Which Tire?

OK folks - I'm ready to ditch my 245/40/19 GY runflats. I see 2 strong contenders that fit my need for aggressive cornering, smooth quiet running, AS performance and reasonable tread life. But which do I choose?

Bridgestone
Potenza RE970AS Pole Position

or

Michelin
Pilot Sport A/S Plus

The Bridgestones seem to have a slight overall edge at Tirerack, but the Michelin's have a long looking tread life. On the other hand, some reviewers say that the Mich's don't make their tread life claims.

So which one and why?

Thanks!

Bridgestones all the way. I have the 960AS Pole Positions on one of my cars now and the one you mention is the recent successor. The 960's are the best all around tire I have ever owned. THe biggest knock on them was that they are more sport than all season and average to poor in snow. The 970's have cured this ailment while retaining most of what people liked about the 960's.
The Michelins are an older design, but tried and true. The knock on these tires are that they are expensive (go figure) and with wear they start to get progressively louder. Visually I don't like the way the tread extends to the tires edge.

Not sure they make the 970's in the size you mention....

Thanks for the input. I'm going to bump up to a 245/45/19. The slightly taller wall may help just a bit with road hazards, but mainly I'm looking forward to a nice speedo correction at highway speeds.

Anybody else have a comment?

Regards,
Q

This might ease the concern of no spare tire:

http://www.michelinman.com/promise/

3-Year Flat Tire Changing Assistance
A qualified service professional will change your flat or provide towing at no charge. In case of a flat tire, simply call 1-888-553-4327 and a qualified professional will change the tire or provide towing up to 150 miles for free. Available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year in the U.S. and Canada.

Yeah - I saw that. I may be naive, but I haven't had a tire get more than a simple puncture in so long that I feel that a can of tire goo (and maybe a pump) is all I really need in order to feel secure. How about you?

Yes I'm willing to go that route when my RoFts expire.

Now that I think about it the only catastrophic tire failure I have had in my life was a rear Michelin Pilot sport A/S that blew out on my 740il after running between 80 - 90 all the way from Dallas to Birmingham on I-20 6 years ago

AAA came and mounted by spare for me (which was flat)!

The Michelin is loud and expensive. But it is a very good tire that is superior to the runflats. They performed OK in the snow. The biggest problem is so much torque being available low in the band that it is very easy to break the rear loose. I wish it had a mode to start in 2nd gear. Nevertheless, I see you have xDrive and the 535, so I'd expect them to work well. Even the little bit of extra sidewall should help.

Originally Posted by Quacker

Thanks for the input. I'm going to bump up to a 245/45/19. The slightly taller wall may help just a bit with road hazards, but mainly I'm looking forward to a nice speedo correction at highway speeds.

Anybody else have a comment?

Regards,
Q

This is exactly the tire and size that I have on my 550i xDrive M Sport. The extra sidewall height smoothes out the bumps and cause no traction control issues. And the extra rolling diameter fills out the huge gap in the wheel well left by the OEM wheel and tire size.

Putting a higher profile tire on causes to speedometer to read slower than you're actually travalling, right? Does anyone know by what percentage the reading will be low? How about the tire rubbing the wheel well when turning hard left or right or when bottoming the suspension?

Any problems with those things?

Originally Posted by alewifebp

The Michelin is loud and expensive. But it is a very good tire that is superior to the runflats. They performed OK in the snow. The biggest problem is so much torque being available low in the band that it is very easy to break the rear loose. I wish it had a mode to start in 2nd gear. Nevertheless, I see you have xDrive and the 535, so I'd expect them to work well. Even the little bit of extra sidewall should help.

I had three sets of the Michelins on my Volvo. Only one was loud. THe second, which was the updated "Plus" model, was not loud at all.

Great tire. I got them because unlike some performance A/S tires, they actually work in the snow.

No idea how the Bridgestones work in the snow, but I can say that the Michelins do.

Originally Posted by PsychDoc1

Putting a higher profile tire on causes to speedometer to read slower than you're actually travalling, right? Does anyone know by what percentage the reading will be low? How about the tire rubbing the wheel well when turning hard left or right or when bottoming the suspension?

Any problems with those things?

My car's speedo reads about 2mph high at highway speeds. It's what BMW has done for years and I'm tired of them trying to nanny me. (3 series cars read even higher ~4mph). Anyway, I did the math and the larger rolling radius of the 45 tires 'fixes' this very nicely.

Originally Posted by TJPark01

..... 960AS Pole Positions ..... average to poor in snow. The 970's have cured this ailment .....

Have their been tests done on the 970's snow performance? Or does someone have personal experience with them in the snow?

I read the TireRack 1 June 2011 test where they rated the 970 number 1, but that did not include testing in snow.

Thanks
Bruce

So there are no clearance issues at all by bumping up to 245-45-19 also on the 535 XI M-Sport package? I can handle a slight off reading on the speedometer. Looking at tirerack, 245-45-19 opens up a lot more tire options, including the 19 "LS2 run-flat which is in stock. The "45" may even make it a little more bubble resistent. Are the tires in your pic the 245-45-19?

