320 Touring F30 - Winter Tyres and Wheels

[Skirmisheer]

I'm currently thinking about getting a 320 Touring, probably around a 2013/14 model.
Living in the foothills of the Pennines I always fit winter tyres to my car and they've proved to be worthwhile. I'm therefore wondering what my options would be for fitting them to a 3 series.

I've read elsewhere that different sized wheels and winter tyres can be fitted although on some 320's there seems to be a difference in sizes between the front and rear wheels. The reason for this seems to be related to the cost of the tyres to match the size of the existing ones.

It would be useful if someone can give some definitive advice on this as it is something that could well influence my decision whether to buy a 320 or look at other makes where things are a little more straightforward.

Thanks in advance.

[Mr Tidy]

Sadly I can't give a definitive answer OP.

I have an E46 325ti Compact which being a Sport model has staggered 17 inch wheels - 7.5J X17 on the front with 225/45 tyres and 8.5J x 17 on the rear and 245/40 tyres.

But on winter tyres it runs on a square set-up with 16s - 205/50 x 16 Michelin Alpins. (SE models only had 16s anyway).

For E46s and E9*s 16 inch wheels are fine - apart from any 330 or 335 models which need 17s to clear the front brakes.

From what I can make out 16s also work on a 320i F30 (although an M-Sport will have much larger rims, albeit for aesthetics rather ]than function).

[Smuler]

I had an aforementioned 335i and went from staggered 19s to square 17s for winters and they were great.
But , if winter tyres had been readily available and a good price for my 19s I wouldn't have changed wheels. And to back that up I have had winter tyres in staggered 18s, also great.

Advice from BMW and my tyre guys were 17s squares are the perfect size for winter.
Wasn't really aware of 16s, but maybe cos I had a 335i

But I'm going to conclude , the most important thing is decent winter tyres.

I have X drive now , with square 18s. I'll fit some winters next month. Bring on the snow

[Skirmisheer]

Thanks for the replies.

I've got two cars in mind for purchase. One is an SE 320i and the other is an X Drive M Sport. Obviously an X Drive coupled with winter tyres offers the best solution for what winter may throw at us. I also like the idea of an M Sport instead of a more mainstream model.

https://usedcars.bmw.co.uk/vehicle/201710029889407...

I now understand the situation regarding winter wheels and tyres for the 320i and it seems pretty straighforward with lots of used sets of wheels and tyres available for purchase.

The M Sport though seems a little more complicated as I understand that the brake callipers affect things.
Again if anyone can advise I'd be very grateful.

[Smuler]

As per my above post I had a M Sport and it is much better drive cos of sports seats and suspension , but maybe check if "your car" keeps the M Sport suspension with the X Drive. I'm sure I've read that 335s of the current generation lose that ? So maybe same with other iterations.

Anyway , brakes make a difference but I still got 17s.

Used to be a BMW page that confirmed suitability. This maybe it. Buy second hand tho, got my 17s 300£

http://shop.bmw.co.uk/bmw-uk/en_GB/genuine-bmw-acc...

[chandrew]

I have a 340i xdrive touring and live in St. Moritz. The local BMW dealer strongly recommended fitting the 17" wheels that BMW Switzerland offered (over the 18"). I have 19" wheels for the summer and am looking forward to something more comfortable.

The new wheels / tyres get fitted next week.

BMW Switzerland has stopped selling the 3 series with RWD apart from a couple of the cheap models presumably because of lack of demand. If you're near the mountains I'd be going xDrive.

[Maracus]

I fitted a used set of E90 17" wheels with a set of 225/50/17 Dunlop winters to my F31 328i. The E90 has slightly different size tyres, but I can't remember what they were.

The summers were staggered, the winters a square set up.

[Skirmisheer]

Thanks again for the replies.

This is the other car I'm interested in. I've checked with the dealer and it's on 18" rims apparently.

https://usedcars.bmw.co.uk/vehicle/201710029889407...

[Commander2874]

Skirmisheer said:

Thanks again for the replies.

This is the other car I'm interested in. I've checked with the dealer and it's on 18" rims apparently.

https://usedcars.bmw.co.uk/vehicle/201710029889407...

Very nice and not a bad price either.

[Mr Tidy]

Smuler said:

I had an aforementioned 335i and went from staggered 19s to square 17s for winters and they were great.
But , if winter tyres had been readily available and a good price for my 19s I wouldn't have changed wheels. And to back that up I have had winter tyres in staggered 18s, also great.

Advice from BMW and my tyre guys were 17s squares are the perfect size for winter.
Wasn't really aware of 16s, but maybe cos I had a 335i

But I'm going to conclude , the most important thing is decent winter tyres.

I have X drive now , with square 18s. I'll fit some winters next month. Bring on the snow

My E46 325ti Sport has staggered 17s, but for winter I use a set of square 16s.

16s wouldn't work for you though OP - any 330+ model needs 17s as they have bigger front brakes!

Luckily I just got a set of 18 inch wheels with winters for my 3 litre Z4 Coupe.

But based on past experience now I have winter tyres it won't snow!

[Motormatt]

Skirmisheer said:

Thanks for the replies.

I've got two cars in mind for purchase. One is an SE 320i and the other is an X Drive M Sport. Obviously an X Drive coupled with winter tyres offers the best solution for what winter may throw at us. I also like the idea of an M Sport instead of a more mainstream model.

https://usedcars.bmw.co.uk/vehicle/201710029889407...

I now understand the situation regarding winter wheels and tyres for the 320i and it seems pretty straighforward with lots of used sets of wheels and tyres available for purchase.

The M Sport though seems a little more complicated as I understand that the brake callipers affect things.
Again if anyone can advise I'd be very grateful.

Having just gone through this myself, my understanding is that you can drop down to a 17" wheel for winters on an M Sport Model unless it has the optional M Performance brakes (its easy to tell if you car has them, they're painted bright blue with the M logo). In this case, an 18" wheel is the minimum size required to clear the larger calipers.
Another thing to consider if you're buying used wheels is that you need them to have the correct TPMS sensors fitted. Without these, the car is perfectly driveable but you will have constant tyre pressure warnings flashing up on the dash. This would not only be annoying but may have insurance implications too.

My 330d has the larger brakes but after lots of searching, I managed to find a good set of used BMW 18's with the correct TPMS on ebay, and purchased the tyres separately.

BTW, the Silver M Sport car on your link has 19" style 403M wheels in the picture, not 18"s as the dealer told you.

Hope that helps.

Edited by Motormatt on Friday 20th October 14:57