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Runflats

1K views 8 replies 7 participants last post by  Jonnyg123 
#1 ·
Sorry, newbie here - I assume there have been many threads on this but having recently bought a 2011 BMW 320 se 2L 47k miles petrol hard top convertible, I have a couple of niggles that you guys might be able to steer me on.. (Great car - graphite black with all the extras - £40k new !!)
I hate these runflat tyres, never had them before, but on any basic road surface I just get a constant hollow thrumming which gets worse when the surface is not a motorway standard silky smooth. On a two hour run on the A35 averaging 60 mph + music on I had a bad head. I also feel the steering is very remote like having heavy solid rubber wheels that the car has just been hooked onto. I have no room to carry a spare wheel so not sure about switching to standard tyres, but I wonder if there is a make or tyre RF which better suits the car ? ( Currently on Continental Sport Contacts) I have wondered about lowering the tyre pressures ??? Or could this be a steering / linkage issue ?
I guess the first answer is to only drive with the roof down !!??

Second thing is the gearbox. Love it and sometimes have a go with the paddles, but a couple of times it caught me out on fast roads going up hill.... car drops thru the gears - up a long steepish hill on a dual carriageway ... ends up doing 70mph in 4th pulling nice ...... get to the brow of the hill, level off but finding it still stuck in 4th now doing 80. Car didn't want to change up so I used the paddle to get it up into top gear. Are these autos temperamental or is it me ?
Cheers guys.
 
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#2 ·
first of all ditch the Conti;s ,they are not the best as far as comfort concern.

the most comfort close to conventional tyre are ,the bridgestone driveguard, the michelin zp and the goodyear efficient grip or eagle f1. all the other rof tyres are harsh on the road with a lot of noise. if you wanna feel how close the car will be with conventional tyres , then lower the pressuers.i did that for while.just drive on a good road because i got a puncture.

well ,to tell you the truth i thought about it a lot of times. all modern cars nowdays which are sold new with convetional tyres don't have a spare too. so all the cars are the same.so the only thing you should do is have a road assistance paid and if you get a puncture they will take you to the closest tyre store. or just cmpromise and stick to rof tyres.it depends how and where you drive the car.
if you get conventional tyres you can also buy XL conventional tyres ,witch are more heavy and might be more steady when a puncture occurs.
 
#5 ·
well, mine says on the label 2.5 front tyres and 2.0 rear tyres.i i tried many levels.i ended up at 1.7 front and back.that almost felt like conventional tyres.i kept these levels for a year.but i checked pressure every month strictly.i didn't want my tyres flat.or the alert to warn me.but this is very dangerous and bad for the tyres.i had a puncture for first time in 9 years running with rofs. so i went back to initial 2.5 and 2.0 for safety.that means no more light steering wheel, less comfort on bumps e.tc. so i tried both ways. with full levels.. and lower levels - like conventional. each one gave me a different feeling of how to drive the car.both good.i like the way that the car and the steering wheel feels when full levels.i think i am driving a more stiff car like an expensive sports car. that because of the heavy steering wheel and the like train corners turns.
 
#7 ·
Personally I switched to normal tyres and have been on them for 7 years without issue. Just put a few cans of tyre foam in the boot. Enough cars come with just a foam kit anyway. As for the gearbox, they're meant to learn you driving style or so I was told. You can get it reset. Personally I find they hold gear longer than I would in a manual and I knock it up with the paddle.
 
#8 ·
Ive replaced my rears recently with Bridgestone Potenzas, since thats what was already on it, and I wanted to keep them matched all around. I cant say ive found any issues with them, they have been fine for me, although I dont really get much motorway mileage, so I dont have them at speed for a length of time for noise. They are only really uncomfortable on a badly potholed road, and give good feedback while driving. For reference, mine is an m-sport, so I have the 18 inch MV3 wheels.
 
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