Anybody put Yokohama Tires on 18" Staggered M-Parrs?

[ChicagoE38]

Anybody have comments or experience on this Tire Brand for an E38?

On a 18" staggered set of M-parrs?

I'm always surprised how well Yokohamas do in tire tests and how inexpensive they are (think $100 per tire) compared to other well-rated tires.

Thanks.

[Reed Hunt]

Anybody have comments or experience on this Tire Brand for an E38?

On a 18" staggered set of M-parrs?

I'm always surprised how well Yokohamas do in tire tests and how inexpensive they are (think $100 per tire) compared to other well-rated tires.

Thanks.

Not Yokos, but how about Goodyear GS-D3s? I am getting these this weekend (in 19s). They have had great reviews and the price is competitive...(or does the sizing not work for you?)

[MDabney]

Yoko AVS Sport's for the 18" MP's are more like $250/EA, not $100. I'm not sure where that figure is coming from. Anyway, they are great tires in both wet and dry conditions, but I only get about 15K miles out of a set. I loved them because they had a much wider footprint than other brands of the same exact metric size.

[pdf740i]

I have a 97 740i with replica M-pars and AVS Sports with the typical 235/255 combo. I had documented my nightmare in a previous post a couple of weeks ago titled “m-pars bring problems”. I was going to get a little further in my journey before posting an update but your inquiry brings an appropriate opportunity.
I am currently on my 2nd set since 1/30/04 because of chronic vibration problems. Set 1 was balanced 4 times. Set 2, 3 times. Set 2 was also balanced twice using the Hunter GSP9700. The result was better with the Hunter and I feel it’s the best way to go but I am still not satisfied with the car. I am now in the process of getting a 3rd set which will probably arrive in a couple of weeks. Prices at Tire Rack are about $210 before shipping. Fortunately for me as a Yokohama Engineer, I receive a great price break. Unfortunately the Sports are the only line we make that fit these wheels. With the problems I’ve had, I would be reluctant to recommend them despite their handling capabilities. As an engineer that has looked at countless tire sections over the last 7 years (even up to 20”) from all the manufacturers, my recommendation would be Michelin. They always seem to have more durability features and an overall more solid, beefier construction. I had a set on an Acura and loved them.
Once the third set goes on and I can’t get the problem handled, I’m seriously considering dumping the car. I’m also dealing with alignment issues I won’t go into but I’m really discouraged with the whole thing after 2 months. Good luck.

[ChicagoE38]

Thanks, that's enough to make me rethink that option.

I had a lot problems with the new OEM 16" Michelin's hydroplaning at highway speeds in heavy rain (on two different cars) and will probably steer clear for that reason.

Maybe I'll try Reed's Goodyear recc.

Out of curiousity, did you ever try swapping those wheels onto another car to see if the problems moved with the wheel/tire combo?

I bought some A/M aluminum wheels once that were out of round from the manufacturer, and I know E38s and many BMW's are extremely sensitive to out of round issues.

[jayadam63]

That's a shame regarding these tires. When I bought the S03's, I almost bought the AVS Sports because of the tread pattern.

I think the AVS Sport's tread pattern is awesome:



They remind me of the Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3:



I'm going with the Goodyear's on the next set. Someone posted they only got around 5k miles with the AVS Sports. I think they ran on the track or autocrossed with them, though. They also commented on the weight of the e38 in relation to the AVS Sports and said there were issues.

On a side note -- The BS PP S03's have been shockingly good to me in regards to longevity. I put them on around 92.5k miles and now I'm over 106k.



Tread is still (guessing) over 60%.... I was hoping to get 20k and thinking I'd only get 15k so I'm very pleased.

[pdf740i]

Putting the wheels/tires on another E38 would be a great test but unfortunately I don't know any other E38 owners in the area or any other BMW owners period. Although the wheels checked out for roundness, I still wonder if the same problem would occur with OE 18's. If it would, it would be worth the additional $$.

[brahtw8]

If you are looking for budget Yokos, I think you probably mean the AVS ES 100s. Those probably run around $140-160 for the 18s. Check tirerack for sure.

I love those tires. I don't think you can touch them for the price. Certainly, there are better tires (I wouldn't run ES 100s on my NSX), but for a daily driver that sees even occasional high-speed or track driving, I stand by the ES 100s.

I had a set on my 325i that looked brand new after 27k miles, including one two-day DE at Road America. I will be getting a set of 235/40/18s for the TL summers in a few weeks.

[jayadam63]

If you are looking for budget Yokos, I think you probably mean the AVS ES 100s. Those probably run around $140-160 for the 18s. Check tirerack for sure.

