Expensive Sport Tires!

Have had the misfortune of getting a screw in my rear passenger tire on my 2011 335d Sport. The local Bridgestone/Firestone shop was very nice in taking a look at what was causing my TPM to complain, and found it.

Thankfully, I opted for the Tire and Wheel package! Apparently, the selling dealership put new tires on the car, and they told me that they are some new model from Bridgestone. The "I" designation is what indicates the newest generation. RE 050A I

Photo of Tire Sidewall

(BTW, is it possible to share a picture directly from Flickr? The system seems to want a link ending in an image file type, like .jpg or .png. The shared Flickr links don't work for me.)

Replacement cost would have been $471 for the rear tire if I were buying it directly from them!

Yeow! I knew that performance tires were expensive, and I knew that run-flats were expensive. But this is just crazy!

Originally Posted by Maybe335d

Have had the misfortune of getting a screw in my rear passenger tire on my 2011 335d Sport. The local Bridgestone/Firestone shop was very nice in taking a look at what was causing my TPM to complain, and found it.

That's one reason many people are changing to non-RFT.

However, did you ask the Firestone shop to repair it with a plug? Unless the screw was close to the sidewall (about 1" or so), in the sidewall or you damaged the sidewall by driving too far/fast on a deflated tire, they are as repairable as a non-RFT. BMW won't do so, but Firestone (and most shops) will.

Summer performance tires cost a bunch; you'd only be saving around $75-$100 for a non-RFT.

I wonder if that I means they are 3rd generation RFTs. I had heard Bridgestone was working on them and that they rode a little more smoothly than 2nd gen ones.

I'm planning on buying "go flats". Sounds better than the term "non run-flats" to me . My cars has close to 19,000 miles so in the next 6 months i figure it will be time.

That is insane.

Michelin PSS rears for my M3 are $319 at tirerack.

Originally Posted by floydarogers

That's one reason many people are changing to non-RFT.

However, did you ask the Firestone shop to repair it with a plug? Unless the screw was close to the sidewall (about 1" or so), in the sidewall or you damaged the sidewall by driving too far/fast on a deflated tire, they are as repairable as a non-RFT. BMW won't do so, but Firestone (and most shops) will.

Summer performance tires cost a bunch; you'd only be saving around $75-$100 for a non-RFT.

The screw was on the edge, and according to the tech, in a place that would be unfixable for any tire.

Been there. One week after getting my used (service loaner) 335d, picked up a screw less than 1" from the sidewall. But the non-sport 17" conti only cost about $200 installed. In general I am happy with the 3rd gen runflats and even in non-sport form has never run out of grip for me. Looks like I will get about 30K miles out of the rears and 60K out of the fronts so no complaints on wear rate.

I do notice that when going over the numerious potholes in NJ while it does not feel too bad, it sounds real bad giving a loud bang. Also with the non-sport am not a fan of the soft shock valveing needed to compensate to for the stiff run flats. I think they could have at least set the rebound a bit stiffer, especially in the rear.

The ride on this car is better than I had expected, given my previous runflat experience on the MINI Countryman. Not unpleasantly loud, and the handling has been fine. Not that I drive like Mario Andretti, ...

Maybe it is these newer runflats?

I don't know what size tire you got, but I bet Tire Rack or Discount Tire has it for $100 less, AND you can buy their hazard insurance for around $10 a tire. Dealers around my way are notoriously expensive for tire related stuff...and just about anything else for that matter.

+1. Just got a brand new set of 4 PSS' for my d this weekend from Discount Tire for $800 installed with the labor day special. I thought that was expensive already haha

Originally Posted by Lance Alot

I don't know what size tire you got, but I bet Tire Rack or Discount Tire has it for $100 less, AND you can buy their hazard insurance for around $10 a tire. Dealers around my way are notoriously expensive for tire related stuff...and just about anything else for that matter.

According to the dealer invoice, the tire itself, without labor, was $407.61. I was responsible for a $50 deductible.

