[JDS]

Anyone have any good recommendations for sourcing new winter wheels and tyres in the UK for my 840i GC?

Ideally looking for OEM wheels which might narrow the choice a little, but am not married to the idea.

BMW's recommendations are:
18" 642 at £2,240 (Silver), Square set-up with 245/45R18
19" 727M at £3,800 (Bi-color), Staggered with 245/40R19 and 275/35 R19
19" 786 at £3,420 (Matt Black), Square with 245/40R19

Current set-up is 275/30 R20 rears and 245/35 R20 fronts.

Any advice as to keeping a staggered set-up or going square.
Also, thoughts on Pirelli Sottozero 3's vs Conti Winter Contact TS850P?

Thanks in advance for the input...

[msm2000uk]

Out of curiosity, are you based in Scotland?

Can't imagine anyone north of Manchester really needing proper winter tyres here.

M

[FBMWWINS]

Given that (for me at least) anything below 19" simply looks awful on a great (and with presence) car such as THE 8, I would eliminate the 18" setup to begin with.
In general a square and smaller setup will give you a better grip/traction in harsh winter conditions especially. If the winter in your area is light and you are not dealing with major snow/icy/snow-muddy road conditions, then it will not make much of a difference when driving the staggered variant. I would get the Conti tires vs Pirelli but you may also want to check the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 in the 275/35 R19 size. They have a very good rating. Personally I have always driven staggered (BMW recommended) setup in winter (even on XDrive cars) and never had any issues.

[BigMofoFrog]

Originally Posted by FBMWWINS

Given that (for me at least) anything below 19" simply looks awful on a great (and with presence) car such as THE 8, I would eliminate the 18" setup to begin with.
In general a square and smaller setup will give you a better grip/traction in harsh winter conditions especially. If the winter in your area is light and you are not dealing with major snow/icy/snow-muddy road conditions, then it will not make much of a difference when driving the staggered variant. I would get the Conti tires vs Pirelli but you may also want to check the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 in the 275/35 R19 size. They have a very good rating. Personally I have always driven staggered (BMW recommended) setup in winter (even on XDrive cars) and never had any issues.

While not the UK. In Canada I have the 786M in 19" matte black squared with the Sottozero 3's. No complaints at all, but arguably our winter is a different animal (don't get me started, I hate winter!). Have driven in snow and ice covered roads and have been happy with the traction in my 850i. Didn't like the look of the staggered 727's on my black car (the wheel design that is), and a squared setup is probably more practical here.
They are tucked in a few mm more than the summers, but throw less stones at the side of the car which is a bonus here I guess.

[JDS]

No - East Midlands. I used to live in the USA for 14 years, in various climates that included the snow and cold of Michigan and Ohio through to the rain and occasional ice of Alabama through to the blazing heat of Arizona.

After owning a rear wheel drive only 335i, my most scary moment was nothing to do with snow. It was summer performance rubber on wet, cold highway and facing the opposite direction. I switched to winters after that and have never looked back. I have since had them on all my cars including the last two F80 M3s.

One of the biggest under-appreciated benefits of winter tyres is not their performance in snow - it is when the summer rubber compound goes so hard below 7 deg C it no longer provides adequate traction. When this gets down further, rear wheel drive cars can become dangerous, even in experienced hands. In addition, the performance of winter tyres in the rain is unbelievable if you haven't tried it.

I will never go back after the experience I had. Well worth it IMHO.

[desi_jatt]

Hey guys. First post, so apologize in advance if this has already been answered somewhere.

I too am looking for some winter tires/wheels for my M850. So far I am leaning towards Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4 (P245/35R20 XL 95W BSW front) and (P275/30R20 XL 97W BSW rear). What is your guys opinion on these?

According to the configurator on www.pmctire.com, the following wheels (https://pmctire.com/en/wheels/rwc/ad...deport-30.tire) should fit..but i am unsure about rim width and offset. Any feedback on that?

Thanks in advance!

[FBMWWINS]

Originally Posted by desi_jatt

Hey guys. First post, so apologize in advance if this has already been answered somewhere.

I too am looking for some winter tires/wheels for my M850. So far I am leaning towards Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4 (P245/35R20 XL 95W BSW front) and (P275/30R20 XL 97W BSW rear). What is your guys opinion on these?

According to the configurator on www.pmctire.com, the following wheels (https://pmctire.com/en/wheels/rwc/ad...deport-30.tire) should fit..but i am unsure about rim width and offset. Any feedback on that?

Thanks in advance!

If you opt for the staggered setup in winter and keep the same wheels/tires dimensions the summer tires come with, the original sizes/specs for the M850i are:

FRONT: Rim 8J x 20 ET26 / Tires - 245/35 R20 95Y XL

REAR: Rim 9Jx20 ET41 / Tires - 275/30 R20 97Y XL


I always keep the same wheels/tires sizes for both winter and summer (different wheels but same technical specs) and never had an issue with my previous cars (XDrive models as well). My M850 will sleep most of the winter so I am not mounting winter tires for that matter.
As for the Michelin Pilot Alpin 4 tires, I had those on my F32 and found them very good, drove with them everywhere during winter and used the car a lot in cold, icy and snowy conditions. They also behaved well with heavy rain and any other conditions when winter tires come into play.

[JDS]

Just to close this one out, I finally just bit the bullet and bought a set from my BMW dealer. Went for the 19" squre set-up with 245/40R19s all round.

Thanks for the input!