Snow

I have 2003 bmw 745i and i live in baltimore and sometimes we get some good snow sometimes and just curios is to how the car handles in the snow since its rear wheel drive.......any answers??

I live in New Hampshire, and the picture below was taken today.

So if you've got summer tires, it won't even move in snow, just terrible, dangerous in fact. But put a good winter set on, and it's very good in snow. I run Blizzak's and swear by them. Not afraid to go anywhere. That's them on the car in the pic

I got sport tires on and it handles fine in the Iowa winter. I was going to buy winter ones but tested the summer ones and they work just fine. Isn't it a little late for snow tires anyways?

lol yes

I assume your sport tire is an all season tire. Glad they work for you.

I was running summer tires, Michelin Primacy 19's, and they wouldn't move the car in 1 inch of snow on flat ground. So I went straight to the 4 Blizzack's on a set of 18 in rims based on recommendations here on Bimmerfest. I don't mind switching the wheels over since in the spring I like the look of the 19's so much more than the 18's. Very satisfied

I'm with Pedro. 18" Blizzaks were fantastic on a steep incline, 4" fresh powder on top of very hard pack. I mashed the accelerator to get a sense of what it would take to break the traction. It would do it but the car was accelerating up hill very well. I was quite impressed. I also run summer tires and can confirm they are dangerous in snow. I bought my car in Idaho in December of '09. It came with Kumho performance summer tires on it. The roads were fine until I hit Jersey......wet snow. I have to tell you my palms were not exactly dry. Very slight movements on the gas pedal caused the rear to slip sideways, and at one point on a slight incline, I was really afraid I was going to be stuck since heavy traffic had the road slow going.

For me it comes down to safety. I want tires that stop in the shortest distance possible. Summer tires don't last as long, but they grip better wet or dry. Winter tires are single season only and honestly require a second set of rims and a place to store it all; but they stop and start very well on ice and snow comparatively. No brainer as far as I'm concerned. 10 feet of stopping distance can be the difference of a hit or miss.

j

Originally Posted by pedro2u

I assume your sport tire is an all season tire. Glad they work for you.

I was running summer tires, Michelin Primacy 19's, and they wouldn't move the car in 1 inch of snow on flat ground. So I went straight to the 4 Blizzack's on a set of 18 in rims based on recommendations here on Bimmerfest. I don't mind switching the wheels over since in the spring I like the look of the 19's so much more than the 18's. Very satisfied

+1

Snow of any depth make it seem like driving with hard, plastic tires. The scariest part is when you can actually move and find yourself in a skid...

19" summer tires on a 7 and snow on the ground in New England and you're not moving anywhere. I loved my Dunlop SP Winter Sports, but they've been discontinued and now I have fresh 18" Pirelli Winter Sottozero Series II on the rears (still have a pair of Dunlops on the front). I have yet to try the Pirelli's in the snow. Got Blizzacks on the wife's SUV and they work great, but are only T rated (118 MPH) so on the 7, well, that won't do once and a while even though it's winter time ... The summer tires are 19" Dunlop SP Sport Maxx TT's which work great on the road and on the track, but they completely suck in the snow.

Originally Posted by pedro2u

I live in New Hampshire, and the picture below was taken today.

So if you've got summer tires, it won't even move in snow, just terrible, dangerous in fact. But put a good winter set on, and it's very good in snow. I run Blizzak's and swear by them. Not afraid to go anywhere. That's them on the car in the pic

Can you link which one specifically are you using? Im thinking about getting them in the summer when they might be cheaper. Also, do you use all 4? or only the rear 2 is enough?
Thanks!

You really need to have all four tires match, especially when it comes to snow tires.

thanks! any suggestions for which blizzak to buy?

I run the WS60's and they work fine even in deep snow. They also make a WS70, a bit more but not sure what the performance improvement is over what I'm already happy with

Just curious...DO y'all switch tires on the same rim? Or do you maintain a completely second set of rims+tires and switch them in Spring and winter?

I'm in Massachusetts and I have a 2nd set of wheels and snow tires! It's a MUST have on these cars for sure...well, if you want to be able to drive in the snow that is.

^^ What he said.... a second set of wheels/tires for sure.... that way you ahve snows ready to go and since they are not all season and not on all the time both sets of tires will "last longer" or at least you wont have to buy new tires so often, so it will feel cheaper lol... If I lved in snow this is what i would do to my cars.... But alas, its socal for me and the mtn driving is not so bad for me here, like 2 weekends a winter lol.... and when its snowing chains are required.... so winter tires or summer tires dont matter.....

I have a 2nd set of rims. I found a mint set of stock 18's for $500 delivered from an auto salvage place in Ohio. I "think" I named them on here some long time ago.... After the first season outlay, you are golden. And you sorta can't wait for the mucky weather to hit, knowing you are going to be just fine when it does.

As an aside, in many ways I prefer the ride on the winter 18's to my 19's. The cornering isn't as good, but for cruising and road feel, much better on the smaller rims. I wonder what 22's must feel like!

I have the Blizzak's on a set of 18's (not staggered) and run the summer Michelin's (staggered) on the 19's

My family keeps the tires on separate rims so the tire beads don't wear out from mounting/dismounting.

If you look around on the internet like on Craigslist, you can find a good deal on winter tire/wheel package.

My rims and tires were on a local Craigslist for $1000 from a wholesale car dealer. Driven only for 100 miles and were pretty much brand new.