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[VIP75344]

Hi, guys.
I'm wondering if it's a good idea do this for winter on my e92 335i.

winter tires:
235/40/18 for 18x8.5 front.
265/35/18 for 18x9.5 rear.

I heard anything thats wider than 255 is not good. Is that true?

The winter tires would more focus on wet and dry road in winter condition, Because it doesn't snow much in my area, it just rains a lot.

Is this set up all right?
Please share some experience or opinion.
Thanks

[DrDomer]

I'd stick with even more narrow than 255 if possible.

[devo]

Originally Posted by VIP75344

Hi, guys.
I'm wondering if it's a good idea do this for winter on my e92 335i.

winter tires:
235/40/18 for 18x8.5 front.
265/35/18 for 18x9.5 rear.

I heard anything thats wider than 255 is not good. Is that true?

The winter tires would more focus on wet and dry road in winter condition, Because it doesn't snow much in my area, it just rains a lot.

Is this set up all right?
Please share some experience or opinion.
Thanks

I wouldn't go any wider than 225 for winter use. With that said, if you don't get much snow why get snows at all? All seasons will do just fine and offer better dry road performance.

I chose 225/40-18 snows on all four corners for my Xi coupe, but I get a lot of snow.

[VIP75344]

Originally Posted by devo

I wouldn't go any wider than 225 for winter use. With that said, if you don't get much snow why get snows at all? All seasons will do just fine and offer better dry road performance.

I chose 225/40-18 snows on all four corners for my Xi coupe, but I get a lot of snow.

Thanks for the comment.

The road here is pretty wet and slippery in winter thought.
Although we don't get much snow, temperature is still around 0'c degree, and the road could be icy as well.

doesn't 265 winter tires perform better than 225 winter tires or all seasons in cold and wet road conditions?

[VIP75344]

btw, this is why I think winter tires should do better than all seasons.
The question is, would 265 winter tires do fine or even better than narrower ones on wet, icy, or dry roads in winter condition?
I personally think they might do better.

Please share some experience or opinion.
Thanks

[devo]

I would have to agree with you. I thought more about it last night and the biggest beneift will be from the (snow) tire compound in the cold. If it didn't get so cold there, then I'd go all season; assuming there was minimal snow.

[VIP75344]

Originally Posted by devo

I would have to agree with you. I thought more about it last night and the biggest beneift will be from the (snow) tire compound in the cold. If it didn't get so cold there, then I'd go all season; assuming there was minimal snow.

Thanks, man.

I'm glad to hear that the idea is right.

[judec]

the biggest benefit is from the compound. Anyway, even if U dont get a lot of snow, if U get some, U'll curse on your snowboard tires. Or do U have some second spare car for snow? If not, dont be a dumbass poser and focus on the safety side of the problem, dont risk your car, health, life or anyone elses life for such a BS.

[montreal red]

i have never once used snow tires on my cars... just all seasons or summer performance tires and all seasons work just fine even with the amount of snow here in montreal. if youre in vancouver, you dont need snow tires...

[VIP75344]

Originally Posted by judec

the biggest benefit is from the compound. Anyway, even if U dont get a lot of snow, if U get some, U'll curse on your snowboard tires. Or do U have some second spare car for snow? If not, dont be a dumbass poser and focus on the safety side of the problem, dont risk your car, health, life or anyone elses life for such a BS.

Thanks for the comment.
I drive my bro's A4 awd when it snows.
And I won't bother to drive my e92 with winter tires on the snow because it's a rwd car.
Yes, we don't risk our car, health, life or anyone else's life.

Originally Posted by montreal jet black

i have never once used snow tires on my cars... just all seasons or summer performance tires and all seasons work just fine even with the amount of snow here in montreal. if youre in vancouver, you dont need snow tires...

Thanks for the comment.
I've been to Montreal. It's a beautiful place, btw.

