Trying to find the right tyre

[wat 3]

So its that time for some new tyres.

This is the first time I've had to get rubber for my BMW, if anyone has advice that would be appreciated.

I have to do on average 30kms of driving on 100km NZ road (not the Auckland motorway) per day.

The monthly long distance drive and just your average driving around Palmerston North (our roads are sh*t).

Budget is anywhere from $150 - $250ish

I'm currently running GT Radial Champiro HPY

I have an 00' E46 330i - Front 225/45/17 & Rear 245/40/17

Ive shopped around and have the following:

Michellin Pilot Sport 3 - F 271.00 inc, R 371.00 inc (each)

Falken FK452 - F 245.00 inc, R 300.00 inc (each)

Bridgestone RE003 - F 214.00 inc, R 250.00 inc (each)

Nankang Noble Sport NS20 + Wheel Alignment 965 inc (total)

GT Radial Champiro HPYs - F ?, R ?

Firestone TZ700 - F ?, R ?

Honestly at the moment i just want a every day tyre nothing flash as its my daily.

not really wanting to use them for anything else at this time.

I been looking through the RE003 thread for some more info.

If anyone has any real world experience/stats on any of the above tyres that would be great, Cheers.

[qube 3570]

at those prices you've quoted, there is no reason to not go for the bridgestone re003's.

[M3AN 4016]

Agree with Kyu - although the Bridgestone is more tyre than you need (based on your description) it's a great tyre for the price.

If you were looking to save some coin you could even go for the next model down in their range the "Sporty Style MY02" (terrible name). Not sure how much they cost but they're sure to be fine for an "every day" tyre - perhaps still even more tyre than you need.

Most people get "performance" tyres and come nowhere near asking them to do anything near what they're capable of.

Edit: remember to shop your best price around, some places will try and better it or throw in something extra.

Edited April 18, 2016 by M3AN

[Mr Vapour 76]

I have RE002 on my ba falcon and will be buying again (or RE003) when they are up for replacement. Great ride, lashings of grip and have worn very very well on the big coon.

I had cheap Chinese crap on it and it went from scary to drive , don't bother if it's wet cause you will die, to a stable predictable safe controlled drive.

There you go real world view of one of your choices.

[Matth5 471]

I'd pick the Bridgestones. They're a great match for a car of that power level and good value at that price I think, I've had the RE002s on my 328i and was happy with them.

[Young Thrash Driver 1020]

What smart arse is selling Falkens for more than RE003's? That's a good joke

[Herbmiester 923]

FWIW the RE003's seem pretty good in the wet, for me that's important.

[jom 98]

I'm running the same sizes on my 328i, went from Re001s to PS3s. If you can sacrifice a little less dry grip, but get a better ride and better wet grip, go for the PS3s over the Re003s. Consumer have just done a test on 225/45/17s - worth a look.

PS my son found 225/45/17 PS3s for $200 in Auckland a couple of months ago.

Edited April 18, 2016 by Jo M

[jin108 25]

Jo M do you know where from? I'm hunting for a set of tyres atm and tossing up between buying locally or importing

[Cab 148]

If you're not worried about brand names:

http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Neuton/NT5000.htm

And they are priced well at under $140 each.

[Olaf 3317]

Hey Mitchell, I've just done the same as you a month ago.

Driving John Herbmiester's well-sorted 330Ci ruined me! It drove like I expected a BMW to, and was fun and rewarding, and well beyond the level of enjoyment my stock-box was providing!

My biases (well published here previously):

• I don't beleive in cheap-ass tyres. The improved braking performance that a good tyre brings can translate to the absence of scraped paint and dented panels, or worse, blood and broken bones, in an emergency stop. False economy!
• Wet weather performance for me is paramount; I like to drive in the wet.
• Grip is more important than fuel economy to me. I choose not to drive a Prius. Yes I've driven a few, and riden in many.

Right then, having declared my biases, on to my current (recent) experience, and it's relevance to yours.

• e46 Touring, 325i
• previously updated from a couple of different Bridgestrone JDM tyres that were on the car when I bought it. Stock size, 205/55/16 on 7J's.
• was running Toyo Proxes4 (Toyo's equivalent to Bridgestone's Sporty MY-02)
• have run Toyo T1-R
• established my thinking on directional tyres was hopelessly outdated!
• Refreshed the suspension on my e46 - totally stock - Sachs Shocks, strut bearings, ARB bushings, tie rods, boots, bump stops, fasteners, shock reinforcement plates front and rear, rear meyle HD mounts. Result: much improved, no more dive, much better ride. But when later compared with John's 330 or pushed through tight twisty corners, like a well behaved German saloon - but not a sportscar. It was like it was on Pogo Sticks.
• Next step was good advice (thanks again, John Herbmeister!) and research, which brings my ride closer to yours: the staggered setup, and MSport ARBs (24mm/20mm). Springs may still be on the cards.

Tyre Choices - 225/45/17 & 245/40/17. I'm running Style 194's, wich provide the same track as the 7J's, but wider track than the Style 68's (staggered) due to the different offsets.

