Run Flat Tyres on 5 series GT 2010 model

BTW....

My tire guy also noticed that my right front tire had some "waves" in the tread area. He told me that this kind of wear is usually associated with Shock wear. He stated that he does not normally see this in situations under 50,000 miles.

Originally Posted by wwanthony

I just ran into this problem yesterday. I have a 2010 with 16000 miles. Got a flat and went to my tire guy. He told me that the tire was flat because it had separated and did not understand why a tire with such low milage would have this problem. He called around and the tire was on back order everywhere with no projected delivery date. I dealer close to me had one in stock so bit the bullet and spent the 500.00 to keep my machine on the road.

I have the same configuration as others: Goodyear Excellence, 20"', run flats, right rear tire. I also have a bubble on my left front tire. The dealer stated it was probably a pressure issue.

I have a message into BMW NA. I will probably call them tomorrow. I am also going to call my dealer (Santa Monica BMW)..........I had the tire replaced at Sterling BMW in Newport Beach because it is closer to where I currently live and they had a rear tire in stock.

This is troubling. I am leasing my car and I do not want to spend a couple of thousand to replace the complete set.......I have another year on my lease.

Stay tuned.......

Wendell

I feel your pain...

I also run 20" Excellence. A few months ago I discovered my right front was bubbled, just as I was preparing to depart with my fam on a trip to the mountains of WV.

My local BMW dealer had one tire in stock, but would not recognize the Goodyear warranty and referred me to a Goodyear dealer. Off to the Goodyear dealer but the Goodyear dealer did not have a tire in stock. After much searching, the Goodyear customer service rep found one, but it would take a couple of days for shipping. As I was pondering this dilemma, she went out to check the date of manufacture of my GT...well I was 13 months out...and out of luck. I was told that Goodyear only warrants the tire for one year which - unfortunately - commences from the date of manufacture, not purchase date - even though I bought the car new. Sooo...back to my local BMW dealer - and $500 later - I drive away with a new front right. I felt more than a little exasperated by the run around, but also lucky - the BMW dealer did have the tire in stock, and they did the installation while I waited on a Saturday.

Your situation is complicated by your lease. I purchased my GT and I have now driven 15K miles. I tend to drive in a spirited manner and my back tires are beginning to show some wear. I think I am going to take the plunge, and replace all four tires with non-runflats at roughly the same cost as replacing just the two rear runflats.

Has anyone found the run flat tyres make the car feel less secure on the road? We bought 5GT last Autumn after owning 3 x 7 series and found the road holding irritating - the 7 series would steer without wondering but the 5GT needed constant tiny steering adjustments especially noticeable on motorways - much less fun to drive. We bought the car with I think 17" rims and run flat tyres, but have now bought 21" rims and are using normal tyres and the car is driving back like a 7 series! Much nicer. I will now keep an eye on the tread wear though. We reported the steering issue to BMW and get blanked! Why don't they admit their errors, mind you I hope we don't get a serious blow out miles from anywhere, as all we have now in case of a flat tyre is an emergency sealant and inflation kit.

And that inflation and sealant kit won't do any good if you ave a sidewall puncture or major blowout!

Hopefully that will be on a day when we have the bikes in the back!

Originally Posted by magnumforc

And that inflation and sealant kit won't do any good if you ave a sidewall puncture or major blowout!

Yes...an inconvenient truth....

As of this AM - my GT is at the dealer for 15 K maintenance.

My rear 20" Goodyear Excellence Tires are beginning to show cords....

I need to enhance my winter driving capability. My only winter runflat option are Pirelli 240s that cost around $2100 + installation + alignment from Tirerack. The tires get good reviews but some reviewers have reported tread life to be as short as 9000 miles - whoa - that would just get me to next spring. I do not want to switch to 19 inchers. Soooo....I took the plunge, and ordered Conti Extremes DWS high performance all weathers. Good reviews for wet weather and light snow performance from both BMW and Porsche reviewers.

