[Susoa]

Hi all,

Moving back to an M. This time an X5M Competition. I can appreciate what winters offer as I used to have a M3, 20 years ago, on summers and that was scary w an inch of snow so I learned my lesson. After that Ive always had a separate winter set up for my other M cars but given the lack of snow in NoVA the past couple of years I’m having second thoughts. I don’t commute to work and they plow just outside my neighborhood if we get any accumulation once or twice a year. Granted winters are best for max grip below 40 degrees but I know enough to chill when it’s cold. Anyone in the area going w/o a winter set up on their X5 w summer tires?

Thanks!

[Dipthe0ry]

I don’t recommend it. We still get ice and avg temps have been below 45 where summers start to degrade. Can you do it? Sure, but why risk your car or yourself.

[TheGremloc]

I'm in NoVA as well and just went through my first winter with the M. I'll most likely be running a dedicated all-season setup next winter because the Michelin PS4s struggled with traction in the cold and I didn't trust them enough to do any spirited driving if the temp was below 40.

We didn't really get much snow this year so I can't say how they'd handle a the light dusting but the poor performance from just the cold was enough to make me want a dedicated winter setup.

[Susoa]

I had all seasons on my x5m50 and it was great but I did travel up north more than I do now.

Guess I’ll bite the bullet and get a winter set!

[Savoy2001]

I installed a winter set this year. Have pirelli scorpion winters on it and overall very good experience. Once i or twice on some snow but mostly for the cold temps. Big difference over the summers. Very much worth the hassle and expense IMO.

[blake6551]

I used to run winters. Had fresh PS4S last two winters, no issues. Shockingly good grip in the cold once warmed up. Even in high teens, after about 10min of driving my tire temps were close to 60. However, I didn't drive in the snow with them, just stayed home, no issues in rain at all.

[Savoy2001]

You can get away with it yes. I did just that last year. However. Once you run with the winters on even in just the cold temps you quickly realize how much better the correct tires are for that situation. You can get away with anything really. It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t usa the correct took duty the correct job though. Running the scorpions this year and now just putting the p p s4s’s back on the x5mc this week since it’s still cold up here I see the difference big time. Doesn’t matter now since the weather is about to turn on the next couple weeks but yes for a few months of very cold temps and occasional snow the pirelli scorpions are perfect.

The biggest downside for me is the hassle of loading and shuttling the wheels and tires back and forth to the dealer twice a year. They will not store them here on Long Island like many other dealers will do out iof state. Very annoying.

[Susoa]

Originally Posted by blake6551

I used to run winters. Had fresh PS4S last two winters, no issues. Shockingly good grip in the cold once warmed up. Even in high teens, after about 10min of driving my tire temps were close to 60. However, I didn't drive in the snow with them, just stayed home, no issues in rain at all.

Thats pretty amazing!