that, considering michelin you have a silence guaranteed plus wet surface grip is a plus.

[graaja]

Originally Posted by Mission_PGPX

Even michelin offers RFT in certail sizes. Why dont you try that, considering michelin you have a silence guaranteed plus wet surface grip is a plus.

Michelin does not have any RFTs in these sizes. I think BMW has used some some unique size for the 3GT (especially the rear tires), so that it is difficult to get these.

[Mission_PGPX]

Originally Posted by graaja

Michelin does not have any RFTs in these sizes. I think BMW has used some some unique size for the 3GT (especially the rear tires), so that it is difficult to get these.

Because i checked for my 530d and i got a good quote also from dealer. Rear 275 section at 28000 and front at 22000 each. So i thought smaller sizes should be available. I guess its the same issue as GTI. but increasing the side wall by 5 mm doesnt hard does it?

[graaja]

Originally Posted by Mission_PGPX

Because i checked for my 530d and i got a good quote also from dealer. Rear 275 section at 28000 and front at 22000 each. So i thought smaller sizes should be available. I guess its the same issue as GTI. but increasing the side wall by 5 mm doesnt hard does it?

Yes. The smaller size used in the front (225/50/18) is easily available. The issue is with the wider rear tires which are 255/45/18. These are not readily available. Only 245/45/18 or 245/50/18 are available. The 245/45 has a -1% error and the sidewall is thinner by 5mm. The 245/50 has a 2% error and the sidewall is thicker by 7mm. So now I have to choose between dropping the ride height or increasing it.

[lamborghini]

Originally Posted by graaja

1. 225/50/R18 Conti Sport Contact 5, 245/45/R18 Conti Sport Contact 3
2. Pirelli P7 CINT 225/50/R18 and 245/45/R18

And there is one more option. 255/45/R18 in Conti Sport Contact 5 SSR are available in tirerack web store. Cost is $450 for two tires. A friend of mine had a good experience with them importing some tires. I have written to them to find out what is the shipping cost for shipping to India. Will decide the final option once I hear back from tirerack.

I would avoid the CSC3 - the CSC5 is superior and on a car with that level of performance, I would recommend grippier tyres.

Same for the P7 Cinturato - I had them on the A6, and they were average tyres in my opinion.

Regarding tire rack: https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/tyre-...k-com-usa.html (My BMW, upgraded to Michelin Pilot Super Sports! Imported from TireRack.com, USA)

Originally Posted by graaja

Yes. The smaller size used in the front (225/50/18) is easily available. The issue is with the wider rear tires which are 255/45/18. These are not readily available. Only 245/45/18 or 245/50/18 are available. The 245/45 has a -1% error and the sidewall is thinner by 5mm. The 245/50 has a 2% error and the sidewall is thicker by 7mm. So now I have to choose between dropping the ride height or increasing it.

For road trips: I'd recommend 245/50 especially if you're moving to softer rubber. Will have to check that there is no fouling though.

[graaja]

Originally Posted by lamborghini

I would avoid the CSC3 - the CSC5 is superior and on a car with that level of performance, I would recommend grippier tyres.

Same for the P7 Cinturato - I had them on the A6, and they were average tyres in my opinion.

For road trips: I'd recommend 245/50 especially if you're moving to softer rubber.

Thanks a lot for the very valid inputs. If 255/45 does not happen, I will go for 245/50 CSC5 instead of 245/45 CSC3/

Originally Posted by lamborghini

Regarding tire rack: https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/tyre-...k-com-usa.html (My BMW, upgraded to Michelin Pilot Super Sports! Imported from TireRack.com, USA)

Thanks. I have already written to tirerack a couple of days back, but have not received any response from them yet. I will wait a couple of days more then.

Originally Posted by lamborghini

Will have to check that there is no fouling though.

Measured the gap between the edge of the wheel well and the surface of the tire and it is 35mm without any load. From the measurements I did during the M sport suspension installation, with the car loaded with 4 passengers, the drop was 10mm. Even considering some more luggage that may result in another 5mm droop making it 15mm, I have about 20mm clearance. With 7mm tread depth and 7mm increase in sidewall thickness, there should be still enough gap. All said, will know only when the tires are fixed

[graaja]

After almost a month's downtime, the car is back on road.

