[Kevc23]

Just got a 2016 f36 and really want new wheels! But I live in NYC... Potholes everywhere! Am I gonna regret getting 19inch tires?

Anyone out there with good/bad experiences? Is it worth it??

[JoshVass]

Originally Posted by Kevc23

Just got a 2016 f36 and really want new wheels! But I live in NYC... Potholes everywhere! Am I gonna regret getting 19inch tires?

Anyone out there with good/bad experiences? Is it worth it??

I have 19inch wheels and I live in Manhattan and commute to the Bronx on a daily basis for work. I haven't had any issues, my advice is to drive slow and alert on city streets, especially streets you aren't familiar with.

[hollandog]

My last ride had 18" and got a bubble on one of the run-flat tires. It was a $250 fix. I'm not sure about running 19" year round.

I think it would be ok to run 19" in the summer but I'd stick with 18" or 17" in the winter.

[RedlinePSI]

Just don't get super small tires and you're fine. I just put winter tires on my stock 18's, and am planning to get new 19's with summer tires. I'm going to keep the tire fairly tall, maybe 40's, so as to fill the wheel gap a little bit more, and also retain ride quality.

Although I do plan to stagger my wheels so i'm not sure yet how to get matching profiles on the front and rear. Why they have to make this so difficult is beyond me. They can't just measure the side wall and write that down?

[erko1905]

Originally Posted by JoshVass

I have 19inch wheels and I live in Manhattan and commute to the Bronx on a daily basis for work. I haven't had any issues, my advice is to drive slow and alert on city streets, especially streets you aren't familiar with.

I'm running 19 RFTs year round as well, I drive very frequently in manhattan, and i'm literally not going above 25mph (supporting de blasio's vision zero ) and my eyes are always glued to the road right in front of me to avoid any pothole or worse. Luckily never had any issues, I suspect stiffer RFT sidewalls do help a bit.

Some of the potholes and the road surface in general is outright dangerous in the city. A few times i hit a pot hole by mistake and it sounded as if i was about to break the rim let alone having a tire issue. It's hard to understand with the taxes where they are and the real estate values/taxes where they are, how they can't afford streets that are not embarrassing.

I'm actually thinking about switching to 20s with Michelin PSSs after these stock RFTs are gone, which is probably asking for trouble. I think i'll just try to never drive in the city after that.

[JoshVass]

Originally Posted by erko1905

I'm running 19 RFTs year round as well, I drive very frequently in manhattan, and i'm literally not going above 25mph (supporting de blasio's vision zero ) and my eyes are always glued to the road right in front of me to avoid any pothole or worse. Luckily never had any issues, I suspect stiffer RFT sidewalls do help a bit.

Some of the potholes and the road surface in general is outright dangerous in the city. A few times i hit a pot hole by mistake and it sounded as if i was about to break the rim let alone having a tire issue. It's hard to understand with the taxes where they are and the real estate values/taxes where they are, how they can't afford streets that are not embarrassing.

I'm actually thinking about switching to 20s with Michelin PSSs after these stock RFTs are gone, which is probably asking for trouble. I think i'll just try to never drive in the city after that.

Driving in the city with nice wheels can be nerve wrecking, but my train of thought is as long as you do not drive like a mad man you will be fine. I've never bent a wheel and I've been driving in nyc for well over 10+ years. I want to go with 20's and with the same tires you are thinking of.

Do you go to any bimmer meets?

[JoshVass]

And I can't go smaller than 19inch wheels because 18's and below won't clear my calipers

[erko1905]

Originally Posted by JoshVass

Driving in the city with nice wheels can be nerve wrecking, but my train of thought is as long as you do not drive like a mad man you will be fine. I've never bent a wheel and I've been driving in nyc for well over 10+ years. I want to go with 20's and with the same tires you are thinking of.

Do you go to any bimmer meets?

I'm fairly sure, i'll be ok 99% of the time with 20s, until one day I'll get a little too annoyed with a crown victoria that cuts me off because i'm watching for those potholes and that 30 seconds of road rage is typically when i hit something real bad.

Another thing sometimes (this is more rare) i do hit a semi-potholy looking bad spot on the highway (some of the bridges etc) at relatively high speed, car's getting springs very soon so springs + 20s i guess those might become issues too in theory.

I never went to any bimmer meets but i'm thinking about going to this captree run next sunday.

