[andrew0871]

Hi all,

My first post as a new BMW 320d Coupe M Sport owner which I took delivery of on 1st March from Westerly Exeter - who were superb!

I’ve moved from 10 years of ownership of Golf GTI’s and an Audi TT - so far (just 1,200 miles in) I am really pleased with the car. Quality and ambience is a notch up from the Audi (and VW) and the overall package of economy and performance is spot on.

My only issue (which I guessed would happen having spent the weeks of waiting for my car reading the posts on this forum) is the Bridgestone Run Flat Tyres.

When I picked up the car they seemed ok, but with a few miles on the clock and trips further afield I have decided to replace them already.

A round trip of 500 miles to Peterborough this week my mind up - high road noise, concrete on M42 made the car bounce like a cart on leaf springs, hitting cats eyes were like hitting house bricks and a braking on damp road near home was like braking on marbles. Enough said!

The reason for my post is to help other M Sport owners in their decision to 1) Dump the Run Flats and 2) Go for Michelin PS3’s.

So, 2 x 225/40/18 and 2 x 255/35/18 PS3’s will be fitted tomorrow on my driveway by e-Tyres. Whilst not the cheapest they certainly were convenient and I can keep an eye on what they are doing rather than being shoved into the tyre centre office for H&S reasons.

I will update this post tomorrow with an initial review of the PS3 and the difference in ride quality of Non Run Flats.

I hope I haven’t made a mistake, I told the wife I would sell the Bridgestone’s on eBay to cover some of the outlay on the PS3’s!

Also, just ordered the ContiComfortKit for £59 for www.care4car.com I’ll let you know a bit about this as well.

BTW: I have Logic 7 installed and it’s thumping good! Best sound system I have ever heard (way better than BOSE in Audi). Sound is crystal clear, it totally envelops you and if you turn it up you have to shout (very loud) to make your passenger 2ft away hear you. Wife said she heard me coming home from about 200 meters away - she was inside the house and we have double glazing! The bass is just so clean and precise - it’s amazing. If you are about to order a new car and not sure about it - I would say it’s the best £800 I have spent on a sound system.

[creepy coupe]

You won't be dissapointed with the ride quality.

[marcel b]

why did you go for the PS3...? Expensive and I didn't see a test in which they where on the top of the list.

[MPTREE]

Be interested in your honest opinion as mine RFT's are due for replacement....I am particulary concerned with road noise, I accept that in the M -sport it's going to be a stiffer ride, I like that, but road noise is a tad too intrusive on the RFT's...

[philreid]

Mind and post your eBay listing in case someone on the forum is interested in your old tyres...

[andrew0871]

Ref Marcel b question:

I fitted PS2’s to my Golf GTI after years of Continental Sport Contact 2’s and 3’s - the difference in handling, wet grip and refinement was like night and day and after 3,000 miles they still looked like new.

The Golf was chipped to 240bhp and would easily spin the front wheels in a straight line on a wet road in 2nd with the Conti’s fitted - the PS2’s just gripped. Just one small example of how much more confidence the PS2’s gave.

The reviews I’ve found on the WEB so far indicate the PS3 is better still in the wet and more refined than the PS2. There maybe a small trade off in tread life and dry road handling, but, as it never stops raining (apart from the last 3 weeks of sun) and I don’t like road noise I thought I would give the PS3 a go.

[mowflow]

I've only had my e90 for about 2 weeks now and to be honest I don't see what everyone is moaning about with the run flats. I was previously driving a fn2 civic type R though so I guess anything feels more civilized compared to the rock hard suspension and ear shattering road noise that you'd get in that.

I got the stealer to fit brand new tyres before I picked the car up and I asked for run flats just because it's what's supposed to be on the car and I knew it would cost him a bit more (I didn't get the car from a BMW dealership). The car currently has style 194 wheels so i'll probably be changing them for 193's with Falken 452 non run flats in the next couple of weeks as i've been offered a good deal on this as a package and everyone seems to rate these tyres. I'm actually really curious to see how much of a difference there is with non run flats as I think the car is pretty quiet and smooth even with the run flats. Then again, i'm only in a 318d so i'm not exactly going to be pushing the limits of grip.

andrew0871, it's interesting that you found a big difference between the Continental Sport Contact and the PS2's, have you tried any other tyres? I've never tried PS2's but the Sport Contacts are the worst tyres i've ever experienced by a long shot. We had them on our company pool car, a Mk V Golf GTi and it was terrifying in the wet and not much better when dry.

[andrew0871]

mowflow - I’ve had Goodyear F1’s, Pirelli PZero, Dunlop SP, the first Michelin Pilot Sport as well as the Conti’s. To be honest not a huge difference in normal driving between them all, the Zero’s turned in the best but wore out the fastest, F1’s wore quickly and were a little vague, Dunlops were all round ok and the Pilot Sport was nothing special.

Not very scientific but I think the decision of tyre choice is very subjective and will also vary between cars. I found the Conti’s ok but noise and tread wear was poor, I would only get 8,000 miles from the fronts and 14,000 from the rears.