Actually, I don't think I am loosing too much - given the lack of availability of 20" runflats generally - especially outside of urban areas - 20 inch runflats are difficult to find. I would imagine the Pirelli winters would be especially difficult and expensive to replace if I could find them in an emergency situation. My dealer cannot offer me a runflat winter option - I don't understand the logic of promoting runflats when you cannot support them with physical inventory.

I hope I don't become too well acquainted with my new nifty tire inflation kit....

No great options...

Driving along the motorway in England, 16000 miles on the clock, tyre air loss message came up. Took to the dealers and guess what, rear drivers side tyre, inside edge worn down to the wires and blew a hole two inches long. Inspection of other rear showed similar wear not quite so advanced. Dealer didn't seriously suggest tyre pressure, advised changing to Pirrelli and alignment check, all at my initial cost. They admitted that I was not the first and said I would probably get reimbursed for the alignment check and some costs towards the new tyres from BMW, I should hope so! Luckily I was doing about 30mph when this happened, what would have happened at 70mph? The guys at BMW are putting our lives at risk, it's about time this went public and anyone thinking of buying a GT warned. Incidentally mine is a 2010 GT Executive.
On a slightly different note, my wifes 120d wears in a similar way but not as aggressively.

Originally Posted by MalcolmS

Driving along the motorway in England, 16000 miles on the clock, tyre air loss message came up. Took to the dealers and guess what, rear drivers side tyre, inside edge worn down to the wires and blew a hole two inches long. Inspection of other rear showed similar wear not quite so advanced. Dealer didn't seriously suggest tyre pressure, advised changing to Pirrelli and alignment check, all at my initial cost. They admitted that I was not the first and said I would probably get reimbursed for the alignment check and some costs towards the new tyres from BMW, I should hope so! Luckily I was doing about 30mph when this happened, what would have happened at 70mph? The guys at BMW are putting our lives at risk, it's about time this went public and anyone thinking of buying a GT warned. Incidentally mine is a 2010 GT Executive.
On a slightly different note, my wifes 120d wears in a similar way but not as aggressively.

I am currently having this debate. Apparently F01. F07, and F10 have unique suspension
settings that require very specialized state of the art equipment to perform a proper alignment - "Graph Alignments". My SA points out that very few independent shops will have this equipment and that this equipment is not optional when it comes to proper alignment on F07s, F10s and F01s.

Speaking to my SA about alignment issues, this thread, and active steering....I quote my SA.

"No, it is not because your vehicle has active steering. There are 3 different types of alignments currently on our vehicles:

Conventional Alignments - $239.95
Active Steering Alignments - $379.95
Graph Alignments - $495.95

It's not that the steering has any special system like active steering, it's the actual adjustments for the alignment angles; and how the suspension is set up on the newly designed vehicles. …....

If the inner edge of the tire is worn out more than the center of the tire, it's going to be a camber angle that is off on the car. If the toe angle was off to the point of causing accelerated tire wear, it would affect the tread wear across the entire tire; not only that, you will feel the car not tracking correctly. This is from my own personal experience, I had an M3 that had alignment issues, and the toe angles were off spec. I was going through rear tires every 8,000 miles. Along with that any of these high performance tires, you aren't going to get more than around 20k in mileage from them. What you gain in performance, you're going to lose in tire life, you've got to understand all the high performance tires are going to be a softer rubber compound and will wear faster. And almost all tires in that wheel size are going to be high – ultra-high performance tires.
The car is going to have to be aligned to correct the irregular wear issue, the alignment on this car runs $495.95.

I must question some of the posts on this forum you're showing me info from, only because one of the posters is saying that he changed to conventional tires and had a shop do an alignment it solved the issue. Well obviously it took 15k+ miles for your tires to get to the point of where they are now, I don't see how they would know right from the start that the problem was corrected.

