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BMW 3-Series (E90 E92) Forum > E90 / E92 / E93 3-series Technical Forums > Wheels and Tires Forum Sponsored by The Tire Rack > run flats vs. regular tires ride quality?



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      01-28-2010, 05:40 PM   #1
335educaton
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run flats vs. regular tires ride quality?

I'm considering changing out the RFT's to regular tires. Will this improve the ride quality of an E92?
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      01-28-2010, 05:48 PM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 335educaton View Post
I'm considering changing out the RFT's to regular tires. Will this improve the ride quality of an E92?
Im about to do the same RF sucks will ride somuch better. would need a spare tire for trunk..
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      01-28-2010, 06:46 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 335educaton View Post
I'm considering changing out the RFT's to regular tires. Will this improve the ride quality of an E92?
Yes.
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      01-28-2010, 08:18 PM   #4
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No doubt about it.
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      01-28-2010, 08:45 PM   #5
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I just made the switch... bought the continental flat tire repair kit off tirerack.com
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      01-28-2010, 08:49 PM   #6
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Yes I made the switch as well. Went from the Bridgestone to Michlens. The ride is much smoother and quite. Bought my repair kit from Walmart for $57.
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      01-28-2010, 08:54 PM   #7
Alexander
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Switched to BFG G-Force Sports, much much better.
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      01-28-2010, 09:15 PM   #8
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Yes.

I went from Bridgestone RFT's to Michelin Pilot Sport PS2's about a year ago. BIG improvement in ride quality.
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      01-28-2010, 10:12 PM   #9
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Hi guy's,

I have Michelin run flats and like them well. Over the years I have had just about everything and found that Bridgestones suck. If my car set a while the Bridgestones would indeed flat spot. I noticed this after I would drive up the street after the car had been setting for a week or so. It was the damnest thing that I have ever experienced. Yokohama were always good too but Michelin is really the tire to have and what I prefer on everything. If it comes with Bridgestones on it then that crap is coming off or its no deal for me. They ride just like Flintstones...that's how they got the name!!!
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      01-28-2010, 11:04 PM   #10
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So regular tires don't have a "performance" feel since they are "bouncy and soft?"
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      01-28-2010, 11:44 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by skim7x View Post
I just made the switch... bought the continental flat tire repair kit off tirerack.com
I'm looking at getting this kit as well, but this has me concerned.

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Originally Posted by Tire Rack site
This product's sealant may interfere with the tire pressure monitoring sensors on vehicles with direct TPMS, possibly leading to error prompts and incorrect pressure readings. Use of this product on direct TPMS vehicles could also result in damage to the tire pressure sensor inside the wheel. Please contact your sales specialist at Tire Rack for more information.
Have you checked with them to see if this will work with the BMW's TPMS?
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      01-29-2010, 05:35 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ni8shadow View Post
So regular tires don't have a "performance" feel since they are "bouncy and soft?"
Some performance tires are nearly as hard a ride as the softer run-flats. Each tire has different characteristics, but "soft and bouncy" is really an exaggeration for a change from run-flat, to a high performance tire of the same size and rating. Don't forget a bit more tire compliance can make a car far more predictable in day to day driving, even a faster car, point to point.

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      01-29-2010, 08:06 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ni8shadow View Post
So regular tires don't have a "performance" feel since they are "bouncy and soft?"
The RFT's have stiffer sidewalls to support the weight of the car without air pressure. This contributes to excellent steering response because they hold their shape better (they don't deform as much) when you turn the car. It also contributes to a rough ride on rough roads (because they don't deform as much). And they are also heavier. My RFT's were 6 pounds heavier than the Michelin PS2's (per tire).

When I first changed to the PS2's, I missed the excellent steering response the RFT's provided. Now that I've had the PS2's for a while, they seem fine. All new tires feel softer/mushier when they are new because they have more tread than the tires you are replacing and they need a break-in period.

The bottom line is that you give up some steering response to get a tire that rides MUCH better. If I drove on roads like they have in Germany, I would have kept the RFT's, but given the horrible roads many of us drive in the US, the trade-off is a good one.
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      01-29-2010, 08:10 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ni8shadow View Post
So regular tires don't have a "performance" feel since they are "bouncy and soft?"
No, the RFT will stick to the road like noone business and the the steering wheel feeling is better.

I switched to non-RFT but do not think it's much better than RFT. It depends on your preference.

There is no doubt RFT will cost more. You could still fix a flat on RFT. Been there done that.
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      01-29-2010, 09:39 AM   #15
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Non-RFT's are waaaaay more comfortable, thousand times better
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      01-29-2010, 05:09 PM   #16
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My commute and area has pretty well paved roads, so the need for extra comfort isn't there. I am mainly concerned with handling and steering. I was going to go non RFT because it's cheaper, but I did find a RFT that I am considering, the Pirelli Pzero RFT. Not as expensive as I thought (dealer quoted me on Conti RFT like $200 per tire) at about $130 per tire.

Is there a non RFT out there that can give the same grip and steering (i guess stiffer sidewall) as a RFT that is also at or under $130 a tire?
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      01-29-2010, 05:30 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ni8shadow View Post
My commute and area has pretty well paved roads, so the need for extra comfort isn't there. I am mainly concerned with handling and steering. I was going to go non RFT because it's cheaper, but I did find a RFT that I am considering, the Pirelli Pzero RFT. Not as expensive as I thought (dealer quoted me on Conti RFT like $200 per tire) at about $130 per tire.

Is there a non RFT out there that can give the same grip and steering (i guess stiffer sidewall) as a RFT that is also at or under $130 a tire?
I'm just going to throw this out there. I picked up a couple Hankook Ventus V12 EVO tires recently to replace my front RFT's. I had already replaced the rear RFT's a long time ago because of shredding the insides of one of them.

Anyways to make a long story short these new hankook's are easily out performing the RFT's in both feel, ride comfort, and driver confidence. I haven't fully broken them in yet but I'm not feeling any mushy side wall problems when making turns, nor have I had to slow down making turns compared to my previous speed when making turns with the RFT's. Plus they're only $115 on tire rack
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      01-29-2010, 08:39 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by InS0mNiAc View Post
I'm just going to throw this out there. I picked up a couple Hankook Ventus V12 EVO tires recently to replace my front RFT's. I had already replaced the rear RFT's a long time ago because of shredding the insides of one of them.

Anyways to make along story short these new hankook's are easily out performing the RFT's in both feel, ride comfort, and driver confidence. I haven't fully broken them in yet but I'm not feeling any mushy side wall problems when making turns, nor have I had to slow down making turns compared to my previous speed when making turns with the RFT's. Plus they're only $115 on tire rack
Yeah I was lookin at those but I'm on stock 16s and they don't make em for that size.
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      02-06-2010, 07:02 PM   #19
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i think the RFT are pretty smooth
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      02-06-2010, 07:43 PM   #20
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I JUST got some non-RFT's on my e92 last night and it is WAAAAY softer of a ride... much much MUCH better than RFT's... I would strongly recommend getting non-RFT's...

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=348969
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      02-06-2010, 07:49 PM   #21
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You won't have an inflation value for the non-rfts so play around with the pressures until you find one that feels right. Porsche "factory" settings are pretty high compared to what we normally see and the a 7-8 psi difference can make a big difference in how a non-rft feels.
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      02-06-2010, 09:12 PM   #22
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yes. greatly.
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