Tire Wear Problem 2004 530i

[JBC123]

All,

I have a great car in my 2004 530i except for one nagging issue. Tires. The tires are wearing out on the inside edge (about 1.5") right down to the cords. My tire flat light came on due to this wear. It is happening on all four tires. I have 245/40R18 on the car. The shop says that the alignment is okay. Does anyone have any inputs?

JBC

[HR393rs]

Its a bmw. its going to do that unless you get a different alignment. The camber and the toe in will eat tires. They say the alignment is ok because it is. Its most likely factory settings. If you get it aligned with less toe in it will be less stable at speed but you wont wear tires as much.

[JBC123]

HR393rs,

Thanks much. I have done more reading on this site. I have the Run Flats on all corners. I'm moving to Bridgestone Potenza units - non run flat. I'm hoping that the less stiff side walls and setting the camber to the minimum within specs will improve tire wear. I will keep the toe as it is. Looks like performance comes at a cost. Ha! Like that is not obvious. Like we say in aviation - you can have stability or performance but not both.

I might make a trade in on a 1989 Porsche 911 and have more fun with less issue.

JBC

Actually, I must say - the car handles very well and is fun to drive.

[mryakan]

great handling ==> eats tires. You can't win em all. Not sure the 911 will fare better in the tire longevity dept., everything else aside.

[Luftwaffe1O1]

Factory runflats are terrible on longevity. You might want to go to a harder compound like an all season/touring tire. Check the tread wear rating. While it is subjective to each manufactuer, you can get a feel roughly compared to other tires in the lineup.

Ie typically even cross manufactuer if tires are over 400-500 tread rating you should be ok for a bit. But it also depends on a lot of factors like driving style, type of driving (freeway/twisty roads) etc.

I will give you an example, I ate through my set of Contisport 2s in about 9000 miles. But this was aggressive driving on the back roads every day on my way home from work.

It just depends what you want, longevity or fun, or a mix of both. I think in your case its a matter of finding the right tire.

[mryakan]

Factory runflats are terrible on longevity. You might want to go to a harder compound like an all season/touring tire. Check the tread wear rating. While it is subjective to each manufactuer, you can get a feel roughly compared to other tires in the lineup.

Ie typically even cross manufactuer if tires are over 400-500 tread rating you should be ok for a bit. But it also depends on a lot of factors like driving style, type of driving (freeway/twisty roads) etc.

I will give you an example, I ate through my set of Contisport 2s in about 9000 miles. But this was aggressive driving on the back roads every day on my way home from work.

It just depends what you want, longevity or fun, or a mix of both. I think in your case its a matter of finding the right tire.

It is not really the runflats, but the high performance soft rubber. Some of the newest generation all season runflats have pretty good tread life.
That said, the Contis must have the worst tread life. MY ContiSport2 SSR lasted around 8-9K max too, but like you I was aggressive on them. Still, least miles on a rear set ever.

[Luftwaffe1O1]

It is not really the runflats, but the high performance soft rubber. Some of the newest generation all season runflats have pretty good tread life.
That said, the Contis must have the worst tread life. MY ContiSport2 SSR lasted around 8-9K max too, but like you I was aggressive on them. Still, least miles on a rear set ever.

What did you go with? I currently run bridgestone potenza re760s, they aren't a bad tire for how cheap they are, and tread wear is ok so far.

[mryakan]

What did you go with? I currently run bridgestone potenza re760s, they aren't a bad tire for how cheap they are, and tread wear is ok so far.
Went back to the RE050A RFT, they stick like glue and not too bad in tread wear, relatively of course. If the Super Sport was available in RFT, I may have given it a try.

[Jason5driver]

All,

I have a great car in my 2004 530i except for one nagging issue. Tires.
The tires are wearing out on the inside edge (about 1.5") right down to the cords.
My tire flat light came on due to this wear.
It is happening on all four tires.
I have 245/40R18 on the car.
The shop says that the alignment is okay.
Does anyone have any inputs?

JBC

Been there, done that...
Has your suspension been replaced?
Control arms, ball joints, bushings, struts, shocks, etc. ....?

I would get multiple alignments, but still my tires would wear incorrectly/ badly...
The car will sag over time from tired/ worn-out suspension IMO.
Replacing my suspension fixed it all...
And, run-flat tires are heavy and extremely expensive.
Plus, require special equipment to mount or remove run-flat tires...
They are a waste of money, and are for people that do not know how to replace a flat tire, or are scared of replacing flat tires.
Or, for people that do not care to drive with a flat repair kit (if you are one of the unlucky people to have a car without a spare tire...).... IMO...
:D

[mryakan]

Plus, require special equipment to mount or remove run-flat tires...
They are a waste of money, and are for people that do not know how to replace a flat tire, or are scared of replacing flat tires.
Or, for people that do not care to drive with a flat repair kit (if you are one of the unlucky people to have a car without a spare tire...).... IMO...
:D
How about people who changed enough flats to last them a lifetime and are not interested in it anymore ;). Ah, and that no spare thing or no room for spare too :D.

Anyway, no they do not require special equipment to mount. I have seen them being mounted with my own eyes using regular equipment, the tire techs just need to know what they are doing.