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      12-18-2012, 05:24 PM   #23
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jdong View Post
And if the dilemma is between "Do I pay for xDriver or do I pay for winter tires?" I sure hope people choose the latter.
I would guess at least 90% of BMW owners who lives in the snow belt states choose the former.
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      12-18-2012, 05:26 PM   #24
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Just make sure that you get at least H-rated winter tires.

I have Continental WinterExtremeContact and I hate them. The traction is excellent but the tires are hopelessly soft and the handling is horrible, unlike my previous set (Vredestein which were H-rated).

I had also Blizzak in the past and no, thanks. They just don't last.
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      12-18-2012, 05:49 PM   #25
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There is no sunstitute to winter tires. Even an xdrive without snow tires is or great if you live in winter area.
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      12-18-2012, 06:01 PM   #26
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Quote:
Originally Posted by The X Men View Post
I would guess at least 90% of BMW owners who lives in the snow belt states choose the former.
Honestly that's what I saw too. And of course you still see these drivers in ditches. On the bright side, with AWD they can probably get their scraped up car out of a ditch pretty easily ;-)
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      12-18-2012, 07:45 PM   #27
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jdong View Post
Honestly that's what I saw too. And of course you still see these drivers in ditches. On the bright side, with AWD they can probably get their scraped up car out of a ditch pretty easily ;-)
I see cars with snow tires in the ditch as well, the worst part is that if you are in a RWD with snow tires and both rear wheels are in the ditch or stuck, you are shit out of luck unlike a X-drive which still have the front wheels to pull you out. Another problem with RWD cars with snow tires is that they cannot get up a steep hill without sliding where as a X-drive have the front wheels to help pull the car straight up. Both AWD and winter tires have their advantage and disadvantage, looking at the sales numbers in the snow belt states, it’s pretty safe to say almost all BMW owners prefer the X-drive advantage and find the disadvantage very minimal. Another advantage of the X-drive is that if you find the X-drive with all season tires setup still not good enough for your winter driving conditions, you can still step it up with a set of snow tires when as a RWD with snow tires will never be as good as a AWD with snow.

Last edited by The X Men; 12-18-2012 at 07:56 PM..
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      12-18-2012, 08:03 PM   #28
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I opted for xDrive that's my suggestion. No but really just get a set of Blizzaks.
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      12-18-2012, 08:38 PM   #29
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Honestly, xDrive is too pricey. If we still lived in Philly, where we measure snow in feet, we'd have bought a Volvo S60 T5 AWD or the XC70.
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      12-18-2012, 10:38 PM   #30
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ducatiboy72 View Post
I live in Norway where we get a lot of snow. I have driven 4 BMWs with only rear wheel drive. This is not a problem at all with winter tires.

The best tires you can get in Norway are the Nokian Hakkepelita R. Way better than Michelin and everythinx else. Don't know if you can get them in the US.
You can get 'em in the US.
That's my E34 touring with a set of Hakkepelitas going over the Continental Divide in Wyoming
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      12-19-2012, 12:21 AM   #31
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mamasgotkids View Post
This is my 2nd day with my '12 328i Sport. And it snowed here in Seattle overnight. I live in the ridge area so basically the mountains. Today I had to take my kids to the top of the neighborhood because the bus won't come in when it snows. The car slid around. My husband took our mini and had no problems.

Any suggestions for making driving this car in snow easier? This is my 3rd BMW (previously 318, 328d, and 120 all while living in Germany) but first snow experience with rear wheel drive. We are supposed to drive through several mountain passes over to Idaho for the holidays. I'm wondering if we should just stay home.
Great suggestions by the fellow members.

For your area and terrain DO NOT make the costliest mistake by making the cheapest decision. Get some real snow/winter tires.
You're driving children around and you all need to be safe.

There's a sort of adage in the motorcycle community regarding how much to spend on a helmet. It goes, If you've got a cheap head, then buy a cheap helmet.

If you want to save some money the best and safest way to do that is to mount the snow tires on OEM wheels. Just have the tire shop install the winter set and take the OEM set home and use them for the other 3 seasons.

