[NRudy]

Hi all,

I currently have Bridgestone potenzas (18") on my 335i. The fronts have good tread, the rears are almost done.

Im looking at replacing them, now i can simply replace the rears for new rft potenza's but im considering going for some michelin pilot super sports non rfts all round.

The main issue i find with rft is tramlining. The rear end grip isnt great once the rears wear in.

Has anyone switched from rtfs on a modern bmw, was there a noticable improvement? Also did you find any problems in doing this aside from the obvious implications of getting a puncture without a spare. I mean alot of modern cars use compressors and goop now anyway so i doubt thats a big deal.

[Shorty1608]

Loads of threads on here about this, it's one of the first things a lot of e9x owners do, the grip is increased, road noise reduced, comfort increased, tramlining is reduced or stopped, and the back end becomes less twitchy when in a bend and hitting say a grid or something.
Most just carry a can or two of the tyre foam to see them through if they pick up a puncture

[pmmcbl]

That's my an when my current tyres go. Sadly you must replace all at the same time if you are moving from away from run flats. For me the road roise is the biggest problem. The ride is ok but they drive much better on normal rubber.

[Aragorn30d]

Theres no legal or technical requirement to replace them all. Do an axle at a time as and when they wear out if you like.

Yes, the tyres will have slightly different characteristics, but its not any different to putting michelins on one end and bridgestones on the other or whatever.

[essex-man]

I changed to non RFT's 7 months ago on my E93. Best thing I ever done in terms of ride quality and handling, and it will help (only help) prevent cracks appearing on my 19's.

I just carry 2 cans of gunk, a pump, and my breakdown companies phone number.

[Vish8895]

I'll be doing this next week. Ditching the 255/30/19 Potenzas for some nice non-rft tyres, can't wait!

[half Colin]

Originally Posted by Shorty1608

Loads of threads on here about this, it's one of the first things a lot of e9x owners do, the grip is increased, road noise reduced, comfort increased, tramlining is reduced or stopped, and the back end becomes less twitchy when in a bend and hitting say a grid or something.
Most just carry a can or two of the tyre foam to see them through if they pick up a puncture

+1 well +2 really as I first replaced runflats on my Z4 then E92 and agree entirely - big improvement all round and no big deal not carrying a spare. Just do it.

[Rich_D]

RFT's are terrible, best thing I ever did swapping them

[Vish8895]

Yes there's two considerations really:

Insurance and breakdown recovery.

Some insurers may see the non-standard tyre type as a modification. Thankfully mine are happy for me to switch with no premium increase!

Breakdown cover however is a different ball game. I was speaking to a tech at a tyre shop and he was suggesting that the breakdown company may charge you for recovery if the car is designed to be able to drive with a flat but your own doing has prevented this happening. E.g if you breakdown on a motorway and they ask you to drive to the service station or something but you cant.

Not sure how true this is because if you had a car with non-RFTs they wouldn't expect you to. Just a consideration he advised me to think of. I'll just carry some tyre gunk to be safe!

[cbmotorsport]

Just changed my rear boots (19" Bridgestone RFT's) to Falken FK453 non RFT's. The car is a massive improvement as per the reasons given above.

The Bridgestone RFT's on the front still have plenty of life in them - I will change them to non RFT's when the time comes.

[Vish8895]

Originally Posted by cbmotorsport

Just changed my rear boots (19" Bridgestone RFT's) to Falken FK453 non RFT's. The car is a massive improvement as per the reasons given above.

The Bridgestone RFT's on the front still have plenty of life in them - I will change them to non RFT's when the time comes.

This is exactly what I'm doing. Swapping the rear potenzas for non rft then waiting for the fronts to go and doing the same

[NRudy]

Im going to put a full set of goodyear eagle F1's non rfts on at end of this month.

My fronts will probably still have 2 mil or so on them so i might sell those and just have new tyres all around. I did read up somewhere that having non rfts rear and rtfs on the front is bad for the balance of the E9x not sure how true that is though.

[old grey steve]

Changed to Conti Sport Contect 5p's some 3 years ago from he runflats rides a lot better tyre wear (especially the inner rear sidewalls) seem to wear less with rear set up as per BMW spec( adjusted to a different spec this July) but wear is certainly better ride is better its a little quieter.

The only thing I would say is tyre pressures need to be observed, you'll find an ideal setting it won't mirror the factory set up as that is for runflats, I'm settled on 39PSI front 43PSI rears nad so far settled on this set up but experiment accordingly is the best advise I can give you... but its worthwhile going down this route.