[JoshVass]

Originally Posted by erko1905

I'm fairly sure, i'll be ok 99% of the time with 20s, until one day I'll get a little too annoyed with a crown victoria that cuts me off because i'm watching for those potholes and that 30 seconds of road rage is typically when i hit something real bad.

Another thing sometimes (this is more rare) i do hit a semi-potholy looking bad spot on the highway (some of the bridges etc) at relatively high speed, car's getting springs very soon so springs + 20s i guess those might become issues too in theory.

I never went to any bimmer meets but i'm thinking about going to this captree run next sunday.

What springs are you getting? I have dinan springs with bump stops on my car

[erko1905]

Originally Posted by JoshVass

What springs are you getting? I have dinan springs with bump stops on my car

Same - Dinan springs + bump stops.

[JoshVass]

Originally Posted by erko1905

Same - Dinan springs + bump stops.

Nice, good choice, smooth ride

[ny325]

I'll go with 18s. There going to be cheaper when you hit that first pothole, especially driving in NYC. The palm of my hands sweat when I drive on the Cross Bronx, Major Deegan, FDR Drive, and any major tristate bridge. Good luck.

[lazyninja87]

Just to piggy back off this idea.. I live in queens and have an F30 335i non x-drive current setup is 403M wheels with non RFT. I want my tire sidewall to be a bit higher to support me in the bumps and provide a little bit less harsh of a ride. What do you guys think about the following potential setup:

Front-- 225/45/19
Rear-- 255/45/19

Or is anything greater than 40/19 asking for trouble?

[RedlinePSI]

Originally Posted by lazyninja87

Just to piggy back off this idea.. I live in queens and have an F30 335i non x-drive current setup is 403M wheels with non RFT. I want my tire sidewall to be a bit higher to support me in the bumps and provide a little bit less harsh of a ride. What do you guys think about the following potential setup:

Front-- 225/45/19
Rear-- 255/45/19

Or is anything greater than 40/19 asking for trouble?

You are ok with two different sized profiles? That's going to be about a half inch difference between the front and rear. Might not be that noticeable but I would think you might as well get it as close as possible. Might want to try a 40 in the rear. That would make the sidewalls almost identical.

Regarding the ride, that is basically the stock sidewall height. I don't see how that would cause any problems. Personally, when I get 19's, I am probably going to go 255/35 in the rear, and 225/40 in the front. I don't expect any ride quality issues at all with that.

[Kevc23]

Thanks everyone for the response!

[exclusivo]

I had 19" LM reps on my old car for about a 2 months, car never looked better. Cracked a rim after a few weeks, brushed it off, they were reps anyway. Then a few weeks later blew out a tire on the Grand Central in the middle of the night. Sold the rims the next week, returned to 18s and never looked back. Don't need that headache.

[Kevc23]

yea im starting to think i should keep my 18' m wheels... i hate the color though. maybe ill dip them

[Stlthnmrdrd]

M4 guys in nyc run 20", doesnt look like they are having any issues.. yet

[carzaddict]

I would advise against the 19's

I live in NYC and had 19's on my Jag and Infiniti.....never had any issues.

When I got my BMW (it had 18's) I figured im good, would have nothing to worry about. I was wrong. Ive replaced 3-4 tires already due to bubbling

[bimmercar]

i would recommend 18" and non-rft

[Crashnbrn5]

Originally Posted by Kevc23

Just got a 2016 f36 and really want new wheels! But I live in NYC... Potholes everywhere! Am I gonna regret getting 19inch tires?

Anyone out there with good/bad experiences? Is it worth it??

I'm on the M Sport 598's 19" in Brooklyn. No probs and my previous X3 had 19s. You just have to be a little bit more careful that's all

[RedlinePSI]

Originally Posted by carzaddict

I would advise against the 19's

I live in NYC and had 19's on my Jag and Infiniti.....never had any issues.

When I got my BMW (it had 18's) I figured im good, would have nothing to worry about. I was wrong. Ive replaced 3-4 tires already due to bubbling

Sounds like you have a case of the RFT's. You've proven yourself that you can run 19's without an issue. I don't see how it can be a BMW issue unless you are saying the suspension is too stiff. It's your choice of tires man.

Anybody who insists on keeping RFT's for 19's needs to understand that you pretty much cannot get a low profile tire.