Another point is that the alignments on these cars is not your everyday alignment like on some of the older models. All of the new 7 & 5 series, have new suspension designs. Because of the way the suspension geometry is set up for your car, our technicians have to do a graphed alignment. They have to do initial alignment angle measurements, and they have to actually plot out and graph all the alignment angles prior to making any adjustment to the suspension. Now a conventional alignment, you used to be able to adjust each wheel to whatever specified degree it's supposed to be at following a laser guided sensor; but because of the new suspension geometry and design, a change to one wheel will affect and change the alignment angle on the corresponding side, this is why the initial measurements and graphing is required. This isn't something a regular tire shop is going to be capable of performing, unless they're very very up to date with alignment specs, and specific to BMWs."


I hope sharing my conversation might prove informative.

BTW my car is still in service, but the dealership has agreed to reduce the price of the
"graph" alignment as an accommodation. A local Tirerack recommended shop had quoted me
$250 for their normal alignment services. I am not an expert on these issues.

Thinking of modifying my avatar...Capobranco reporting for fleecing....

Interesting Capo.

So now it makes me wonder, if I buy the BMW tires insurance, does that include graph alingments with the car or not when tires are replaced. The paperworks says mounting and balancing - NOT alignment.

As well, do you think this is something one should ask about when they pick up their car new? Meaning get the car graphically aligned in order to insure proper tire wear?

Thanks

Originally Posted by Wardman

Interesting Capo.

So now it makes me wonder, if I buy the BMW tires insurance, does that include graph alingments with the car or not when tires are replaced. The paperworks says mounting and balancing - NOT alignment.

As well, do you think this is something one should ask about when they pick up their car new? Meaning get the car graphically aligned in order to insure proper tire wear?

Thanks

This is a brave new world...I do not have the answers.

I would assume...expect...that your new car will not require alignment. This issue is really pertinent to when you need to change tires. Perhaps the sensitivity of new BMWs to alignment calibrations coupled with independent shops lacking the specific knowledge and equipment to do a perfect job are contributing factors to our tire woes.

Graph alignment seems like a factory procedure to ameliorate the profitability of BMW dealerships and keep BMW techs employed. I did my part....

When all is said - this is jus' the price of admission.

Great writeup on the alignment by Capo.

Two issues for me:

First. I am assuming that the alignments are included in the warranty. Yes?

If so, this makes me lean even more towards getting the extended warranty on my 535 that I expect to take delivery around Thanksgiving. I have ordered the sport package with active integrated steering. I would think the active steering has to complicate alignment somewhat. While I love all the technology incorporated in the car - I am concerned with maintaining it over the years...

Thoughts?

Secondly. I wanted the 19 inch wheels because I had such a setup on my X5 which handled remarkably well for an SUV. However, the X5 19 inch wheels and performance tires do not like winters - so I have a second set of 18 inch wheels and M&S tires. I have been thinking that I would do the same for the GT - a second 18 inch setup.

BUT it sounds like there could be significant tire wear without getting realignments upon wheel change. Not very practical given the price of alignments (assuming that is not covered under warranty).

Again, thoughts?

thanks to all

The overall running diameter of the wheel/tire packages is very close...I'm not sure there would be an alignment issue with changing to a set of winter tires.

Originally Posted by wchewbaka

Great writeup on the alignment by Capo.

Thanks, I hope the info is useful and accurate....I am just relating my experience and my on going conversation with my SA. This really is a brave new world to me.

Originally Posted by wchewbaka

Two issues for me:

First. I am assuming that the alignments are included in the warranty. Yes?

If so, this makes me lean even more towards getting the extended warranty on my 535 that I expect to take delivery around Thanksgiving. I have ordered the sport package with active integrated steering. I would think the active steering has to complicate alignment somewhat. While I love all the technology incorporated in the car - I am concerned with maintaining it over the years...

Thoughts?

Alignments? - my understanding is that BMW will cover alignments during the first 1200 miles. After 1200 miles - it becomes discretionary and/or an accommodation. My GT is my fifth BMW and I have found BMW to be accommodating when I have made a serious petition supported by facts for the repair/replacement of items outside the warranty.