Boy they tricked falk you LOL. Anyway I have the HANKOOK Ventus and man Im surprised these tires have handled Puerto Rico Roads greatly, I have also the Factory Conti's Run Flat and they rode very good, In the past i have used the Goodyear Run Flats and for me the best were the Goodyear "EXCELLENCE" although expensive i manage almost 2 1/2 years of driving them, not bad for Puerto Rico!!!

Originally Posted by Lance Alot

I don't know what size tire you got, but I bet Tire Rack or Discount Tire has it for $100 less, AND you can buy their hazard insurance for around $10 a tire. Dealers around my way are notoriously expensive for tire related stuff...and just about anything else for that matter.

Looks like TireRack has them for $378 each, so the dealer isn't marking them up too bad.

And I already have the insurance, so... $50 it is!

Dealers and local tire outfits are finally getting wise to the on-line competition. If you use their often offered buy 3 and get one free, or other improved pricing, I have found when you include the cost of mounting/balancing, the differences between dealer/local and on-line is not all that great. On-line will still be less expensive, but with the difference of less than $20 a tire, usually is not worth the hassle if you want to maintain a good relationship with your local suppliers.

Originally Posted by KeithS

Dealers and local tire outfits are finally getting wise to the on-line competition. If you use their often offered buy 3 and get one free, or other improved pricing, I have found when you include the cost of mounting/balancing, the differences between dealer/local and on-line is not all that great. On-line will still be less expensive, but with the difference of less than $20 a tire, usually is not worth the hassle if you want to maintain a good relationship with your local suppliers.

I definitely agree with you re the value of a good relationship with local suppliers; in this case, it's my dealership. There certainly was value for me in being able to pull up to the BMW service department and have the new tire installed and balanced, as well as recalls being checked on (and having one done) in just over an hour!

I could've saved a few dollars if I had wanted to handle all of it myself, but this way I didn't have to.

While one can argue as to where the wheels and tires coverage from BMW is a good decision, given that I'd already made that decision, it was a relatively painless morning!

Originally Posted by Maybe335d

Looks like TireRack has them for $378 each, so the dealer isn't marking them up too bad.

And I already have the insurance, so... $50 it is!

I'm not trying to be snotty, and you certainly can't complain about only paying $50 since you had the insurance, but it sounds like the dealer is pricing this tire for almost $100 more than tire rack each if I"m following this thread correctly. If you take that into account with the price of the tire warranty, I'm guessing the dealer is still coming out way ahead

Last year, the dealer tried to charge me $400 for a tire, mount, and balance. I was able to get the exact same thing done at Wheel Works for around $250 (with lifetime free balancing), so I'm very dubious of dealer pricing on tires. Of course, maybe it's just a SF Bay thing.

And Tire Rack appears to have the tire for $346 ($124 less than the $470 dealer price)...

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....port%20Package

Originally Posted by Lance Alot

And Tire Rack appears to have the tire for $346 ($124 less than the $470 dealer price)...

...

To be clear, the $470 price was quoted by Bridgestone's retail store, NOT the BMW dealership. The BMW actual price was $407.

So, here's what we've seen:

The Bridgestone retail is the most expensive for this particular tire @ $471. Given that they are the manufacturer, I'm not really surprised. Let the distributors take the margin hit.

The BMW dealership was the middle price @ $407.

Tire Rack is the least expensive identified so far @ $346. (I could swear when I last looked the price was $378, but I can't seem to find that anymore. My bad!)

The big thing for me, which is a mild diversion from the subject of this thread, is that I am not in a hurry to replace these RFTs with traditional tires, like I was with the 18 inch RFT's on my recently traded CountryMan!

The ride, the amount of noise, and the handling - no problems! This is from someone who has had an R32, a Passat W8, an A4, the aforementioned CountryMan, and a JCW Mini Convertible! All had either actual "Sport" packages or were models that have "Sport" configurations standard, like a JCW Mini Convertible or the R32.

Expensive tires, yes, even at the best price, but I am pleased with them, so far!