I'm looking to purchase a 17" inch (square setup) set for the winter. I've already found some rims for my M235i which are of decent enough quality. I don't feel confident at all on choosing the right tire however.
Where I live, the winter tends to be very hard to predict. Last year, we only had at five days of snow. The winter before that, snow kept falling for a couple of weeks straight with temperatures going all over the place. I don't have to worry about hills here as this country is flatter than your average pancake, so that's one less worry.
Despite this uncertainty, I still think it's better to go for a performance winter tire as opposed to a full-blown winter tire. I can't order anything from Tire Rack due to my location, but their website did help me to find some potential candidates.
Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3 (225/45R17 94H XL):
From what I understand, this tire seems to get good reviews in general, but they wear out really fast apparently. I don't mind spending money on a good set of tires, but I don't want spending money on winter tires to be a regular occassion either. They also seem to be in short supply over here.
Bridgestone Blizzak LM-32 (225/45R17 94V XL):
Another tire that seems to get a lot of positive reviews, but some complaints on the noise (Yes, I used the search function :search). It's also a winter performance tire rather than full-blown. They're also in short supply here :(
Continental ContiWinterContact TS 850 (225/45R17 94H TL FR XL):
I don't think this one is available in the US. It is sold in Canada and Europe only as far as I know (maybe there are some Canadians or other Europeans that can share their experience with these). It seems to be getting good reviews and most places actually seem to have these in stock. Using the search I did find one person who was very unhappy with a set of TS 810's, but I doubt that is very representative (Wasn't on a 2-series). I am a complete tire noob so can anyone tell me if this would be classified as a winter performance tire or as a full-blown winter tire?
Michelin Alpin 5 (225/45 R17 94V):
I am very happy with my Michelin PSS summer tires and would definitely have ordered a set of Michelin PA4s if only they were available in 225/45 R17. A local tire shop recommended me to go for a set of Alpin 5's instead. This tire isn't available in the US either it seems and I can't really tell if this is a winter performance tire or a full-blown winter tire either. Michelin always seems to be a top performer so I GUESS they're OK, but I really hope someone could provide some input. Also, before you say "Michelin X-Ice XI3": They're not sold here :(
I also saw the Dunlop D4 WinterSport as an option, but I think the car exceeds the weight limit for the 17" version (It's rated as 91 as opposed to 94 AFAIK)? I'd also rather not go with the Goodyear Ultra Grip Ice WRT, because they didn't do overly well in Tire Track's tests IIRC.
If you guys had to make a choice, what would you do? Thanks!
Where I live, the winter tends to be very hard to predict. Last year, we only had at five days of snow. The winter before that, snow kept falling for a couple of weeks straight with temperatures going all over the place. I don't have to worry about hills here as this country is flatter than your average pancake, so that's one less worry.
Despite this uncertainty, I still think it's better to go for a performance winter tire as opposed to a full-blown winter tire. I can't order anything from Tire Rack due to my location, but their website did help me to find some potential candidates.
Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3 (225/45R17 94H XL):
From what I understand, this tire seems to get good reviews in general, but they wear out really fast apparently. I don't mind spending money on a good set of tires, but I don't want spending money on winter tires to be a regular occassion either. They also seem to be in short supply over here.
Bridgestone Blizzak LM-32 (225/45R17 94V XL):
Another tire that seems to get a lot of positive reviews, but some complaints on the noise (Yes, I used the search function :search). It's also a winter performance tire rather than full-blown. They're also in short supply here :(
Continental ContiWinterContact TS 850 (225/45R17 94H TL FR XL):
I don't think this one is available in the US. It is sold in Canada and Europe only as far as I know (maybe there are some Canadians or other Europeans that can share their experience with these). It seems to be getting good reviews and most places actually seem to have these in stock. Using the search I did find one person who was very unhappy with a set of TS 810's, but I doubt that is very representative (Wasn't on a 2-series). I am a complete tire noob so can anyone tell me if this would be classified as a winter performance tire or as a full-blown winter tire?
Michelin Alpin 5 (225/45 R17 94V):
I am very happy with my Michelin PSS summer tires and would definitely have ordered a set of Michelin PA4s if only they were available in 225/45 R17. A local tire shop recommended me to go for a set of Alpin 5's instead. This tire isn't available in the US either it seems and I can't really tell if this is a winter performance tire or a full-blown winter tire either. Michelin always seems to be a top performer so I GUESS they're OK, but I really hope someone could provide some input. Also, before you say "Michelin X-Ice XI3": They're not sold here :(
I also saw the Dunlop D4 WinterSport as an option, but I think the car exceeds the weight limit for the 17" version (It's rated as 91 as opposed to 94 AFAIK)? I'd also rather not go with the Goodyear Ultra Grip Ice WRT, because they didn't do overly well in Tire Track's tests IIRC.
If you guys had to make a choice, what would you do? Thanks!
Bit of a winter tyre dilemma
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