• Pricing and choices - broadly the same as you've mentioned above
• Also included Proxes4's
• Was wondering about GT's as well
• Hyper direct turned out more expensive than getting pricing from local real businesses in my local community

The choices, summarised:

• the lower-mid to mid-ground which includes Proxes4, MY-02, Hankooks, most Dunlops will run you around $800-1100 fitted.
• the bottom end are not considered. Anyone who tells you "HiFly or Nexen or Nangkangs are "fine if you're just pootling around town" probably haven't put a price on crippling someone in an accident.
• It came down to a choice of two for me, I think of them as 'Entry Level Serious'.
• Bridgestone Potenza Adrenalin RE003, or Michelin Pilot Sport 3

My choice:

• I chose with my wallet in conjunction with my head. The PS3 would be a bit better riding, and a bit better gripping, and a bit better wearing, but for about $350 more.
• I was also factoring in the rim updates - at least the 17" choices were cheaper than the last set of 16" tyres (Toyo Proxes4) I put on!
• RE003's were under $900 on my car.

So, how are they, Olaf?

• quiiiiiiet. shhhhhh! they're oh so quiet. compared with the Toyos (that get noisier as they wear), the 003's were much quieter than new Toyo Proxes4 or T1-R. No, I didn't get out my dB meter!
• Yes, I do have a dB meter - not just a phone app!
• sticky. grippy. Oh man, it's grippy. And not just because of the wider rims; I tried the car for half a day on HiFly 805's (in the dry). The RE003's offer way more grip in the dry than the HiFlys, or T1-R's.
• They seem great in the wet; though it's been so dry in Wellington lately, I've hardly had a chance to assess them. My first impression is they're well beyond Toyo T1-R's in the wet.
• Sidewall stiffness works much, much better with my e46's suspension; I can run lower pressures than before. I'm still experimenting, round town seems ok at 35 front, 40 rear. But now I start again as I've just added the ARB's and had the trailing arm bushes done.
• Subjective warning: I had them off on Saturday; even when they're cold, (ambient 16c) the face of the tread feels slightly tacky. Surprising for a road tyre.
• I drove 320kms yesterday (on a fresh alignment), and marvelled at how the 003's are on the open road. Grip, communication, progressiveness. They're without doubt the best tyre I've ever owned. Yes there are better tyres, no doubt. But for under a grand, in the staggered 17" setup on an e46? They're excellent.

Summary: RE003's FTW. Great performance, work well on the e46. And great value to boot! What's not to love?

PS: did I mention they're oh so quiet?

Edited April 19, 2016 by Olaf

[Olaf 3317]

oh, you asked about TZ700's. I had a couple of them on my Maxima. Avoid. Brings up uncomfortable memories of Charles and Camilla. "ohhhh, Squidgy".

Falken FK542. Consistently well-reviewed and talked up. So were Falken Azenis 115's - everyone told me they were excellent performance tyres at a good price (read mid-range)... I found myself driving on poor wet weather performance, no communication, and ABS activations in the dry that were eliminated by binning them and installing T1-R's. I'd like to try FK452's to see if they live up to the hype.

[eliongater 718]

Olaf, would you choose the ps3s over the re003s if they were the same price?

[Olaf 3317]

Hi Eli; yes - though based on recommendations of my tyre man (whom I trust) and the accounts I've read on here, rather than my personal experience. I've only driven the PS3's on a mk5 GTi.

[Olaf 3317]

Mind you, there's the RE050 variants, and S001's to try as well #8 ) as well as some of the Pirelli's etc (and they might come with a Pirelli Callendar?)

[jom 98]

Jo M do you know where from? I'm hunting for a set of tyres atm and tossing up between buying locally or importing

http://www.tyrecity.co.nz/

[kiwi6539 3]

Bridgestone re003, great tire for the money. I've run the re002s now re003 can't say a bad word about them for dry and wet grip and performance wear rate etc the best tire I've run on my e34.

[Michael. 2313]

Good to read this thread I missed.

Covers most of the point drawn up in my own post.

PS3s it shall be

[Herbmiester 923]

Update on my RE003's. After 5000km, I am still very happy especially with the grip in the wet. I managed to ride in an E36 a few weeks ago with RE002's and it confirmed to me that the 003 is a much better tyre, much better dry grip, better wet grip and better feel. Sidewall stiffness on the 003 seem pretty good as under hard cornering there is very little squirm just a linear input from the wheel to the amount of turn in.

Now I probably have to put some of that down to the chassis, Olaf's kind words about my 46 are appreciated but to be fair a bit of time and effort went into setting it up and it's good to know someone else also thought it felt right.

With 245's all round now I have set the front end to be a bit softer than the rear and I am running the front anti roll bar on its softer setting. This has made it turn in very direct and if anything it can be a bit prone to oversteer if pushed to aggressively, that said I am sure E 30 owners would feel at home especially with ASC turned off.

[Herbmiester 923]

To be clear I am not talking about the rear going sideways like an old 911. No it's more of an absence of understeer so that if you choose too you can provoke some oversteer, but the emphasis is on "provoke". Compared to how it was initially where the default setting was for the front to run wide unless you could get some trailling brake turn in ; it now just turns in and you can rely on the rear to stay planted unless you want to influence it with the right foot. But as its only got 170kw its most obvious in slower tighter corners, on long sweepers it just sticks and I haven't wanted to test when it will break away at 100 kph plus on a public road.

FWIW my drive home is 44 corners on a twisty 8km mountain road with not much traffic and most of those corners are taken between 40 and 80 kph. I drive this road 2 to 4 times a day and you can get a pretty good idea about a car's ability with a few runs over the hill.

[Olaf 3317]

keen for you to have a go in mine next time we meet, John. Although it still *looks* like it's on stilts, it's a very different vehicle from when you drove it. not perfect, but much, much more satisfying to drive.

[Herbmiester 923]

I look forward to driving it, it sounds like you made some noticeable improvements.