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[stressdoc]

Some folks have expressed concerns about swapping run flats for non-rfts. Here is what I have done.

I have a mobility kit and a tire plug kit in my trunk. I pulled a screw out of one of my winter tires last month and rammed in a plug -- actually, half a plug because it was a small hole -- and it worked perfectly. I will put a proper high-speed-worthy patch on the inside of the tire before I put them back on next winter. This is pretty failsafe, much easier than switching a spare, and saves time and $. There must be a good reason not to do it this way or else everyone would be.

I have had a lot of practice plugging tires. I live on 5 acres, and when I moved in there were a bunch of thorny locust trees. Getting rid of them (chainsaw, then haul away trunks for raised garden beds) and doing a bunch of other landscaping chores required use of a Kubota tractor. Long story short, I have put more than a 100 plugs into those tractor tires. Now, top speed on my diesel wonder is about 14 mph, so I'm not exactly freaking out at the thought of a blowout failure. The 335 is another story. But even the worst case scenario, I plug a tire and end up at the tire repair shop with a lot less hassle than changing a tire the old-fashioned way. And if I distress the carcass so badly by poking the plugger through, then I get a new tire. Pretty much what I would have had to do with rfts. Given the low frequency of flats, this solution is a no-brainer for me. Cost of plugging kit at WalMart: $6. Peace of mind and smile on face when driving hard on extreme performance non-rfts? Priceless.

If you have never plugged a tire, it basically involves using a tool that looks like a screwdriver with a open hole in it that you place a tough gooey plug into, and then ram it into the hole that you pulled a nail or screw out of with a pair of pliers. You often have to work pretty hard at pushing and twisting the tool+plug through the tire. Once in, you just pull your tool out and voila, the plug pulls out of the tool hole and stays in the tire, making a perfect seal. You can snip the plug level with the tread. For overkill, spray in the sealent gook if you want to make things ugly, especially if you have the in-tire pressure sensor system. I am glad that I have the rotational monitoring system.

Which non-rft to buy?
I chose the Pirelli P Zero because:
(1) It is the only "extreme performance" rated tire in E90 sizes.
(2) The magazine tests in Europe have raved about it.

I would also consider the Michelin PS2, which may be the only option if you stick with the non ZSP OEM rims.

If you live in the north, you will want to put winter tires on. IMO, it is really bad to mount/unmount rfts. Stretching the bead is just asking for trouble. So I got a set of lightweight M 193 18" rims, cost about $1400, sold my OEM rims & rft tires for about that, and got non-rft snows and summers that I think are fine to remount a few times. I'm hoping that the Quaife LSD I'm installing next week will help the tires last a couple years -- the rears have this peculiar habit of just melting away...

[TRZ06]

I had the PS2's on my S4 and while they were ok, I was not overly impressed.

Now on my Z06 I had the stock Eagle F1 Supercars and those tires IMO are the best (street) dry performance tire out there. Those tires are what allows the Corvette Z06 and the Ford GT to achieve over 1g on the skid pad.

I don't think they make that size for the 335I though, and they suck in standing water.

[noro]

Great idea.. I am waiting for my tires to hit 50% to swap 'em out and get a mobility kit like you did.

My personal favorite street performance tire currently is Toyo T1R. Great price, light weight, good grip, amaizing wet traction, cool looking thread.

[ages944]

Originally Posted by stressdoc

<snip>
... This is pretty failsafe, much easier than switching a spare, and saves time and $. There must be a good reason not to do it this way or else everyone would be.
</snip>

... b/c it requires getting your hands dirty? That's asking a lot of some people.