New '05 4.4 owner

[Ken]

What cmyX5go said. I took her and some others advise a few months back and now own a dedicated set for winter as well as the Diamaris for all other seasons.

My wife's '06 X5 (sport package 4.4 with 19's) was absolutely useless this last winter, even with brand new Michelin's. I haven't tried my new 17's and the winter Dunlops as yet, but I'm expecting a much different experience come next winter. From all reports, cmyX5go's included, I'm excited about the possibilities.

'Course, that little "I Dream of Jeannie" hip action figure should be convincing enough all on it's own.......

Congrat's on your new X5......we love ours. I'm convinced that it would be prudent if you would consider the smaller wheel/dedicated winter tire recommendations being offered.

Good luck...................

[zachthefcr]

Ken, Thanks for that advice. Winter seems a long way off, but I'll certainly consider the dedicated winter tires.

[sprocket1200]

the winter tire thing is easy. get your hands on the BMW winter tire flyer, they even state that around 45F and below grip is drastically reduced with no season tires.

or of course, you could believe those that say they hardly make a difference, yet advise you away from spending money to buy the good ones. two thoughts on this, you get what you pay for, and I am not rich enough to buy the cheap stuff....

oh and the point about being in Canada, we get 3 days of snow a year where i live. I would never subject my family to anything less than good winter tires during the cooler months. want to save money? buy used tires cheap on craigslist for the rest of the year... oh, and buy purchasing a second set of tires you can run both other sets longer and save money too...

ignorance is bliss!

[anerbe]

i'm sure you also get the $200 fuel treatments from the dealer too, as they advertise it. there's a reason BMW push winter tires - THEY MAKE MONEY off them. ignorance at its best. they also state only use OE approved tires. wonder if your vehicle will crash and burn with non-OE tires....Working in the auto industry, one would know the difference between legitmate statements and consumer fluff.

why recommend the winter tire review from consumer reports, and then dismiss their summary about winter vs. all season?

never said winter tires hardly make a difference, and if you can afford them, go ahead. Your comments still do not make sense. "i am not rich enough to buy the cheap stuff...."

Buying used tires from random people on craigslst/ebay can have bigger issues. I've been burned with them being out of round, dry-rotting, being old, plugged hazards, etc....

The original discussion has always been to buy a second set of wheels, and buy winters if you can. Great. This has never changed. Offering an economic alternative of all seasons is a OPTION. Get it? Not the best solution...an OPTION. Calling one ignorant for giving an option to the OP's question merely shows your crudeness for the issue.

Recent review of an All Season Truck Tire in snow:
General Grabber HTS Tire Test - Four Wheeler Magazine
I guess myself, as well as all the publications out there, are ignorant. Better stick to the BMW's pamphlet.

Ignorance isn't bliss. it's a disease spread by those with opinions.

Keep buying those fuel treatments. I'm sure BMW loves you for it.

[sprocket1200]

OK, u win, this was not meant to be personal. buy the cheap stuff, do not think critically about the recommendations of the manufacturers and reviewers, and you are not ignorant, but I am....

that makes for a great new saying. I am proud to be ignorant, it can be cured....

[sprocket1200]

this is turning out to be very interesting. the four wheeler magazine link raves about the General Grabber HTS and its ability to perform in ice and snow. even gives some explanations about how the design is made to work like that as it traps snow and plugs up the spaces in the tire tread(why would you ever want your tread plugged up?)

then, wanting to ensure that my ignorance is as educated as possible, i go to General's website to see what they claim about their winter ability for this tire. Nothing, not ONE word about ice or snow or cold. that is weird.

so I think, hey, let's visit a trusted source for more information. one that does not accept ad revenues to influence their opinions. the difference is staggering. snow traction - not excellent, not very good. ice braking - not excellent, not very good, not even good. oh and thread life - second lowest rating (I wonder why with their 'softer compound')

now can consumer reports improve their testing. Yes, they make no mention of the TEMPERATURE at which the dry and wet braking is done at. do this near freezing on clear roads and watch no season tires fall on their faces. funny enough the General Grabber HTS may be an exception with its softer compound.

to the OP, to avoid poor quality used tires there are many resources that teach how to read a tire including the date of manufacture. note how and where they are stored and u can even take them to a tire shop to have them check for roundness. oh and if you check the tire and see plugs, patches, nick, cuts, drying cracks, curb damage or bullet holes, um, maybe don't buy that one.

[StanF18]

Congrats on your new ride. Don't feel bad about the mileage. After I "Dinan-ed" out my ride, I'm getting substantially worse than stock mileage (probably around 16 mpg or so). But I am perfectly fine with the mileage "hit" because the X breathes and responds superbly. Plus I can never see myself cruising at a tame 60 mph to save on mileage.

[anerbe]

sprocket, we can agree to disagree at this point. I see that you are a no-compromise person when it comes to winter driving, you had bad experiences with all seasons, or both. There's no problems with wanting the best traction for winter driving. I prefer snows myself.

regarding snow and tires, you WANT snow in the tread. The best surface for traction in snow is....snow. Have you tried shearing a snowball (take the halves of a snowball and shear it apart)? That is the whole principle behind snow tires. They have evolved from the past where they don't have large blocks with huge spaces in the middle to fling snow (like a mud tire). They often use all season like patterns, and they add siping and change the compounds to allow flexability of the sipes/blocks in colder weather. These sipes 1. create many edges for braking in ice, as the best traction in ice is by concentrated pressure on edges, and 2. capture snow to increase snow/snow traction. The softer compounds allow grip in cold non-snow conditions and flexibility in the sipes.

All the tire rack consumers have also rated the HTS tire surprisingly good in snow. you know what? it's also #1 in consumer ratings. I think that says a lot, considering these are actual owners of the tires, not a magazine with who knows what kind of test abilities. It's pretty obvious when a tire sucks in snow, I would have expected to see this in the reviews. With all the #1 reviews from a 4 wheeler magazine, a "trusted" source like CR, and great subjective reviews from people on Tire Rack, it does show that all-season tires are improving in all categories, including snow.

you can go on and on about on all seasons vs. snow and which publications say what. tire manufacturers, car companies, tire sellers, etc... all make more money selling winter tires. definitely more than selling consumers one tire for all seasons. it would be safe to say any company in the market to sell tires would try to push winter tires. I would expect more bashing of all seasons to sell dedicated summer and winter tires.

your ignorance does not come from the benefit of a dedicated winter tire. that's a no-brainer. it's from your no-season mentality, unable to understand that all-seasons are always improving, including in the snow category. alas, keep bashing "no-seasons" as good for nothing. not all ailments are curable.

[ncsucarjock]

Slow down to get better mileage. I average about 19mpg at 80mph. at 65, it's closer to 21, and at 55, it's probably even better...
they become boxes, and I can feel the air push hard against the X once I get over 70mph or so...

[cobra94563]

Let me amend my earlier post. This weekend we drove ~500 highway/mountain driving. I got the rated 22mpg! for the 4.4! Drove between 65-75 mostly. I'm impressed.

MPG for the 2500mi I've owned the car is now at 20mpg based on the computer.
(I know it may be inaccurate, but I'm too lazy keep track of actual usage.)