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Ride harshness: 19" wheels vs. RF's

1K views 13 replies 11 participants last post by  Shon528 
#1 ·
So my F30 is the first car of this size on which I've had 19's. I also have run-flats. While I love the way the 19's look, I've had a few passengers complain about how harsh the ride is when we're negotiating pot-hole filled urban roads, even when I have it in Comfort mode. I personally never noticed it much until I test drove a 4401 GC a couple of weeks ago. The 18's and non-run-flats felt night and day compared to my current set up.

My question: is the harshness on imperfect roads caused more by the run-flats or more by the 19's?
 
#2 ·
both.
 
#3 ·
Ride harshness: 19" wheels vs. RF's



^^^this

Coming from an E90 with 17" rims and RF tires, I expected a harsher ride with my M4. Non-RF tires are all the difference

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#6 ·
FWIW I dont feel the ride is harsh on my 19s on my 435, but like most things its all relative. I also have the adjustable M suspension. In sport mode it can be a little rough so when I have passengers I use comfort mode. When its just me I drive in sport mode almost exclusively.
 
#7 ·
Our car came with 19" run flats. Had them remove these and replace with 18" non-RF's. Made a huge difference. The non-RF decision was simple, but I had to make the 18 or 19" decision on the spot and reasoned the only thing good about 19's is aesthetics. So went with the 18's and very happy about it. That's my story and I am sticking to it.

So, I think it is both, but definitely the run-flats. Drove the run-flats off the lot and they were on the car for one week while I waited for my new tires, and the RF's sucked. I think the devil himself has run flats on his car. :fingers:
 
#9 ·
So the run-flats suck then? They ride harsh and perform poorly (from what I read?). The only thing good is the delayed inconvenience when they go, uhh, flat. Are they noisy? I don't have a reference to compare to, but I feel the ride is a bit noisy/stiff in sport mode. Not sure how much the M Sport package contributes to this though.
 
#10 · (Edited)
I don't think it's the Sport Pkg. When I would hit a pothole or bump with the RF's the whole cabin would shake. It was an easy decision. The only advantage to RF's is allowing you to continue to drive for a limited distance, saving you the inconvenience of getting out of the car to deal with the flat. There are a LOT of threads about the RF's here. Most do not feel they are worth it.
 
#11 ·
It's not the wheel diameter that affects ride harshness. It's the height of the sidewall (tire width x aspect ratio). I have 245/40-19's on my 535i, which have about the same sidewall height as a 225/45-18, the standard wheels on and 440i. I switched from OEM Goodyear LS2 run flats to Michelin Pilot Super Sports (non-run flats). Admittedly, I ran the LS2's over inflated to even out the tread wear. But, I generally over inflate all of my tires to do this. When I had the PSS's installed, I had the dealership also over inflate them. As I was leaving the dealership's driveway, the ride was so much better going over the gutter (between the driveway and the street) that I stopped the car and checked the tire pressures. The pressures were exactly as I had requested. The ride of the PSS's and the LS2's are as different as day and night. I waited 31k miles to ditch the LS2's. If I buy another BMW and it has RFT's, they're going away as part of new-car prep.
 
#14 ·
So my F30 is the first car of this size on which I've had 19's. I also have run-flats. While I love the way the 19's look, I've had a few passengers complain about how harsh the ride is when we're negotiating pot-hole filled urban roads, even when I have it in Comfort mode. I personally never noticed it much until I test drove a 4401 GC a couple of weeks ago. The 18's and non-run-flats felt night and day compared to my current set up.

My question: is the harshness on imperfect roads caused more by the run-flats or more by the 19's?
If a passenger in my car complained about the ride, they would be more than welcome to take their own next time.

Back to the question at hand, my car came w/ 18" RF S001's and I've never found it to be overly harsh.
 
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