Is BMW telling me the truth?

[davenit]

So I just spent a while through the search function here and didn't come up with anything so...

I have a 2007 335i. It has the original Bridgestone run flats. I have no problem with the tires at all. Planning on putting on the same ones.

I was in BMW getting serviced. They suggested new tires, I said ok. They brought me a price of $1700 for all 4. They're 18". I mentioned that I could probably get them for about $1000 in the real world. They said that the OEM Bridgestones have a little X next to the name on the tire, they're made for BMW and I probably shouldn't buy from the tire rack or a local dealer because I won't get a tire made for the car. He also mentioned something about nitrogen balanced or some stuff like that.

Am I getting fed a line? Money isn't the issue. I can afford $1700 but I don't want to spend the extra $700 if I don't have to. It's that whole 'principle' thing.

Oh, and they also wanted $200 to align it which I thought was a bit nuts also.

[Jman328is]

Thats all crazy talk. I used to work at a tire discounters and put many nice tires on many BMWs (including my step dads 2007 335i). There the nitrogen inflation (which is not a big deal so dont worry about it too much) was free and the alignment was free with four tires. I would definitely look somewhere else. There is no need to pay $700 extra for an X on a tire IMO.

[M62pwrdE38]

Firestone can get OEM Bridgestone tires. Call around, they are ripping you off big time. Nitrogen is not necessary and really doesn't help you at all in pretty much any normal driving situation. On the alignment, BMWs require a full tank of gas and weights to be placed in the vehicle to get it done per manufacturer's specifications, but that price still seems high.

[Eddy@ApexRaceParts]

The tire manufacturers put a symbol on to the batch they sell directly to the car manufacturers. There is nothing special or different about the tire besides this mark. they are trying to get you to pay hundreds of dollars more to get a stamp on your tire that doesn't even mean ANYTHING.

Imagine you were computer shopping and you wanted a Dell, and you walk into my computer store and the Dells I sell have a tinny stamp mark on the bottom of the case with my company logo. "They aren't comparable" I'll say, "mine has a mark on it, they were made exclusively for me."

teach them a lesson, and never buy tires from them again.

[ss109]

The tires they sell at Tirerack are the same ones and you will be fine.

[GunnerNell]

I'm curious about this, too. I see the comments that a tire (of a certain brand/size/specification) is a tire is a tire, and generally, I would agree with that. BUT when I bought my 2006 325Ci in Florida, it didn't need tires then, and the salesman knew I was bringing the car back to Pennsylvania, all of which to say he and his dealership had nothing to gain by saying this: He said BMW has certain specifications they demand from the tire companies, and the tires that meet those specs get a star emblem embossed on them. According to him, BMW will not put anything but those star spec tires on their cars. (I don't know what running other tires might do to my warranty, but that's not a concern for another 30,000 miles at least.) Normally, I don't buy into much of what a dealership says, but I have to admit, I respect BMW's product and I'm ok with them being finnicky about it. Oh, and fwiw, I am of the opinion, with other car companies, that oem tires are not as good as others one can get at a good tire store, so I have never replaced original equipment tires with the same ones. Any expert comments about this?

[samger2]

Well...it's not complete hogwash. BMW tires are stamped with a star...there are definitely small differences about the tires...most likely nothing noticeable...but for instance the service description maybe different...for example, an 89H vs. a 91H...again nothing you'll notice, but the tire with the 91H performed exactly how BMW wanted...thus they put a star on it to designate it for their car.

The biggest difference I've seen came in a 205/55R16...Continental CH95...the BMW star tire had an entire extra set of channels in the tire 3 vertical channels vs the non OEM 2...to me this would be HUGE when determining whether or not to buy the OEM star version of the tire.

The biggest issue to me here, is if you are on a lease and are planning to turn the car back in...if you turn it in and it has non oem tires on it, the pre owned lot cannot CPO the car until it has the star tires on it...thus they'll charge you...even if you just put a brand new set of tires on it...if they aren't the star tires, you'll get nailed for it.