Regarding active steering - you are correct that it complicates an alignment and consequently is usually more expensive. However, the info my SA related to me is that active steering on the F07, F01 and F10 will not make a bottom line difference, because our cars have eclipsed this level and require "graph alignments " (note my previous post). Graph alignment requires highly specialized up to date BMW specific knowledge, and state of the art equipment. My guess is that most independent shops will currently have neither the knowledge nor equipment.

Extended warranty? - a contentious subject - I think convincing arguments can be made for or against. Personally, I would hold off purchasing - you can always add it. As long as you add it within the first year - given your mileage is below 20K - the cost should remain the same. If I were you, I would see if you really liked the GT, assuming yes, you can solicit competitive offers from your current and/or alternative dealerships for both an extended warranty and maintenance - it's a competitive situation - warranties are commodities.

I long internally debated the issue. I usually change cars frequently and sometimes on a whim. When I purchased my GT, I was intrigued with it - I was not in love with it - and I assumed I would liquidate it in the not too distant future. Strangely....instead of tiring of the car...I have grown more sanguine towards my GT - aesthetically and dynamically - the more I drive it - the more I realize jus' how cool it is. Soooo...thinking I might just keep my GT for some time, I exercised an option I have on my GEICO policy, that provides very affordable comprehensive extended warranty coverage up to 100,000 miles, at a price substantially below BMW and other extended warranties.

Originally Posted by wchewbaka

Secondly. I wanted the 19 inch wheels because I had such a setup on my X5 which handled remarkably well for an SUV. However, the X5 19 inch wheels and performance tires do not like winters - so I have a second set of 18 inch wheels and M&S tires. I have been thinking that I would do the same for the GT - a second 18 inch setup.

BUT it sounds like there could be significant tire wear without getting realignments upon wheel change. Not very practical given the price of alignments (assuming that is not covered under warranty).

Again, thoughts?

thanks to all

A real conundrum. Switching out wheels is always an option. For me, I have come to appreciate the aesthetics of the GT and I consider larger diameter wheels to be an essential harmonizing element that serves to accentuate and bring together the dramatic sporting styling cues of the GT. The large wheels makes manifest the reality of gran turismo. Of course this comes at price....my solution was to stay with my 20 inch rims and replace my Goodyear runflats with Conti Extreme DWS - All Season High Performance tires and add a mobility kit. They are being installed as I write this......There may be no perfect solutions but I hope I found a good one.....

Originally Posted by Capobranco

.....They are being installed as I write this......There may be no perfect solutions but I hope I found a good one.....

...well sorta...

- after 12 days at my local dealer for 15K mile service and other miscellaneous issues - I finally picked up my GT late Saturday afternoon - Great! - I return my nice 328i Vert loaner and see my GT with its big Conti Extreme tires installed - let's go driving! My first impression...Nice...these Conti DWS tires are incredibly smooth and quiet - jus' amazing for all season tires.

So I get up early on Sunday AM - think Christmas in October - and run to look at my new tires. WTF....I can't believe it but there is a very important "S" missing from the small script debossed on the sidewall - my tires read D W - not "S". Wrong Tires. The dealership ordered and installed Conti Summer DWs not All Season DWS. Emailed my SA - his reaction 7 AM Monday....WTF.....

So... the dealership just delivered to my office in DC a nice 328i for me to use and took my 550i GT back....

I am told I might see my GT by this weekend.

Caveat Emptor.....

Well I finally have the correct tires on my GT - Conti Extreme DWS - Ultra Performance All Seasons.

Last week my dealership installed the wrong Conti tires - DW - which are summer Max Summer Performance tires. This was not all bad - I got a few more days with a 328i Vert loaner - and I got the opportunity to make an interesting tire comparison.

I was never a Goodyear hater - I always thought my OEM Goodyear Excellence Tires were OK. I never experienced all the problems with bubbling - although I did loose one tire to bubbles. I found the runflats mounted to my 20 inch wheels to be a comfortable ride on smooth roads. I often drive my GT in the mountains and the tires were predictable, but perhaps a little slow in terms of responsiveness. I had no issues with them in the wet, and even went through 4/5 inches of snow one night in an area of many hills to get home - I made it but my heart was in my throat for about a week. On anything less than a perfect surface, they sux. Moreover, if you should get a flat or bubble, finding a replacement is like going to L.V. - you hope lady luck will smile on you. Yeah, you didn't have to change your flat runflat on the side of the road, but what do you do when your runflat is back ordered for the foreseeable future?