[VIP75344]

I'm thinking about winter tires rather than all seasons because winter tires should have better compound which may give better traction on wet, icy, or dry roads around 0'c degree.
Anyone else agrees?
Please give more experience and comments.
Thanks.

[Orb]

Originally Posted by VIP75344

btw, this is why I think winter tires should do better than all seasons.
The question is, would 265 winter tires do fine or even better than narrower ones on wet, icy, or dry roads in winter condition?
I personally think they might do better.

Please share some experience or opinion.
Thanks

They are better up to a point without question. Norrow tire give you less traction in all condition just not to many peole now this. In deep snow then there a few trade offs but doesn't change the fact.

Orb

[bmwm3smg2]

Originally Posted by Orb

They are better up to a point without question. Norrow tire give you less traction in all condition just not to many peole now this. In deep snow then there a few trade offs but doesn't change the fact.

Orb

In my experience, in deep snow, the narrower tire will cut throught the slippery stuff better than a wider tire.

[bmwm3smg2]

Originally Posted by VIP75344

I'm thinking about winter tires rather than all seasons because winter tires should have better compound which may give better traction on wet, icy, or dry roads around 0'c degree.
Anyone else agrees?
Please give more experience and comments.
Thanks.

[stressdoc]

Originally Posted by bmwm3smg2

In my experience, in deep snow, the narrower tire will cut throught the slippery stuff better than a wider tire.

+1 And ditto for compound being critical.

But the OP is in Vancouver and wants advice on what tires are best suited to winter conditions there. Here is my 2cents. I used to rallye race in snow.

Forget about summer extreme performance tires. They are unsafe at temps below 0 C and helpless in snow.

Serious snow tires like the Nordic brands in high aspect skinny sizes are great in deep snow. But that is not what you are concerned with.

The best options for your conditions are either all seasons or high performance (V or higher speed rated) snow tires. I have Pirelli sottozeros in 235/40/18 and 265/35/18 sizes. They are great in both cold/dry and cold/wet conditions, and passable in deep snow. I have little ground clearance anyway, so the wide tires keep me floating on top. Nonstaggered sizes, like 235/40 or 225/40 on both front and back would be the best. I think Tirerack's pricing on Pirellis in 225/40 size is good. So to answer your Q, 235/265s are OK, but 225/225s would be more practical.

So I would choose btw Pirelli sottozeros, Michelin pilot alpins, Continental wintercontact TS810 S, Dunlop M3s (either will do fine in snow) or Michelin Pilot Sport allseasons. The Dunlops are best in snow, but sloppy cornering on dry (incidentally, if you look at TireRack's survey, reviewers rate the M3s as better on cornering than the sottozeros and alpins. I have had both, and believe me, the sottozeros, Contis & alpins are much better on dry and wet corners. The Dunlops have a deeper tread, and more wiggle). The Michelin AS are best in dry, not so good in snow. The sottozeros, Conti TS 810 S and alpins are in between, but closer to the M3s. All are expensive, but great tires. And when you are running on snow tires, you are not burning up your summer tires. IMO, anyone outside of places like SCal or Fla should invest in winter tires.

P.S.: get a Quaife LSD !

My rating (x out of 10): Dry cornering Wet cornering High speed stability Snow

Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 7 9 7 4
Michelin Alpin VR 6 7 6 8
Conti TS810 S 6 8 6 8
Pirelli sottozero 240 6 8 6 7
Dunlop M3 5 6 5 9

[montreal_bimmer]

you need winter tires.... if you get into an accident and you do not have winter tires.... insurance will rape you.... even if you get the cheapest set on the market, its still better than the best all-season tires in snow....

265 is way too wide for winter.... try not to go wider than 235...

[stressdoc]

Originally Posted by montreal_bimmer

you need winter tires.... if you get into an accident and you do not have winter tires.... insurance will rape you.... even if you get the cheapest set on the market, its still better than the best all-season tires in snow....

265 is way too wide for winter.... try not to go wider than 235...

But the OP is in Vancouver. Don't get cheap snow tires, they are dangerous in dry & wet conditions.