Remember, for a BMW lease you have to return the car with run flat tires, and the tread has to be at a usable amount. I don't know how many miles you drive, but by swapping the OEM tires with winters you will have plenty of tread on the OEM set when you return the car. By getting snow tires you may actually be saving money. Win and win.

If you get those snow "socks" you'll have to install and remove them every time you need to use them. If you need to get somewhere fast that'll just slow you down.

You can get great prices at the TireRack, have them delivered and go to a tire shop to install them. If you have a Discount Tire in your area, with some knowledge of TireRacks prices and some negotiating you can get the tires at the same price.

Merry Xmas!

Last edited by RPM90; 12-19-2012 at 12:28 AM..
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      12-19-2012, 08:08 AM   #32
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mamasgotkids View Post
225/45 R18 Cinturato P7 is what it says on the tire. Honestly no idea if thats all season or not. This was a custom order car someone decided to back out on at delivery and my husband got me for Christmas. It's a lease so I don't really want to chuck a couple grand out on tires. In Germany the car always came with two sets, summer and winter.
The Cinturato P7 comes in two flavors - summer, and all-season. My Sport Line came with the summer tires, but I just recently replaced those with the Cinturato P7 all-season because I'm going to driving to Colorado this winter, plus Dallas does get occasional snow/ice each winter.

To check if your P7s are all season or not, look for a "M+S" symbol on the tire. It will be near the 225/45/18 size indication. It stands for "mud and snow." Also, it will say "All Season" just below the "Cinturato P7."



The summer version does not say M+S or All Season.

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      12-19-2012, 02:04 PM   #33
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Here in Denver, we finally had our first taste of snow this morning.

Drove my 335 x-Drive with Michelin Pilot Alpin's in to work with no problems.

When I was leaving my neighborhood I got the chance to feel the RWD bias of x-Drive. Going around a corner a bit too fast and my rear started to come around a little fast, but x-Drive kicked into gear and put more power to the front. Felt good.
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      12-19-2012, 05:30 PM   #34
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We just had most of the snow that we will get here for the year in Vancouver.....about 3 or 4 inches over 2 days. Listening to the local news you would think that Armageddon had occured because of all the mayhem on the local roads. I have a short drive that includes some winding hills with a 20 degree grade, even with fresh snow of 2 or 3 inches on the road my 335xdive with all season tires took it all in without a sweat or barely even the spin of a tire.

As usual the forecast for the next 2 weeks now for Vancouver is mostly for more rain I got the Xdrive mostly for all of the rain here but it also makes short work of the rare snow we see on our local roads Here in Vancouver, with rear wheel drive you are ptobably fine with all season tires if you have no hills to climb but if you have any hills I would suggest getting winter tires.

Last edited by SPACEMANRICK; 12-19-2012 at 05:48 PM..
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      12-19-2012, 06:29 PM   #35
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I use to always have problems in the snow or ice in my 328i. I was surprised at how the winter tires (General Altimax Arctic) grip the snow/ice because the slipping and swaying went away completely.
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      12-19-2012, 06:31 PM   #36
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Well I just checked for the m/s and there's no bloody m/s on the tires. So I guess I'll have to buy winter tires. Seeing as its snowed 4 inches in the city where it never snows, and its only December...
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      12-19-2012, 07:10 PM   #37
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Depending on the length of your lease, you're gonna have to buy a set of tires one way or another. If you return the car with minimal tread, BMW will charge you for a set of tires.
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      12-19-2012, 07:57 PM   #38
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Quote:
Originally Posted by alex2364
Depending on the length of your lease, you're gonna have to buy a set of tires one way or another. If you return the car with minimal tread, BMW will charge you for a set of tires.
Yes I'll probably have to buy tires by 30k miles when I turn it in. But I just forked over $3500 to them to get the car. They could have at least told me it had summer tires. I've left a message for the sales guy to sort something out. I'm hoping they want to make me a repeat customer and are willing to work something out. The tires should match the season, no matter who ordered the car (which wasn't us.)
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      12-20-2012, 04:31 AM   #39
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mamasgotkids View Post
Yes I'll probably have to buy tires by 30k miles when I turn it in. But I just forked over $3500 to them to get the car. They could have at least told me it had summer tires. I've left a message for the sales guy to sort something out. I'm hoping they want to make me a repeat customer and are willing to work something out. The tires should match the season, no matter who ordered the car (which wasn't us.)
Don't know how it works in your market, but over here in the UK BMW come with summer tires as standard. Only some xDrive models have all Season as a standard fitment, and most drivers specify a different wheel size anyway, and end up with high performance summer tires. Hence the winter tire package option.