I love those tires. I don't think you can touch them for the price. Certainly, there are better tires (I wouldn't run ES 100s on my NSX), but for a daily driver that sees even occasional high-speed or track driving, I stand by the ES 100s.

I had a set on my 325i that looked brand new after 27k miles, including one two-day DE at Road America. I will be getting a set of 235/40/18s for the TL summers in a few weeks.

Are the AVS ES 100's in the 235-50-18's and the 255-45-18's for the e38? I don't see them in those sizes at the Tire Rack....

[pdf740i]

The new ES100's were actually my first pick but they are not offered in M-par sizes. There wasn't even an alternative that was close.

[Honolulu E38]

I dont have the staggered set-up, but I have the AVS db's. I liked this tread because of the great wet and dry handling, sorry no snow in hawaii. I got 255/45/18 all around, and at $175 each, you cant go wrong...

[pdf740i]

Did you put the 255's on the front using 8 or 9.5 inch rims? Do you have any clearance problems?

[Honolulu E38]

Did you put the 255's on the front using 8 or 9.5 inch rims? Do you have any clearance problems?

18x9's all around, with no problems.

[Magnum]

I've had the Goodyear F1's on for a couple weeks, but drove several hundred miles on a recent road trip and they handle great and ride nice. When I talk about handling I'm talking about 120+ MPH on some of the mountain passes/roads of the Colorado Rocky Mountains - and they can be very twisty roads.

I have no issues to report at all, so far they are great. I will be curious to see what kind of mileage I get out of them.

[Randy V]

Any suggestions for a longer wearing tire in a 275-40-18 size?

The SO2s on the rear lasted only 22K miles so I'm looking for something cheaper that will last longer.

Thanks all.

[Reed Hunt]

Hmm, I'm not a Bridgestone expert, but 22K probably is not too bad...

What's the treadware rating on them?

True hi-po and tread life don't go well together...

[pdf740i]

I agree. If you got 22K, you didn't do bad at all. A friend at work has a set of AVS Sports on a Lexus GS300 (235/50R18) with 24K and they're shot. Tires like AVS Sports and probably the S03's aren't made to go into the 40 or 50K ranges and really weren't designed for 4000+ lb sedans. Every tire is a compromise and in the case of the type of tires that typically end up on large diameter wheels, wear is practically an afterthought. Anything above 20K probably shouldn't be cursed.

[Randy V]

Yeah, I realize they lasted fine for a high-performance tire.

What I'm looking for is less high-performance and increased tread life.

Is there an 18" tire out there that is not Z rated - any type of touring compound instead of a high performance compound?

[brahtw8]

The AVS ES 100 sounds like just what you are looking for. People have indicated they don't offer sizes to fit the M-parallels, but tire rack shows the following 18" sizes that seem fairly close:

245/45/18 (may work for a 235/50/18)
255/35/18
265/35/18
275/35/18 (may work for a 255/45/18)

I don't know if that will work, as I haven't run the diameter calculations, but it may be worth looking into

[Randy V]

Thanks - the 275/35 is close...but not close enough - I think.

A variance of 4%.

If the speedo signal comes of the trans (as I suspect it does), then this is significant. The NAV unit gets it's inputs off the front wheels so this wouldn't be a factor.

Tire calc:

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

[jayadam63]

The AVS ES 100 sounds like just what you are looking for. People have indicated they don't offer sizes to fit the M-parallels, but tire rack shows the following 18" sizes that seem fairly close:

245/45/18 (may work for a 235/50/18)
255/35/18
265/35/18
275/35/18 (may work for a 255/45/18)

I don't know if that will work, as I haven't run the diameter calculations, but it may be worth looking into

I ran the 245/45/18's on the front. Slightly undersized at 26.7" diameter. Spec is around 27 to 27.1"

The 275/35/18's come in at 25.6" diameter and it ain't gonna work.

The 275/40/18's come in at 26.7" diameter like the 245/45/18's and that's a match. Slightly undersized but a match. But there is no 275/40/18 with these tires....

I had this size combo with other tires and wasn't happy, though. Made the wheel wells look to big -- I prefer the beefy look of the stock numbers with the slightly higher profile.....

[dragoon101]

I had yokohama avs db's on my m-par's before i got rid of them. They were fantastic tires in my opinion. The one noticeable thing about them is that they were extremely responsive. Instant response.

Wet traction was not very good though. I would frequenty slip just moderately accelerating from a stoplight.

They were indeed very quiet.. but tread life wasn't that great. I think it has a 280 treadwear rating.

i don't know anything about the other yokos thouhg.

steve