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[justrx]

Hey everyone. Looking to do a mild drop with my 335is. Don't want anything too aggressive and want to continue to use my stock 19" 313s with run flats. How is the ride quality with RFTs? What do you think of front wheel perches vs springs/shock combo, and coilovers? thx in advance!

[Turkeybaster115]

If you're going to lower the thing, ditch the stock shocks for some Koni Yellows.

[PKL]

I was just going to say, you got an is, you want to lower, isnt one of the first obvious mods for this car "regular" tires??? duh

[PKL]

When I get my 335i, first mods within 7 days of ownership will be tint and "regular" tires. and CDV mod. thats about all these cars need.

[JayKay335i]

RFTs are actually awesome. Sidewalls stiff as a vegas hookers tits. I almost miss them.

[PKL]

Originally Posted by JayKay335i

RFTs are actually awesome. Sidewalls stiff as a vegas hookers tits. I almost miss them.

youre the first person I know who has something positive to say. most people say when they switch to regular tires its like night and day.

[norcal_cyclist]

It is like night and day.. your first line of defense against an uneven road surface are the tires. Having a overly stiff sidewall will cause the car to feel more "jarring". Larger regular road imperfections, small rollers etc are unaffected. We see BMW wheels with cracks around the inside lip due to the force being sent directly to the wheel rather than being soaked up by the sidewall (conjecture at this point but we never see it on wheels w/o RFT's)

However that said with or without runflats is not an issue when lowering a car. As a matter of fact you'll probably NOT notice any additional stiffness in the ride due to the RFT's.

[JayKay335i]

Originally Posted by vmwerks

It is like night and day.. your first line of defense against an uneven road surface are the tires. Having a overly stiff sidewall will cause the car to feel more "jarring". Larger regular road imperfections, small rollers etc are unaffected. We see BMW wheels with cracks around the inside lip due to the force being sent directly to the wheel rather than being soaked up by the sidewall (conjecture at this point but we never see it on wheels w/o RFT's)

However that said with or without runflats is not an issue when lowering a car. As a matter of fact you'll probably NOT notice any additional stiffness in the ride due to the RFT's.

I'd have to disagree. My OEM RFTs definitely gave me less body roll than my Genera UHPs.

[chromisdesigns]

Originally Posted by JayKay335i

RFTs are actually awesome. Sidewalls stiff as a vegas hookers tits. I almost miss them.

And the beating they give you and the car is as bad as her pimp's!

[JayKay335i]

Originally Posted by chromisdesigns

And the beating they give you and the car is as bad as her pimp's!

Never really bothered me.

[axis]

Originally Posted by JayKay335i

I'd have to disagree. My OEM RFTs definitely gave me less body roll than my Genera UHPs.

That's not body roll, it's sidewall flex. General Exclaim UHP have a pretty soft sidewall.

[Quick6EF]

Jay youre nuts man, RFTs are the devil.

[e92ben]

My 07 335 was slammed on rfts. Wasn't bad at all. Just get an alignment after at your local BMW dealer

[TOPEC]

imo the run flats r great if handling is ur priority because of the stiff sidewalls making the tires flex less under cornering giving a more direct feeling, but ull have to tolerate the stiff ride arond town

if all u care abt is comfort and not performance then ditch the runflats for some "regular" tires

[JayKay335i]

Originally Posted by axis

That's not body roll, it's sidewall flex. General Exclaim UHP have a pretty soft sidewall.

And sidewall flex is a bitch. Makes you feel as though you've got a ton of body roll and that you're all loosey goosey in the corner while in reality you've got plenty of bite.

Give me some steel side walled general UHPs.

[chromisdesigns]

Originally Posted by JayKay335i

And sidewall flex is a bitch. Makes you feel as though you've got a ton of body roll and that you're all loosey goosey in the corner while in reality you've got plenty of bite.

Give me some steel side walled general UHPs.

I see you live in North Dakota -- maybe the roads are actually **paved** there (and not with pothole fixes!) But in the cities like where I live, the roads suck. So do the runflats running on them.

Plus, I think runflats are actually dangerous in bumpy corners because of the horrible hopping -- when they are in the air, you have NO traction whatsoever. Can we say "OOH, I'm flying sideways!"...?

I switched to conventional hi-performance Michelins and they stay on the pavement much better than the OEM Bridgestone Bricks. That alone was worth the switch. Plus the ride is way better, they last longer, and cost less. Turn-in? Just fine, thanks.

[JayKay335i]

Originally Posted by chromisdesigns

I see you live in North Dakota -- maybe the roads are actually **paved** there (and not with pothole fixes!) But in the cities like where I live, the roads suck. So do the runflats running on them.

Plus, I think runflats are actually dangerous in bumpy corners because of the horrible hopping -- when they are in the air, you have NO traction whatsoever. Can we say "OOH, I'm flying sideways!"...?

I switched to conventional hi-performance Michelins and they stay on the pavement much better than the OEM Bridgestone Bricks. That alone was worth the switch. Plus the ride is way better, they last longer, and cost less. Turn-in? Just fine, thanks.

Oh well hurpppppderrrrrrrpppppp in the fields of ND I must have missed what its like to drive on real roads, with potholes and whatnot. And cities.....omgggzzzz. Really though, the wheel hop isn't that bad. If you pay attention while driving, avoid potholes, etc. you are fine.

The big RFT bs comes down to two things
1) People think their car is breaking because its making a loud noise when you hit a bump
2) People are cheap and don't want to replace their tires when they have bubbles


I'm on great tires now. While the grip is great I miss having stiff sidewalls. Like I said previously, give me a set of UHPs with steel sidewalls and I'd be a happy camper.

Maybe you should pick up a minivan or a cadillac. I hear they have nice soft comfy rides.

[chromisdesigns]

Really though, the wheel hop isn't that bad. If you pay attention while driving, avoid potholes, etc. you are fine. <snipped>

Maybe you should pick up a minivan or a cadillac. I hear they have nice soft comfy rides.

Actually, I almost wound up off a cliff on the coast highway in Northern California doing some..shall we say "spirited" driving...when I came around a hairpin turn to find a friggin' LEDGE running across the road. I think all 4 wheels were airborne at one point -- guess where the car was heading?

The runflats came off right after that, and I've been a happy camper ever since.

Don't mind a stiff ride -- I traded an older M3 with 150K miles for the 335 -- what I do like and expect from BMW is some compliance in the suspension so it does what it's supposed to do and keeps the rubber on the road. With the OEM runflats, BMW has a big FAIL in that regard. Ditch the runflats and everything is copacetic again.