XI OWNERS -tire recomendations?

kubica - haha nice runs, looking forward to seeing you at the next auto-x

I am hoping that my 17x9 ET41, 245/40 will fit when I have them mounted tomorrow to replace my stock conti's...which replaced my 19" miro m6 reps.

The offset should be adequate, but who knows what'll happen?

Originally Posted by nickchuck

I have Yokohama ADVAN S.4's on my xi and love em. I run 2 different sizes, wider in the back stock size in the front though.

You got pics?

Originally Posted by Kubica

Ok. Ok. Ok. On 17" wheels, you want 225/45-17. You can also do 205/50-17, which came on most of our xi's. The 205 will be better in snow, the 225 everywhere else but gas mileage.

You can do a 235 or 245 width tire on our cars with no rubbing issues, provided they are on the right offset wheels. Since we are talking all seasons here, I would stick with a 225. Also, my stock wheels were 17x7, so the biggest tire you want to put on there is a 225 anyway. I think the later xi 5-spokes are 7.5 or 8 inches wide.

Snow tires are a tough call- if they are hardcore, I would put 205's on there. If they are performance winters, I would go 225.

I just took my 235/40/18 vredesteins off and put the dreaded stock 205/50/17 conti all seasons on for a month or two before my studded nokian hakkas go on for winter. Gas mileage went through the roof: +4mpg.

Djparallel- whatup? I met you at the autox a couple months back.

Continental tires- they just don't do it for me. They don't holdup well on bad roads. The only reason I have them now is because my last set- two bubbled out and a third one leaked, so they gave me a new set.

I still have a 205/50-17 contitouring brand new with sticker if anyone needs it.

What would you think about splitting the difference and going with a 215/50-17 (although I like the idea of droppingthe car a tad with 45s)?

How about some votes?

Brand:
Goodyear Eagle GT
Bridgestone Potenza GO19 grid
Conti Extreme Contact DWS
Dunlop SP sport signature

Size:
205/50-17
215/50-17
225/45-17

I have 17x7 wheels...

Its best to keep the tire diameter as close to stock as possible. This affects your speedo readout.

width in mm x aspect ratio = sidewall height in mm
convert mm to inches
multiply sidewall X2
add wheel diameter to get overall diameter

205 x .5 = 102.5 mm
102.5 / 25.4 = 4.035"
4.035" x 2 = 8.071"
8.071" + 17" = 25.071" dia

plus 1
225 x .45 / 25.4 = 3.986"
(3.986 x 2) + 17 = 24.972" dia
25.071 - 24.972 = .099" difference in dia

You get the idea.

Also tires will present an identical area or contact patch for a given pressure to the road surface, about the shape of your upturned palm. The patch is oriented two different ways. A wide tire (225) will present a crosswise patch while a narrower tire will be oriented 90 degrees or hand inline with the direction of travel. A wide tire tends to build up snow and/or water sooner because of the wide cross section aka hydroplaning.

Not much difference between your choices. You would mostly notice differences in rubber compound and tread design. Always a tough choice though as the manufactures are all very close these days. Good luck.

Wow! I can't believe the bad reviews for the Conti's in this post. They are made in Germany along with the beloved cars we speak of. The Conti DWS get great reviews on TireRack.
wax

I am leaning towards size 225/45-17 in either a Conti DWS, Bridgestone G 019 grid or a GY Eagle GT... Any last thoughts?

Originally Posted by VMRWheels

Goodyear Eagle GT's have been working out very well for out customers. There are a huge amount of reviews on the TireRack.com if you would like to check them out.

-Charles@VMRWheels

How do the Eagle GTs do in the snow? I read some less that stellar reviews from users on Tire Rack on thier light snow abilities.

Originally Posted by pjo33us

What would you think about splitting the difference and going with a 215/50-17 (although I like the idea of droppingthe car a tad with 45s)?

I think a 215 size tire is weird on an e46. I think they came on some e39's.

Yes. 225/45/17 is the tire you want. If i was buying a new all season tire, i would go for the Nokian WR or WRG2. They seem to be most geared towards snow of any all-season tire. I have heard they have low-rolling resistance for good gas mileage, destroy the snow, and last a long time.

I just put yokohama ADVAN's on mine yesterday. So far im very pleased with them. Tons and tons of grip.

Originally Posted by Kubica

I think a 215 size tire is weird on an e46. I think they came on some e39's.

Yes. 225/45/17 is the tire you want. If i was buying a new all season tire, i would go for the Nokian WR or WRG2. They seem to be most geared towards snow of any all-season tire. I have heard they have low-rolling resistance for good gas mileage, destroy the snow, and last a long time.

Going 225/45/17 on a set of Conti DWS s... I will post a initial feedback on this thread in a couple of weeks.

Those Nokians sound great but they are pricey.

I thought this tire rack link might be helpful for anyone else looking at tires for thier XI...

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/....jsp?ttid=124&

It shows the new Conti DWS as the clear winner on the snowpack in the all-season space.

From my experience... 4 different tire sizes at each corner works best. GL

Originally Posted by Project330i

From my experience... 4 different tire sizes at each corner works best. GL

Please explain...

Originally Posted by pjo33us

Going 225/45/17 on a set of Conti DWS s... I will post a initial feedback on this thread in a couple of weeks.

Those Nokians sound great but they are pricey.

I think the DWS was a good choice. Be interested to hear your feedback. I will never buy another Good Year tire. You are right the Nokians are pricy but they get rave reviews.
Wax

Originally Posted by waxman

I think the DWS was a good choice. Be interested to hear your feedback. I will never buy another Good Year tire. You are right the Nokians are pricy but they get rave reviews.
Wax

Read the Tire Rack review I posted ... The DWS blew away the other tires in snow performance. Of course that does beg the question on dry handling!

I will post on this thread in a week or so once I get thise new kicks put on.

going back to conti's... i'm not a fan because they ride a little too harsh and they'll a little on the loud side (from my/my dad's experience). consider the general exclaim uhp.

Originally Posted by Messe46

going back to conti's... i'm not a fan because they ride a little too harsh and they'll a little on the loud side (from my/my dad's experience). consider the general exclaim uhp.

Exclaim UHPs do not (I do not think) have the snow capability of the new Contis... I do hear you on the harshness/noise though.

Originally Posted by pjo33us

Exclaim UHPs do not (I do not think) have the snow capability of the new Contis... I do hear you on the harshness/noise though.

that could be very true, but if you want a little more grip in the dry...definitely consider the UHP's. and i think you also said that you winters are not like boston winters, etc. you might be happier with the UHP's. but still up to you. i know i'm going to be getting UHP's come spring.

Edit: xi does give a slight advantage over what tires we can choose for an all-season.

Originally Posted by pjo33us

Read the Tire Rack review I posted ... The DWS blew away the other tires in snow performance. Of course that does beg the question on dry handling!

I will post on this thread in a week or so once I get thise new kicks put on.

So what was the verdict? How do you like them? I was almost about the buy them as they seem to be the perfect tire, but I've read the sidewalls are very flexy. This wouldnt work for me in the summer with autox and possible track days....

Thoughts?