X3: Tire and Rim Insurance

How many of you have or haven't bought the insurance and used it?

I have it but have not had to use it. I thought it was worth it given how expensive run flats can be.

Originally Posted by glennk

How many of you have or haven't bought the insurance and used it?

Purchased it.

I am against it. It a gamble, and the dealer has much better odds. Most tires themselves come with one year manufactural warranty. Chances are you will need to change run-flat tires every two years, that means half of the time you don't even need the additional warranty. Plus, you can always have the flexibility to change to cheaper and quieter normal tires.

I have it an my mother has it she has gotten three nails and replaced her tires three times at a would be cost of $1500 total so far that the warranty has covered. I think it depends on where you live, we live in the city so we have potholes and other crazy things on the road. She is about to claim for curb rash as she hit a curb so either they will fix it or replace it either way the warranty has paid for itself.

Dont have it.

Originally Posted by edbiology

...Most tires themselves come with one year manufactural warranty. ...

No more road hazard coverage as part of the warranty from OEM tire manufacturer (in the U.S. at least). I checked with my dealer service, who confirmed what I discovered on TireRack.

For what it's worth, Canadian dealers are currently pushing free excessive wear and tear insurance but I'm not sure if this is the same kind of thing. They value it at $1,159 and I can't imagine you'd need to scrub more than one curb for it to pay off. If it does indeed cover rims and tires, "free" is a pretty decent deal.

Not needed. Save the 1,500 bucks. It's like throwing money away.

Originally Posted by tango131

Not needed. Save the 1,500 bucks. It's like throwing money away.

We agree to disagree.

We did not buy it. Had a Mini Cooper with run flats and luckily, did not have a flat tire

Did not buy. I live in the city and drive about 18K miles annually and only had 4 flats after 25 years. The last 2 occurred about the same time 15 years ago when we moved into a new subdivision still with ongoing construction. Depends on where you live, but chances of incurring a flat with the heavier rubber is lessened with RFs.

Bought it. Ruff on tires

Nails in runflat can be repair despite what the dealer say, as long as you have not driven on it with zero air. $1500 will buy about 5 runflat tires, I think had maybe 2 non-repairable flat tires in my 30 years of driving in Boston. Tires insurance does come in handy for BMW with low profile tires, but on the X3, its not necessary in my opinion.

Originally Posted by The X Men

Nails in runflat can be repair despite what the dealer say, as long as you have not driven on it with zero air. $1500 will buy about 5 runflat tires, I think had maybe 2 non-repairable flat tires in my 30 years of driving in Boston. Tires insurance does come in handy for BMW with low profile tires, but on the X3, its not necessary in my opinion.

I thought it can only be repaired as long as it is located in the middle if its near the side or anywhere outside the middle of the tire it can not be repaired and must be replaced due to the integrity of the tire.

Originally Posted by jsuday06

I thought it can only be repaired as long as it is located in the middle if its near the side or anywhere outside the middle of the tire it can not be repaired and must be replaced due to the integrity of the tire.

Yes, thats the case for all tires. For runflats, if you drive on the sidewall with zero air in the tire, the sidewall will be compromise. If you patch it up after that, the next time the tire goes flat, the sidewall might no longer support the weight the of the car.

I went with the policy, not because I love insurance (I don't) but because the policy replaces damaged tires & wheels and does not repair them. I have not gotten many flats from nails/screws but have damaged some tires and wheels with e.g. New England potholes. The policy also covers Winter wheels/tires, should I choose to get these. YMMV.

I got it with my 2011x3 - it paid for itself in the first year (live in nyc where the
potholes are construction sites are deadly).

I agonized over whether or not I should get the tire warranty while waiting for my car to be built. About a month before I pick my car up I ran over a giant nail in my old car that cost me about 5 bucks to fix. After finding out that you cannot patch runflat tires I decided it would be a good investment for me I'm prone for whatever reason to to be a nail magnet when it comes to my tires. I took delivery of my car in September and by November I ran over my first nail in my new x3. I found out that a replacement tire for my car would cost me $468.78 w/o the warranty. Thankfully I decided to get the tire warranty so I only had to pay $50.