• Heartfelt thanks to RSUDARSANAN (we affectionately call him "Chief" in our group), who arranged for the stock 255/45/R18 ContiSportContact 5 RFTs from the BMW dealer in Bangalore. Paid 57.4K for the tires and 1.7K for installation, balancing and alignment.
• Special thanks to Nikhilb2008 for information about removing and installing RFT tires and for guiding me to the installer in Coimbatore who has the correct equipment to handle RFT tires.
• Thanks to fellow TBHPians for all the inputs on tubeless tires, alternate sizes, etc.

Sourcing the Tires:
The local BMW dealer had given a quote of 70K for replacing the tires, of which 57.4K was for the tires and 12.6K for replacing and wheel alignment etc.

As I felt the installation cost to be quite high, I tried to source the tires outside. But due to the odd size, I could not find any dealer with a stock of these tires. After trying in vain for three weeks to find a source for 255/45/R18 CSC5 RFTs, I tried tirerack.com who had these in stock. However as the shipping cost as much as the tires ($450 shipping cost for the tires which cost $430), and 40% of customs would make it prohibitively expensive, I decided to either go for 245/45/R18 tubeless setup on all wheels, or downsize to 245/50/R18 RFTs in the rear.

At this time, RSUDARSANAN who has a fantastic relationship with BMW Navnit Bangalore, arranged for them to ship the tires to me. The tires landed at my home in just about a week. I paid the same 57.4K for the tires (including shipping costs from Bangalore).


Details on my search for the tires and inputs from other members on alternate options like tubeless, alternate size etc., may be found from below post onward.

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-...ml#post4575272

Installing the Tires and alignment:
Meanwhile, I had also sought some advice from Nikhilb2008 of Madhu's tires. He had told me to get the tires installed at a place that has proper equipment for installing RFTs. As RFTs have very strong sidewall, it is very difficult to remove and install them using regular tire changing machines. There is a high possibility of damaging either the alloys or the tires. Nikhil gave me the contact of Sri Vari installers in Coimbatore who have the proper equipment. Took the car and the tires to Sri Vari installers and got the tires installed.

The RFT changing machine. In Nikhil's words, this is the most basic model, but did the job well.


New tires unpacked.


Old tire out.


New tire in.


The new and the old.


Notice the uneven wear and how bald the tires have become.


Wheels fixed to the car.


The new tires on the car.


For the M Sport suspensions, per spec, the rear camber is set to -1.5 degrees. This is the reason for the high wear of the inside treads. Also totally my mistake, I never had the wheels aligned after the suspension installation. So, at the time the tires were changed, the camber of one of the wheels was at -2.1 degrees.


The installer told me to have the alignment done every 5000kms to keep this uneven wear under control. As tire rotation is not possible due to staggered setup, I will make sure to get the alignment done regularly.

Brake Pads Changed:
Once I got the tires changed, took the car next day to BMW showroom to get the front brake pads replaced. They had 1200km life left as per iDrive.

The old pads had 3mm left.


As the car is under BSI+, the whole process took just about 3 hours and zero cost. The downside of BSI+ is that the rear pads have just 5mm left and will come up for replacement shortly. But as they can change the pads only when there is a notification on iDrive, I will have to visit the showroom again in a couple of months again.

Took the car to 3M for a good wash and the car is as good as new.


A couple of pictures to end this post. Pardon the distortion. My phone camera is crappy at best.




Lessons Learnt:
1. As I had not expected the tires to wear at 21000km, I had not done any inspection of the tires. It was by chance that I noticed the tires to be almost bald. Will make sure to inspect the tires regularly for wear.
2. I had not done any wheel alignment after the M Sport suspension installation. Will make sure to get the wheel alignment done every 5000km.

[el lobo 6061]

Originally Posted by graaja

I had not done any wheel alignment after the M Sport suspension installation.

This should have been done.

Originally Posted by graaja

1. As I had not expected the tires to wear at 21000km

My BMW Workshop says by 20,000 kms tyre wear out. I'm hoping not to face it with my X1 due to 4 wheel rotation.