I'm surprised that dealers or BMW haven't recommended the 245-45-19 size in at least the LS2 if in fact there are few negitives and no clearance problems. Doesn't sound right.

Originally Posted by sdg1871

This is exactly the tire and size that I have on my 550i xDrive M Sport. The extra sidewall height smoothes out the bumps and cause no traction control issues. And the extra rolling diameter fills out the huge gap in the wheel well left by the OEM wheel and tire size.

Originally Posted by Quacker

OK folks - I'm ready to ditch my 245/40/19 GY runflats. I see 2 strong contenders that fit my need for aggressive cornering, smooth quiet running, AS performance and reasonable tread life. But which do I choose?

Bridgestone
Potenza RE970AS Pole Position

or

Michelin
Pilot Sport A/S Plus

The Bridgestones seem to have a slight overall edge at Tirerack, but the Michelin's have a long looking tread life. On the other hand, some reviewers say that the Mich's don't make their tread life claims.

So which one and why?

Thanks!

I was bored one night so I actually researched the hell out of the Bridgestone and from what I gathered it was a superior tire to the Michelin...however keep in mind the Bridgestone is a newer tire so Michelin may have something on the way to compete with the Bridgestone.

Originally Posted by Crmgr

So there are no clearance issues at all by bumping up to 245-45-19 on the XI M-Sport package? I can handle a slight off reading on the speedometer. Looking at tirerack, 245-45-19 opens up a lot more tire options, including the 19 "LS2 run-flat which is in stock. The "45" may even make it a little more bubble resistent. Are the tires in your pic the 245-45-19?

I'm surprised that dealers or BMW haven't recommended the 245-45-19 size in at least the LS2 if in fact there are few negitives and no clearance problems. Doesn't sound right.

I have not had any clearance issues. The pics are of the OEM Michelin Primacy RFTs in the OEM size of 245/40/19

Originally Posted by quacker

my car's speedo reads about 2mph high at highway speeds. It's what bmw has done for years and i'm tired of them trying to nanny me. (3 series cars read even higher ~4mph). Anyway, i did the math and the larger rolling radius of the 45 tires 'fixes' this very nicely.

+1

I've never tried the Bridgestones but am completely satisfied with the Pilot Sport A/S Plus that I put on a year ago. Handling is vastly improved, ride is smoother, noise is diminished over the run-flats that I put in storage. So far the wear appears to be good and I expect to put the near new run-flats back on just before my next trade.

Originally Posted by Crmgr

So there are no clearance issues at all by bumping up to 245-45-19 also on the 535 XI M-Sport package? I can handle a slight off reading on the speedometer. Looking at tirerack, 245-45-19 opens up a lot more tire options, including the 19 "LS2 run-flat which is in stock. The "45" may even make it a little more bubble resistent. Are the tires in your pic the 245-45-19?

I'm surprised that dealers or BMW haven't recommended the 245-45-19 size in at least the LS2 if in fact there are few negitives and no clearance problems. Doesn't sound right.

The LS2 is a POS tire to be avoided at all costs, in any size.

Originally Posted by laser

This might ease the concern of no spare tire:

http://www.michelinman.com/promise/

3-Year Flat Tire Changing Assistance
A qualified service professional will change your flat or provide towing at no charge. In case of a flat tire, simply call 1-888-553-4327 and a qualified professional will change the tire or provide towing up to 150 miles for free. Available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year in the U.S. and Canada.

Does this assume you have a spare, or will they bring out a new tire?

Originally Posted by Crmgr

I'm surprised that dealers or BMW haven't recommended the 245-45-19 size in at least the LS2 if in fact there are few negitives and no clearance problems. Doesn't sound right.

BMW service installed 245/45R19 snow tires on my car as an alternative to me coming in every two weeks to change a tire.

They claim this size is within specifications (at least for winter tires).

I have had no issue with clearance or handling.

Yeah, I know, but honestly I have had no problems with this tire after 10,000 miles. The ride is firm, but not jarring as I expeirenced in the 2010 335i with sport suspension. Cornering is better that my old E60 and it tracks great in the rain and snow. The fact that I can get home in most cases after losing pressure is also a plus. The big negative for me is the availability and that only BMW dealers seem to carry it in the 245-40-19.

Now that I've said the above I've probably doomed myself and expect a bubble on he way home from work.

Originally Posted by Needsdecaf

The LS2 is a POS tire to be avoided at all costs, in any size.

Originally Posted by TJPark01

Bridgestones all the way. I have the 960AS Pole Positions on one of my cars now and the one you mention is the recent successor. The 960's are the best all around tire I have ever owned. THe biggest knock on them was that they are more sport than all season and average to poor in snow. The 970's have cured this ailment while retaining most of what people liked about the 960's.
The Michelins are an older design, but tried and true. The knock on these tires are that they are expensive (go figure) and with wear they start to get progressively louder. Visually I don't like the way the tread extends to the tires edge.

Not sure they make the 970's in the size you mention....

Did you buy the road hazard insurance from the TireRack?

Are the factory installed Dunlop tires any good on the 535i?