Where do I go for rubber?

Gents,

Need some new tires on competition wheels. The car is a daily drive so stock Michelin did the trick thus far. I wouldn't mind another set.

A friend quoted me:
$429.90 per front & $603.90 per rear for Michelin. I am not sure which Michelin model the quote was for at the moment.

I am convinced that this question has been asked before but would anyone know how wide I can go? 245s at front and 265s at the back are on there at the moment.

Could also someone school me on why people go for example 245 35 front and 265 30 rear...
What are the reasons for the difference in size there?

Cheers

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Michelin&tireModel=Pilot+Super+Sport&frontTire=435YR9PSSXL&rearTire=635YR9PSSXLV2&vehicleSearch=true&fromCompare1=yes&autoMake=BMW&autoYear=2011&autoModel=M3%20Coupe&autoModClar=Competition%20Package

TIRERACK bro. add $300 for shipping. (plus duty etc cos its over $1000).

i would go Michelin Pilot Super Sport excellent tyre!

as for the profile width question, well that middle number represents the percentage of the first number (width). so the wider the tyre the lower the profile (middle number will be) otherwise the tyre would be too tall... makes sense?

i dont think you need to go wider for you car, Michelin PSS has great traction!

Dzenko - If you want to check different sizes & offsets here's a good site:
http://www.willtheyfit.com
I purchased MPSS from Tirerack after spending hours searching for options! It's the way to go. I sent you an email a couple of weeks ago - it might have gone to junk - Dave.

Gday, I recently spent some time researching something similar to what you seem to be looking for so hopefully some of this helps (I have different aftermarket wheels 9" front and 10.5" rears - yours would be 9" and 10"). I don't have any personal experience though so take this with a pinch of salt.

Main issues I researched:

1 - width of tyres which will fit rims

It appears like the most common size increase for your wheels is the 255/35/19 front and 275/35/19 rear but it seems like some people have gone as wide as 295/30/19 on the rear (but research rubbing issues). see:
http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=974355&highlight=tires+on+zcp+wheels
http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=894795&highlight=traction+control

2 - stagger (difference in width between front and rear tyre width)

Common comments seem to be that if, eg, you go 295 wide on rear and 245 on front (stagger of 50mm), you will get more understeer.

3 - rolling diameter difference between front and rear wheels affecting traction control cutting in

The profile of your tyres (the second number, eg 30 or 35, which is a percentage of the tyre width) affects the rolling diameter of the wheel. Hence a 275/35 tyre will have a larger rolling diameter than a 275/30.

Don't know how true this is but there are comments on forums such as this:
http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/showthread.php?t=611769

Hence, my aim was to keep the rolling diameter difference between front and rear as close as possible to OEM. The post above in relation to sizing has a very useful link to calculating things like rolling diameter. 255/35/19 and 275/35/19 combo has an almost identical rolling diameter difference between them to the OEM set up.

4 - profile of tyres (the second number, eg 30 or 35) affecting ride comfort

The lower the height of the sidewall, the smaller the cushioning, hence harsher ride. So a 275/35 sidewall will be slightly higher than a 265/35. A 295/30 will have a slightly lower sidewall.

5 - rubbing issues - overall size of tyre + rim

Difficult one as it depends on suspension, tyre brand (some are wider than others despite having the same width number stamped on them) etc. I read a whole bunch of posts on this such as: http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=522139

6 - which brand of tyres

Most people (and objective tests) say Michelin PSS but there seem to be some decent (and cheaper) alternatives. I read a whole bunch of tirerack.com test comparisons and quite a few posts.

See this:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=174
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=190

The Bridgestone S04 and Conti DW are much cheaper than the PSS on tirerack hence they came into the equation for me. I was also impressed by the comments in reviews that the S04s appear to give up grip progressively rather than being a peaky tyre: http://www.m3post.com/forums/showpost.php?p=15779955&postcount=5

7 - buying from Australia or tirerack.com (US)

Michelin PSS
I tried getting a quote from my local Tyrepower last week. They spoke to Michelin Aus and were told: 245 are in stock, 255 - one in Australia, 265 and 275 - no stock in Australia and no ETA. I didn't try any other outlet in Perth.
St George Tyres - they seem to import containers from overseas and seem to have 2013 (and 2014?) production in stock for a range of sizes. Google them and they also have an ebay store. Transport seems to be $195 to Perth for 4 tyres.
Tirerack.com will be more expensive than St George esp with the Aussie $ these days but have 2014 stock.

Contis / Bridgestones
Can't go past Tirerack.com (S04s are not available in Aus).

If getting from tirerack.com, consider whether over $1,000 (stamp duty, GST etc) - if you only need 2 tyres then that might be a relevant consideration. This is a good thread: http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=967883&highlight=tirerack

Hope some of this is useful.

All what CC_Arnie said ^^^
I went for 255/35 & 275/35 for exact same reasons

Been buying my tires from tire rack for years but recently there have been some good eBay prices as well. I run 255/35/19 fronts and 295/30/19 rears on 9.5 fr and 11 rear rims. I love the look of fat rear tires on my M!!!

I just ordered Conti3's for my rears at tiresdirect.net. Shipping was more than tire rack but prices were cheaper. I saved over $40.00 for the pair.

I could have bought a full set Michelins for a few hundred more than the two Conti3's but my fronts have a lot of meat left.

Mine will be delivered on Monday. Check them out and compare prices when you do decide what you want.