Originally Posted by graaja

Will make sure to get the wheel alignment done every 5000km.

From my interaction with fellow BMW owners, BMW don't need alignment every 5,000 kms. No car should.

My learning's have been
1. Do rotation every 10,000 kms. Might not help in your case.
2. Do wheel alignment when you car goes towards either left or right even when steering is straight. It's been 8,000 kms since last alignment and X1 drives fine. Put car in Sports mode to get right weight to steering. In comfort it lightens up.
3. Balancing only when you feel vibration on steering.

I had to relearn since BMW charges a bomb for alignment, balancing and rotation.

[anandpadhye]

Originally Posted by graaja

First Service:

The car has done 9000 kilometers and the instrument cluster showed service due in 1500 kilometers. I have the 3 year / 40,000 kilometer BSI+ package. When I took the car for the suspension upgrade, they also did the first oil service. They changed the oil, oil filter and the wiper blades. The invoice value was 14.5K. Mr. Yadhav told me that this was because it is under BSI. If not under BSI, there will be an additional 6K labor added to the invoice.

Hi Ganesh,

You have the BSI package, so the invoice value should be zero, isn't it?
Why did you have to pay 14.5k?

[graaja]

Originally Posted by anandpadhye

You have the BSI package, so the invoice value should be zero, isn't it?
Why did you have to pay 14.5k?

I did not pay for the service. The invoice was what the service center raises to BMW. I asked them to generate this invoice to understand what was the cost of service.

But my understanding is this:
When the service center raises the invoice to BMW, I think BMW has set some standard costs. But when do not have the BSI and the service center invoices you, they usually charge higher rates.

[anandpadhye]

Originally Posted by graaja

• Heartfelt thanks to RSUDARSANAN (we affectionately call him "Chief" in our group), who arranged for the stock 255/45/R18 ContiSportContact 5 RFTs from the BMW dealer in Bangalore. Paid 57.4K for the tires and 1.7K for installation, balancing and alignment.
• Special thanks to Nikhilb2008 for information about removing and installing RFT tires and for guiding me to the installer in Coimbatore who has the correct equipment to handle RFT tires.
• Thanks to fellow TBHPians for all the inputs on tubeless tires,

Originally Posted by el lobo 6061

I had to relearn since BMW charges a bomb for alignment, balancing and rotation.

I had to get my front left and rear left tyres changed due to a side wall bulge that developed after the car went over a really deep pothole that I could not see in time. The tyres are covered under warranty (or insurance I should say) under BSI Secure Advance that was complimentary for the 1st year. However, dealer is quoting 4000 for wheel balancing - for just the 2 wheels. Is this the standard rate?

Ganesh,

As you got the new tyres installed in an independent shop, did the guy have correct data for the 330i (staggered setup) in his alignment software? Also, being RWD, did you get all 4 wheels aligned?

I need to find a good independent tyre shop in Pune that can handle the 330i. This BMW attitude of not covering wheel alignment and balancing under any BSI/BSI Plus/BSI Secure, etc. is nonsense.

Thanks in advance!

[el lobo 6061]

Originally Posted by anandpadhye

The tyres are covered under warranty (or insurance I should say) under BSI Secure Advance that was complimentary for the 1st year. However, dealer is quoting 4000 for wheel balancing - for just the 2 wheels. Is this the standard rate?

Tyres & alloys are covered under Secure policy which BMW includes for 1st year of car.

Cost of wheel alignment X1 came to Rs. 8,000 including taxes. Its was a 4 wheel alignment.

Secures gives Rs. 2,500 for wheel alignment as per policy wordings (attached). So you have to pay for remaining part of bill.

BMW_Secure_Wordings.pdf

3 tyres on X1 went bad (on highway separate incidents) but didn't opt for Wheel Alignment. Balancing was done always. Had to pay for weights.

X1 drives fine.

Point is, drive car and see. BMW alignment doesn't get damaged so easily.

Originally Posted by anandpadhye

Also, being RWD, did you get all 4 wheels aligned?

X1 being FWD, required all 4.