[fedinand]

I would stick w/ stock size for your winter tires (225 front and 255 rear). They will be cheaper and in the rare event you do get snow, they will be better than the size you are thinking about. I live in MN and we get a lot more snow than you do and I still struggled w/ what size to get for snows. I ended up w/ Blizzak LM 25s in the stock sport package size (225 front and 255 rear). They do just fine in the snow (and we have had plenty), but they perform much better when our roads are clear of snow and are just wet w/ melted chemicalized snow - which is 90% of the time. Any performance snow tire like the LMs or the Dunlop wintersports should work well for you.

You looking to go wider suggests to me that you are after max performance...and looking for max performance in the winter - even w/out snow, I think, is a bad idea. Even the best performance snow tire will not give you the performance in the winter that max performance summer tires give you in warm weather. The stock size should be a good compromise for you...and you will end up saving some money which you can put into wider summer tires.

[montreal_bimmer]

Originally Posted by stressdoc

But the OP is in Vancouver. Don't get cheap snow tires, they are dangerous in dry & wet conditions.

good year ultra grips are fairly cheap.... and they are very good in winter....

i know walmart has the Dunlop Graspic winter tires which are excellent winter tires and theyre pretty cheap aswell

[stressdoc]

Originally Posted by montreal_bimmer

good year ultra grips are fairly cheap.... and they are very good in winter....

i know walmart has the Dunlop Graspic winter tires which are excellent winter tires and theyre pretty cheap aswell

Those are good choices for snow. I would not drive over 90mph on them though.

[montreal_bimmer]

Originally Posted by stressdoc

Those are good choices for snow. I would not drive over 90mph on them though.

its winter.... you're not suppose to drive that fast....

[VIP75344]

Originally Posted by Orb

They are better up to a point without question. Norrow tire give you less traction in all condition just not to many peole now this. In deep snow then there a few trade offs but doesn't change the fact.

Orb

Thanks for comment.
Great to hear that.

Originally Posted by stressdoc

+1 And ditto for compound and back would be the best. I think Tirerack's pricing on Pirellis in 225/40 size is good. So to answer your Q, 235/265s are OK, but 225/225s would be more practical.

So I would choose btw Pirelli sottozeros, Michelin pilot alpins, Continental wintercontact TS810 S, Dunlop M3s (either will do fine in snow) or Michelin Pilot Sport allseasons. The Dunlops are best in snow, but sloppy cornering on dry (incidentally, if you look at TireRack's survey, reviewers rate the M3s as better on cornering than the sottozeros and alpins. I have had both, and believe me, the sottozeros, Contis & alpins are much better on dry and wet corners. The Dunlops have a deeper tread, and more wiggle). The Michelin AS are best in dry, not so good in snow. The sottozeros, Conti TS 810 S and alpins are in between, but closer to the M3s. All are expensive, but great tires. And when you are running on snow tires, you are not burning up your summer tires. IMO, anyone outside of places like SCal or Fla should invest in winter tires.

P.S.: get a Quaife LSD !

My rating (x out of 10): Dry cornering Wet cornering High speed stability Snow

Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 7 9 7 4
Michelin Alpin VR 6 7 6 8
Conti TS810 S 6 8 6 8
Pirelli sottozero 240 6 8 6 7
Dunlop M3 5 6 5 9

Thanks a lot, man. Very detailed, useful, and accurate information.
I'm very appreciate.

Seems like I have to reconsider about tires now.

To focus on wet and dry in winter with 265 tires, let's not get into snow issues.

According to the rating, I should consider "Michelin Pilot Sport All Season" seriously because all I want is a set of tires that gives me great traction on slippery, wet, dry roads around 0 degree Celsius(32 degrees Fahrenheit) in winter.

Doesn't such temperature effect its traction negatively?

does "Michelin Pilot Sport All Season" have the advantage to compare with "performance winters" due to their compound around 0'c degree?

Please give comments. Thank you.