Winter Tyre / Wheel swap

[SilverJohn]

My car has 19" wheels with run-flat tyres but they're summer tyres and I'm apprehensive about the forthcoming winter weather.

I've seen a set of 17" BMW wheels and run-flat winter tyres with 5 mm of tread on e-bay which at the moment have a very low bid price which I expect to increase as the auction expiry date approaches.

I've been exchanging messages with the seller and have also spoken to a contact at my local Tyre City who is knowledgeable on wheels and tyres.

However, as well as the size difference, there is a difference in the offset between my existing wheels and the ones for sale.

Mine are designated as IS 37 Front and IS 39 Rear whereas the one for sale are IS 34 Front and IS 37 Rear.

64 million dollar question is : Will they fit ?

Any and all advice welcome, the e-bay auction still has 6 days to run.

Thanks.

 

[Upt'North]

I haven't got a clue. 

But........also check with your local BMW franchise dealers as they store winter tyres/wheels for the regulars, they then sell these on occasionally at competitive prices. 

If yours is RWD you're right to be concerned. 

Upt'North. 

 

[SilverJohn]

Thanks Upt'North

I eventually got the word from a parts specialist at the local dealership that they will fit so I've put a bid in.

I didn't bother asking about storage or anything as I can't believe anything they do would be competitive 🤣.

I'll post again in the next few days, hopefully with the news my bid has been successful.

John

 

[SilverJohn]

So, here we are a couple of weeks later and things have moved on.

The set of wheels and tyres I'd found on THAT auction site eventually went for a few quid more than my maximum bid so I lost out with only seconds to spare.

Never mind. I found another set of the same size at a fixed price although they weren't in as good condition.

After going to collect them (just a 90 mile round trip) found they had pretty rubbish summer tyres on and that all the balance weights had been stripped off.

Went straight to my local tyre depot who had helped me in formulating my decision to go with winter tyres and they quickly removed the tyres and sent them for re-cycling.

I've spent some time since then refurbishing the rims myself. Not to the standard of a professional rim refurbisher, but they'll only be in the car for 2/3 months and appear ok as long as you don't look too closely !!

I've also bought a brand new set of full winter tyres with an A rating for wet grip. These are run-flats, the same as the existing summer tyres.

My next stage is to get the tyres fitted to the rims and then fitted to the car.  Hopefully this can be achieved by the end of this week.

Local tyre depot is a branch of Tyre City

Tyres sourced on-line from Camskill.co.uk

Watch this space !

John

[SilverJohn]

Wheels and winter tyres now fitted and although they don't look quite as good as the 19", they don't look bad at all so I'm happy I took the plunge.

I've today pressure washed the summer wheels and tyres and when dry, will put them into storage until probably March or later if the weather dictates.

As we've had very little ice and no snow yet, I can't advise on the difference in grip.

As and when appropriate, I'll post again.

John