On good roads the ride with Run Flats is fine, but as soon as I hit the single track lanes the car is jittery as it is on poorer motor way surfaces. You could live with it but having just spend over £30k on a car the shine has been taken off the joy of ownership by a ride that doesn’t reflect the price tag.

[Jules6]

You shouldn't really just make the assumption that because they don't work on a front drive car that it will be the same on rear drive.

PS3s are good tyres as it turns out, but the Contisport 3s are also favoured by many (myself included).

I had Contisport 2s as OE on my E46 M3 and then PS2s when they were discontinued. Both as good as each other IMHO.

Either way they are a massive improvement over the Bridgestone run flats.

[Jeff123]

Hi

Just got rid of my RFT's today. I don't tear around so I went for Falken 452's. I only ordered them this morning from Event Tyres and they were fitted this afternoon - £380 for everything. The guy even gave me some steel dustcaps! The job took one hour at home.

So far I have done c100 miles and the tyres seem great. It transforms the car and the handling. The road noise is almost non-existent and minor road imperfections don't need to be avoided any more. I don't even mind speed bumps now.

I needed a rear RTF, so rather than pay c£200 for one crap tyre I have changed the lot.

Jeff

[Jules6]

Originally Posted by Jeff123

Hi

The road noise is almost non-existent and minor road imperfections don't need to be avoided any more. I don't even mind speed bumps now.

Jeff

So true

[andrew0871]

My first impressions of the PS3 will now be on Monday - the van containing my tyres broke down this morning!

Also - I phoned BMW insurance and told them I was swapping to Non Run Flats, they were fine about it and just made a note on the policy, no charge.

[andrew0871]

PS3’s fitted today, first impressions (20 mixed miles) are:

1. A much smoother and more fluid ride, no crashing over road imperfections, rather the car glides along - this has transformed the car into a comfortable cruiser.

2. For a car that now rides well it still handles confidently. Whilst I’m not about to try and find the limits on a new set of tyres I can report no difference in normal driving ‘turn in’, in fact the car feels more stable and I already suspect the grip levels will be much higher.

3. No tram-lining - this was bad down the lanes with the Bridgestone’s, the PS3 just go where you point them without pulling you all over the place.

4. Quietness - this has improved but maybe not as much as I hoped for, however it is a noticeable improvement.

Even after just a few miles the PS3’s have transformed the car into a machine I can see myself really enjoying the drive rather than looking out for the road imperfections. Like someone else said when comparing Run Flat and Normal Tyres - ‘It’s like night and day’ - early days but I would tend to agree with them.

Any regrets? None at the moment.

Would I recommend this - yes if you have M-Sport suspension, in my opinion it only enhances what’s there. (Can’t comment on SE suspension setup.)

Also, the ContiComfortKit seems OK, just plug it in and re-inflate the tyre when you get a puncture. Instructions don’t say that you have to jack the car and rotate the wheel to spread the latex glue around and the unit itself is very small, occupies less than half the space in the underfloor boot area.

[Jeff123]

Hi

I am in the same position as you having just ditched the RFT's. As you say, it's completely changed the car. The RFT's were so bad that I found myself avoiding certain roads that have pot-holes; now I look forward to them, so that I can test out the tyres!

I am still fiddling about with the tyre pressure though. On 17" wheels it's 2.1 front and 2.6 rear - but the rear caters for 3 adults and a boot full of luggage! I never drive with a fully loaded car, so I have dropped the pressures to 2.1 and 2.4 - this seems slightly better for my (sedate) style of driving.

Overall I am really happy.

Jeff

[creepy coupe]

If you don't mind me asking, how much were the PS3's Andrew?

[andrew0871]

About £760 from eTyres.

A couple of problems with them:

1) wholesaler van broke down so didn’t get tyres next day (not their fault)

2) then the fitter rang to discuss a time to arrive, I told him he was removing run flats but he couldn’t do the work as he didn’t have the right equipment

A new fitter was dispatched from ProTyre in Exeter who did the job really well, no scratches and well balanced. I also watched him take off one of the run flats, you have to trust them it’s a tough job getting the sidewall to flex over the rim.

I must say that each time I rang eTyres they were quick to deal with my problem, apologetic and always rang me back, so actually the service was spot on.

The lesson learnt is, if you live away from cities (like me) make sure you specify you are removing run flats and ensure they send the correct man and van as they sub their work out to different local mobile fitters.

I now have 4 nearly new (1000 miles only) Bridgestone Run Flats in the garage if anyone wants to make me an offer for one or the whole lot - send me a PM. I will put them on eBay in the next week or so.

Exciting pictures attached... it was a bit wet yesterday

[creepy coupe]

I know what you mean about getting the old ones off, the fitted who swapped mine, broke an £11K runflat bead breaker.

[milesr3]

Blimey, those PS3s have absolutely enormous grooves in them!

[doughboy]

Originally Posted by milesr3

Blimey, those PS3s have absolutely enormous grooves in them!

Just like the Conti 3's in fact.......