Only time will tell if the Contis were a good choice. In the meantime, here are a few initial reactions...

Conti Extreme DW Max Performance Summer Tire - my GT came alive when these were installed. They are ever so slightly harsher and a tad noisier than the Goodyears but offered exquisite road feel - you really feel the texture of the road in the steering wheel. At all times you have a sense of what the wheels are doing. Handling was much sharper, and the GT responded quickly and very predictably. A nice tire but perhaps a little edgy for the GT.

Conti DWS Ultra Performance All Seasons - compliant is the word - wonderfully compliant. The effortless character of the GT and the slightly soft (compared to the ContiDWs) seems to be a natural pairing. From a seat of the pants perspective, the DWSs are more responsive than the Goodyears and offer a far superior riding experience especially on my 20 inch wheels. They offer wonderful feel but are not quite so textural as the DWs. In the wet, they seem to track well, but my experience to date in the wet has been limited. I hope, they work as others have said in light snow.

I was frightened for many months to ditch my runflats - despite the advice and experience of some on this forum. My initial reaction is all positive - I hope I feel this way in a few months.

My LS2 run flats are down to the wear bars at 17k miles. Yeesh.

I have a BMW 520D M Sport Touring and in Dec 2011 had 2 punctures at the same time due to excessive tyre wear on the inside of the two rear tyres (image attached). I paid £600 for 2 new tyres and after 5,000 miles and 3 months use the tyres have worn to smooth as before on the inside of the tyres but mainly on the rear left tyre. (image attached)

The car is with the dealer who say they have checked everything and cannot find any fault with the car or the settings for the wheels.

Anyone had a similar problem and had some success with a solution?

Originally Posted by lexhair

My LS2 run flats are down to the wear bars at 17k miles. Yeesh.

Youve done your time, now ditch the run flats. Run flats on an 80K BMW performance car are absurd. Im not going to start the diatribe again. It's just another expense I tack on to the purchase price of a BMW. Have to ditch the run flats and buy performance tires that are matched for this car.

Mind boggling all the engineering that goes into these cars and they spew this crap about run flat tires. Ill never understand it.

Originally Posted by TonyD8

I have a BMW 520D M Sport Touring and in Dec 2011 had 2 punctures at the same time due to excessive tyre wear on the inside of the two rear tyres (image attached). I paid £600 for 2 new tyres and after 5,000 miles and 3 months use the tyres have worn to smooth as before on the inside of the tyres but mainly on the rear left tyre. (image attached)

The car is with the dealer who say they have checked everything and cannot find any fault with the car or the settings for the wheels.

Anyone had a similar problem and had some success with a solution?

That wear pattern looks weird, as it seems to wear out the most at the edge, but not much of the rest. I had inside thread wear on a BMW before (and I believe it is to be expected, due to wheel geometry), but mine was on the inside 30% of the tire, not almost exclusively the edge, like in your case. Let us know if you can get them to do at least a free alignment.

Originally Posted by The BoatMan

Youve done your time, now ditch the run flats. Run flats on an 80K BMW performance car are absurd. Im not going to start the diatribe again. It's just another expense I tack on to the purchase price of a BMW. Have to ditch the run flats and buy performance tires that are matched for this car.

Mind boggling all the engineering that goes into these cars and they spew this crap about run flat tires. Ill never understand it.

I'm embarrassed to ask but what's your suggestion for replacement? I'll trade some performance for better handling in the wet/sloppy. My local tire guy pushes Nokians hard and I've had very good experience with them on my '04 325xi as year round tires.

I'm very happy with the Conti's DWS in the X5...and Capo had them on his former GT so you may want to ask him.

Having a car with and one without runflats now makes the crappy ride of the runflats ever more noticeable.

