Please help with 20" on 2008 4.8 sport

GPSnV1 · #1 05-26-2008, 05:19 AM

I apologize for not searching first, but it is 4 am and I am out of it.

My wife went to the dealer last night at 8:30 pm and decided that if we were going to get a 2008 4.8 sport, that she wanted the honeycomb wheels with 20" tires. Her point of reference is our 2004 4.4 sport which has OEM wheels and tires that she likes, but dislikes the 19" wheels and tires for the 2008 4.8 sport.

Well, I woke up wondering about all the problems I would have with those 20" tires. Is it true that they only last 20-25K? How much do they cost to replace?

How do they handle heavy rain, snow and ice? I live in OKC which can have have rain - and hail and tornadoes but that's another story - and some snow and ice, but twice a year I have to travel 3-4K from OKC to TN, NC and at times VA, SC, GA and even FL. One trip in July the other in Dec/Jan.

Obviously I have seen all kinds of winter weather on the open road during the Dec-Jan trips. With these 19" tires on the 2004 sport, I always watched the weather channel closely to see if I needed to leave early or late and guess that now I need to be a psychic to make sure I can get over the mountain between Nashville and Chattanooga and the mountain near Asheville (NC), and so on.

And how do 20s do at high speeds? I mean above 100 mph? I don't consistently drive that speed, but I have been known to go over 100 on some of those barren stretches between OKC and MEM.

Thanks for anybody that happens to be listening on a holiday. I am due at the dealer this morning because I leave for a trip on Wed (return at 9 pm Sat) and Tues is already tied up. So if I'm going to get the benefit of buying at the end-of-a-slow-month for my dealer, then today is my best shot.

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DumboX5 · #2 05-26-2008, 07:42 AM

You're going to need to search this issue! This is probably one of the most discussed issues on the forum.....The short of it is, you'd be lucky to get 25K miles on the summers....and you're SOL for winter traction!

LeMansX5 · #3 05-26-2008, 10:10 AM

OEM 20" rubber does not handle snow. 20" are good at high speed than 19".

rh71 · #4 05-26-2008, 10:55 AM

Switch to 20s after the purchase (and sell your 19s to recoup costs). That way you can buy proper all-season 20s and not have to switch out twice a year. Plenty of open topics here tell you how to get 20s aftermarket.

GPSnV1 · #5 05-26-2008, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rh71

Switch to 20s after the purchase (and sell your 19s to recoup costs). That way you can buy proper all-season 20s and not have to switch out twice a year. Plenty of open topics here tell you how to get 20s aftermarket.

Sorry that I don't understand how this works even though I have now done a preliminary search of this forum. I have been reading the forum for a few weeks, but travel enough that I apparently missed all the threads about 20s.

So let me turn the question around. I wonder if my spouse could live with the 19" OEM sport tires as long as the wheels were honeycomb? But how does that work? I have to buy the OEM wheel and then sell them and try and buy an aftermarket 19" that looks something like the honeycomb?

Although then again, since the 2008 is wider and longer than the 2004, I think the illusion that the 20s give reminds her of what we have and so that might be a deal breaker anyway. She is very happy with the styling and look of our 2004 4.4i sport with OEM tires.

LeMansX5, I know you are in the major league but what you are telling me still leaves a little bit curosity. That is because I had read in the other forum about how my OEMs were not fit for snow and so for maybe 2 years, I never drove anywhere with the X5 on snow. Then one day I was having so much trouble getting around in our commuter, that I pulled out the X and found that I could manage quite well in OKC. Now the winter trips and the mountains would be a different story, but I think you are telling me that the rubber itself of the 20s as well as the thread design is my enemy.

Thanks to all taking time to help even though this is a broken record for the regulars and experts. DumboX5, your note was cryptic but it sent me in the right direction to search for the pertinent issues.

motordavid · #6 05-26-2008, 11:55 AM

Complex Question(s)...imo, the 20s on those wheels look great. That said, you will be hard pressed to get more than 25/30k miles out of them. As to the one set/size of tires that will work well or "ok", for your very extreme potential driving conditions, (albeit infrequent severe situs), 20s aren't "it".

Even 20s in an "all weather" tread are not going to be fun for the potential weather you might encounter on that winter run to TN,NC & VA...but, you might get lucky. I personally wouldn't want to run serious snow tires or, maybe even swap wheel sets&dedicated snows, just for a couple weeks of "winter weather". As for the rainy season in OKC, I would not worry about 20s, other than their tendency to hydroplane due to tire width.

You may get more opins, but if that wheel/tire combo are what you & your wife really like, I'd go for them. If you lived in MN or another serious winter state, I'd rec'd hunting up a set of 19s/18s with dedicated snows for the few months you might face real winter driving conditions.

Long ramble and not sure it is of help...
GL,mD

LeMansX5 · #7 05-26-2008, 12:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GPSnV1

LeMansX5, I know you are in the major league but what you are telling me still leaves a little bit curosity. That is because I had read in the other forum about how my OEMs were not fit for snow and so for maybe 2 years, I never drove anywhere with the X5 on snow. Then one day I was having so much trouble getting around in our commuter, that I pulled out the X and found that I could manage quite well in OKC. Now the winter trips and the mountains would be a different story, but I think you are telling me that the rubber itself of the 20s as well as the thread design is my enemy.

Thanks to all taking time to help even though this is a broken record for the regulars and experts. DumboX5, your note was cryptic but it sent me in the right direction to search for the pertinent issues.

Correct, and for that reason BMW does not recommend that for winter. Rubber makes big difference. There are some members here who have winter rubber on 20s.
Not sure how much snow you get in OKC. It also depends on what kind of drive and handling you prefer. You may get along in light snow. I keep 2 sets as that lets me enjoy both summer and winter with great handling. You can save money by getting all season rubber on 20s as rh71 mentioned but as motordavid said they may not help either.