I thought for most markets, the RWD sedans come shod in summer tires, whatever time of the year you purchase them. Any other tire package would be part of the buying process.

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      12-20-2012, 06:03 AM   #40
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I'll chime in with what others have said. Snow tires.

I'll give an example. Two years ago, in the Wash D.C. area. Snowmageddon. My wife owned a '95 Ford Explorer, fitted with Pirelli "Scorpion" Snow/Rough terrain tires, a hold over from when she lived further west. We didn't even bother digging out the Jetta, and just prepped her truck.

Drove that thing all over. Went around Lexus and Acura SUVs that had spun out and got caught in drifts. We took friends to the grocery, ran errands, and basically had fun driving wherever the heck we wanted because the truck would never lose grip. A year later, when 6in fell during an evening commute, we drove down a completely un-plowed road, bypassing two other modern luxury SUVs, rescued our friend, did a U-turn on a narrow two lane road in snowdrifts, and got her home.

What surprised me? The truck's 4x4 was kept in auto the entire time. (enabling it was tricky and came with a page of disclaimers, so I left it in that mode) I felt the truck engage the 4x4 only twice.

So, lesson learned? Smart and cautious driving with the right tires makes all the difference. I can't tell you how many SUVs with AWD I saw flounder because they were equipped with summer tires. For all of the wiz-bang gadgetry in the car, only your tires touch the road. Make them good.

As for me, I just took delivery of my 335i, with xDrive. My Sottozero IIs have already been ordered, despite me having all-seasons already. Do it right. =)
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      12-20-2012, 06:18 AM   #41
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kozality View Post
I'll chime in with what others have said. Snow tires.
Smart and cautious driving with the right tires makes all the difference. I can't tell you how many SUVs with AWD I saw flounder because they were equipped with summer tires. For all of the wiz-bang gadgetry in the car, only your tires touch the road. Make them good.

As for me, I just took delivery of my 335i, with xDrive. My Sottozero IIs have already been ordered, despite me having all-seasons already. Do it right. =)
As I discovered yesterday driving my new 335i in its first Vancouver snow storm, Pirelli Sottozero IIs are fantastic tires for snow and ice. I drove past numerous front wheel drive cars and SUVs, including several BMWs, all obviously floundering on their all-season tires. My RWD 335i with the snow tires handled incredibly well; no problem going up or down hills.
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      12-20-2012, 06:34 AM   #42
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Originally Posted by DerekS View Post
As I discovered yesterday driving my new 335i in its first Vancouver snow storm, Pirelli Sottozero IIs are fantastic tires for snow and ice. I drove past numerous front wheel drive cars and SUVs, including several BMWs, all obviously floundering on their all-season tires. My RWD 335i with the snow tires handled incredibly well; no problem going up or down hills.
That's great to hear. They seem to be highly recommended around here.
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      12-20-2012, 10:04 AM   #43
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We are definitely going to do something. I'm waiting for the dealer to make it right. We should have at least been told they were summer tires when we agreed to by the car (we even told them it had snowed at our house and they didn't say anything). If I'd know I'd have to buy winter tires when we looked at the car, I wouldn't have bought. I love the way bmw drives and its a great car, but if it useless in snow, it's useless to me especially with two kids.
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      12-20-2012, 12:15 PM   #44
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ducatiboy72 View Post
I live in Norway where we get a lot of snow. I have driven 4 BMWs with only rear wheel drive. This is not a problem at all with winter tires.

The best tires you can get in Norway are the Nokian Hakkepelita R. Way better than Michelin and everythinx else. Don't know if you can get them in the US.

yes you can get them in states. I had a set of Nokian on my Outback (base model cloth seat beater for ski pass trips), and it was abso-freakin-lutely a tank in the snow.
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