I went with Conti DWS 255/35 and 275/35 and shipped to Australia was $1100. The wet weather grip was phenomenal and during the deluge on 2014 German Car Day I was able to drive the car through puddles confidently while a couple of AMG were fishtailing. Amazing! Since I have two sets the DWS are mainly winter tires and I have just swapped on to my OEM 18 for the summer. 255 and 275 on competition wheels have no rubbing issues with stock suspension.

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speak of Contis....

those apparently arent too bad also. Conti Force Contact, available locally in australia.

leeb8 wrote

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speak of Contis....

those apparently arent too bad also. Conti Force Contact, available locally in australia.

I run these on my GT3. I get about 9,000kms out of the rears without a track day and the fronts have done about 13,000 with a track day on them and still have about 1/3 life left, so I expect they will all wear out together now.

I think they do heat cycle out a bit, when new the grip was phenomenal but after a while they didn't feel quite a good, more like a normal road tyre.

They are a good tyre though for a Semi-slick, with a UTG rating of 80. I think I will try the new Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 next time though as they are still a semi-slick, but have a higher wear rating of 180.

I am now considering new springs to lower the ride...
I think spring and rubber install is recommended to be done at the same time.

Do check locally. Prices are improving. I was told, because distributors are tired of competing with tirerack and private imports, the are coming down.

My last set of rubber was equivalent to US retail, so cheaper than tirerack. I got Nitto's and they have been really good

MFKN3 wrote

Do check locally. Prices are improving. I was told, because distributors are tired of competing with tirerack and private imports, the are coming down.

My last set of rubber was equivalent to US retail, so cheaper than tirerack. I got Nitto's and they have been really good

What about road noise?

aussiem3 wrote

What about road noise?

They seem fine but my car is loud as hell anyway

MFKN3 wrote

They seem fine but my car is loud as hell anyway

I know Thanks J

Dzenko wrote

I am now considering new springs to lower the ride...
I think spring and rubber install is recommended to be done at the same time.

what springs are you thinking?

Dzenko - I recommend Eibach Pro Kit Lowering Springs

http://europeanautosource.com/eibach-pro-kit-lowering-springs.html

And also with a Macht Schnell Spacer Kit (15mm front / 10mm rear)

http://europeanautosource.com/macht-schnell-competition-wheel-spacer-kit-15mm.html

It gives a nice subtle drop and better stance to the M3. Happy to show you the setup on mine anytime - I love it and don't have any clearance issues. I also feel it handles a bit nicer compared to factory with the wider track and stiffer spring rates which work well with the factory EDC.

Cheers,
Ed

boostED82 wrote

Dzenko - I recommend Eibach Pro Kit Lowering Springs

http://europeanautosource.com/eibach-pro-kit-lowering-springs.html

And also with a Macht Schnell Spacer Kit (15mm front / 10mm rear)

http://europeanautosource.com/macht-schnell-competition-wheel-spacer-kit-15mm.html

It gives a nice subtle drop and better stance to the M3. Happy to show you the setup on mine anytime - I love it and don't have any clearance issues. I also feel it handles a bit nicer compared to factory with the wider track and stiffer spring rates which work well with the factory EDC.

Cheers,
Ed

Cheers. Its very tempting and surprisingly cheap. I was eyeing Eibach. What made you choose them? Is the ride stiff?
What tire size do you run with the spacers?

NBTBRV8 wrote

I run these on my GT3. I get about 9,000kms out of the rears without a track day and the fronts have done about 13,000 with a track day on them and still have about 1/3 life left, so I expect they will all wear out together now.

I think they do heat cycle out a bit, when new the grip was phenomenal but after a while they didn't feel quite a good, more like a normal road tyre.

They are a good tyre though for a Semi-slick, with a UTG rating of 80. I think I will try the new Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 next time though as they are still a semi-slick, but have a higher wear rating of 180.

cool!

I was hoping someone would have feed back on them, coz I am about to fit and try them also at Philip Island.

Cup 2 definitely up there ahead of all others i think. let us know how you go if you do end up getting the cup 2.

Dzenko wrote

Cheers. Its very tempting and surprisingly cheap. I was eyeing Eibach. What made you choose them? Is the ride stiff?
What tire size do you run with the spacers?

I researched the Eibach Prokit and IMO found it to be the best match for the factory EDC and the ride height that I wanted. The stiffness is better as I found the stock Comp Pack springs a bit too soft/floaty, and the Eibach's aren't harsh either. I run standard Michelin PSS on Comp Pack wheels, with 15mm front and 10mm rear Macht Schnell bolt-on hub-centric spacers. No rubbing issues at all, front, rear, full-lock etc. And the stance is flush (not pokey out).

boostED82 wrote  

Dzenko wrote

Cheers. Its very tempting and surprisingly cheap. I was eyeing Eibach. What made you choose them? Is the ride stiff?
What tire size do you run with the spacers?

I researched the Eibach Prokit and IMO found it to be the best match for the factory EDC and the ride height that I wanted. The stiffness is better as I found the stock Comp Pack springs a bit too soft/floaty, and the Eibach's aren't harsh either. I run standard Michelin PSS on Comp Pack wheels, with 15mm front and 10mm rear Macht Schnell bolt-on hub-centric spacers. No rubbing issues at all, front, rear, full-lock etc. And the stance is flush (not pokey out).

What would be your tire size at the moment to clear rubbing after dropping height and widening using your spacers?

Standard original Michelin PSS tyres - 245 fronts and 265 rears... No rubbing or clearance issues at all, even with a full car of passengers. Unsure about any wider though mate...