SO for the peace of mind it is worth it to me. plus the warranty is a six year warranty and is not limited to Miles to my understanding. I have already put over 10,000 miles on my car.

Have it on our new X3 picked up mid-January. Had it on previous cars as well but never used. I have the 5 year policy I believe. More interested in the wheels than the tires.

Originally Posted by jayhof

I agonized over whether or not I should get the tire warranty while waiting for my car to be built. About a month before I pick my car up I ran over a giant nail in my old car that cost me about 5 bucks to fix. After finding out that you cannot patch runflat tires I decided it would be a good investment for me I'm prone for whatever reason to to be a nail magnet when it comes to my tires. I took delivery of my car in September and by November I ran over my first nail in my new x3. I found out that a replacement tire for my car would cost me $468.78 w/o the warranty. Thankfully I decided to get the tire warranty so I only had to pay $50.

SO for the peace of mind it is worth it to me. plus the warranty is a six year warranty and is not limited to Miles to my understanding. I have already put over 10,000 miles on my car.

A nail in a tire, runflat or not, can be repair, if its not near the sidewall. Usually, with a nail, it is a slow leak, if you keep the runflat tire somewhat pressurized, it can be patch. The replacement tires on the X3 in a tire store is about $200, $470 is probably the dealer's price. If you change one tire at any major tire chain store, most chain will offer you tire insurance for all 4 tires at about $40 a tire, about 10% of what BMW charged.

Originally Posted by The X Men

A nail in a tire, runflat or not, can be repair, if its not near the sidewall. Usually, with a nail, it is a slow leak, if you keep the runflat tire somewhat pressurized, it can be patch. The replacement tires on the X3 in a tire store is about $200, $470 is probably the dealer's price. If you change one tire at any major tire chain store, most chain will offer you tire insurance for all 4 tires at about $40 a tire, about 10% of what BMW charged.

If you want OEM replacements, TireRack price is closer to $400. For me, I wanted wheel protection also. As stated before: "YMMV" .

Originally Posted by noka

If you want OEM replacements, TireRack price is closer to $400. For me, I wanted wheel protection also. As stated before: "YMMV" .

$380 is for the 18" tires, the 17" is about $180. With the size of X3's side wall, there is very little chance the rim can get damage from a pot hole, unlike the low profile tires in the BMW sedans. Even at $400 a tire, you need to replace 5 tires just to break even.
The tire and wheel insurance also does not cover against curb damage to rims. It excludes all cosmetic damage, unless your rim will not hold air or creates a balancing issue, it will not be replace under the contract:

http://www.bmwusa.com/Standard/Conte...rotection.aspx

Originally Posted by The X Men

$380 is for the 18" tires, the 17" is about $180. With the size of X3's side wall, there is very little chance the rim can get damage from a pot hole, unlike the low profile tires in the BMW sedans. Even at $400 a tire, you need to replace 5 tires just to break even.
The tire and wheel insurance also does not cover against curb damage to rims. It excludes all cosmetic damage, unless your rim will not hold air or creates a balancing issue, it will not be replace under the contract:

http://www.bmwusa.com/Standard/Conte...rotection.aspx

The price I mentioned was for 19". The 18" are about the same price. Most people have 18" or 19". Some people are happy to have the insurance and some people would never consider it. Curb damage? That's why I have the top view camera .

Originally Posted by noka

The price I mentioned was for 19". The 18" are about the same price. Most people have 18" or 19". Some people are happy to have the insurance and some people would never consider it. Curb damage? That's why I have the top view camera .

I learn how to drive in the Boston area, therefore my parallel parking skill is pretty good. I dont think I have ever had any curb damage to any of my rims.