Nokian makes at least a couple of tires that should work on a GT. Their newest is also supposed to be a low rolling resistance tire. I've used their winter tires before, but not their all-season tires. Harder to find, but if you have a good local dealer, might be worth a shot.

Originally Posted by jadnashuanh

Nokian makes at least a couple of tires that should work on a GT. Their newest is also supposed to be a low rolling resistance tire. I've used their winter tires before, but not their all-season tires. Harder to find, but if you have a good local dealer, might be worth a shot.

Yes. I had the WRG2 (two sets) and they were really solid in the wet and slushy. It's available in the 245/50R18 for my GT.

If you have a local Discount Tire near you, they will price match a print out from an internet discounter, at least my local did. Discount wheel warehouse has good pricing on some tires.

I just paid for Michelin PS A/S+ in 19s for some wheels I will order this week. Discount tire in GA has a $100 mail in rebate on 4 tires today. I also got them to credit half of the sales tax back since I would not have to pay tax for a mail ordered tire. Paid additional for full replacement warranty and they credited one of those back, so 3 for 4 on the full replacement certificate.

The same place took care of me back in Nov. when I put Michelin LTX M/S2s on my Denali pickup.

Originally Posted by Capobranco

Well I finally have the correct tires on my GT - Conti Extreme DWS - Ultra Performance All Seasons.

Last week my dealership installed the wrong Conti tires - DW - which are summer Max Summer Performance tires. This was not all bad - I got a few more days with a 328i Vert loaner - and I got the opportunity to make an interesting tire comparison.

I was never a Goodyear hater - I always thought my OEM Goodyear Excellence Tires were OK. I never experienced all the problems with bubbling - although I did loose one tire to bubbles. I found the runflats mounted to my 20 inch wheels to be a comfortable ride on smooth roads. I often drive my GT in the mountains and the tires were predictable, but perhaps a little slow in terms of responsiveness. I had no issues with them in the wet, and even went through 4/5 inches of snow one night in an area of many hills to get home - I made it but my heart was in my throat for about a week. On anything less than a perfect surface, they sux. Moreover, if you should get a flat or bubble, finding a replacement is like going to L.V. - you hope lady luck will smile on you. Yeah, you didn't have to change your flat runflat on the side of the road, but what do you do when your runflat is back ordered for the foreseeable future?

Only time will tell if the Contis were a good choice. In the meantime, here are a few initial reactions...

Conti Extreme DW Max Performance Summer Tire - my GT came alive when these were installed. They are ever so slightly harsher and a tad noisier than the Goodyears but offered exquisite road feel - you really feel the texture of the road in the steering wheel. At all times you have a sense of what the wheels are doing. Handling was much sharper, and the GT responded quickly and very predictably. A nice tire but perhaps a little edgy for the GT.

Conti DWS Ultra Performance All Seasons - compliant is the word - wonderfully compliant. The effortless character of the GT and the slightly soft (compared to the ContiDWs) seems to be a natural pairing. From a seat of the pants perspective, the DWSs are more responsive than the Goodyears and offer a far superior riding experience especially on my 20 inch wheels. They offer wonderful feel but are not quite so textural as the DWs. In the wet, they seem to track well, but my experience to date in the wet has been limited. I hope, they work as others have said in light snow.

I was frightened for many months to ditch my runflats - despite the advice and experience of some on this forum. My initial reaction is all positive - I hope I feel this way in a few months.

I'm almost certain I will be switching to non-RFT tires soon. Have 20k miles on Goodyear Excellence 19" wheels. They have been the only (huge) disappointment about the car. The loudest tires I know of. It sounds like I'm In a 4x4 with snow tires. I dread long highway drives.

You mentioned the DWs were a bit noisier...what about the DWS version? I would like all season for rain and longer tread life.

I am looking for the quietest tires possible that fit my wheels. Performance is not a huge issue. When I want to carve up mountain roads I'll get an M3. A car of this size, class (GT), and cost should provide a much more sedan-like experience IMHO.

I may start a new thread on this as I can't be the only owner with this noise issue.

Thanks...