Verification Needed - Winter Setup for E46 M3

[vertius]

Hey Guys,

The time is near for some of us that gets snow. I know the recommended size is 225/50-17 for an E46 M3 using winter tires. However, my E36 M3 has 205/50-17 tires. Those are slightly worn, so I wanted to buy new tires. If I go with the 205s, there are a ton of choices and I can get a "better" tire cheaper, than the 225s. I don't plan on doing any spirited driving with snow tires, but I do want nice snow tires. I want aggressive snow tires, in case my wife doesn't let me use her S4 when I go on snowboarding trips up North. New England is funny with the weather and I want to make it back home if I get caught in a snow storm lol

After researching on the Inter-Googles people believed the 205s should be fine, as long as the load index is high. There is a Blizzak WS80 listed as Extra Load.

I just want to make sure the 205s are fine. Also, should I rock the 17" steelies or DS2 wheels? I confirmed that the steelies fit over the brakes. lol

[Jim@tirerack]

The problem with the 205/50R17 is they are 1" shorter than stock. They are going to look funny with more wheel well gap and throw off speedometer, odometer and gear ratio. I checked and they do have enough load capacity if you want to go that way.
If I can help let me know.

[vertius]

Jim, Thanks for the info. You're right, from the 19" size there is a 1" difference. I was calculating from the 225/50-17 size and there was only a slight difference. So, let me do some more research on the tires again lol