rear wheels only?
 

if I am only going to drive 3/4 of a mile with the chains on, which will bring me down to a plowed and sanded road, would it matter? It seems the stopping power would be enhanced with front wheel install. Going down is the scary part. Seems engaging the slow decent function with chains on the front would really work.

Would it work as well on the back?

Is there a mechanical concern with front wheel install? Or is this just an oversteer issue. The drive is so short and curvy, and I will be going soooo very slow, that I am not concerned about oversteering.

And fortunately for me, the road generally improves in a few days. I am at 2500 feet.

Rich

There a 14 Floridians gathered in a weekly rental house 3 down from me. They thought a white Christmas with their families was going to be fun, but seem rather concerned right now. 11 degrees, 10 inches of snow with +20 mph winds. And no 4whd cars.

I can't really comment on using chains, as I never have; I just gave the links to give you an idea. Many people on a Western NC forum do use them for a similar purpose as you describe: just get down/up their freakin steep road/drive, and then peel them off.

I have lived in western NC since '01, so I can appreciate that you need the chain deal for a brief distance and really don't need dedicated snow tires/different wheels for rolling around most of Asheville, Hendersonville, etc. Snows in those areas, at that elevation(s), are brief.

Not sure where to suggest for chains in the area; the online sites may get them to you quickly, for the next snow. And, I have zip experience with using them; my guess is a set for front & rear, but that's just a guess.

I loved my winter wheel/snow tire set, but we sort of had to have them to get up and down our Mtn on occasion...if I lived in the lesser elevations of greater Asheville, and did not have to get out for 'work', I probably wouldn't go that separate wheel/tire route, either. My 50Cts.
GL, mD

i use the manual shifter to slow down. It is far better IMO than using the brakes (which lock up). go easy, and shift manually. (ie going down a hill, put it in 2nd gear and just "glide down" the hill).

and I cannot stress this enough--KEEP YOUR DISTANCE and DO NOT OVERESTIMATE the capabilities of the truck. Just the other day i almost got nailed by a hummer H3 driver coming around a turn way too fast. He hit the curb, good thing i stopped when i saw him coming..otherwise i'd have a thread talking about my totaled car!...idiots...

Is there some data that shows 17" snows are superior to 18" (or 19" for that matter)? Why wouldn't you get a second set of 18" wheels? They look a heck of a lot better.

I think there is data out there. dont relaly have time to research it now being that i'm at work. the 17s dig into the snow deeper to get traction into the pavement

I ride 275/40/R20s all around with pirelli scorpion ice and snows...they feel more than perfect!

Traditionally, with a 4WD, chains would have gone on the front wheels. I am thinking back to the days of F250s here.

BMW states in the manual that chains are only to be mounted on the rear wheels of the X5. I suspect that is due to clearance issues with brake hoses, ABS sensor cables, and so on. Since the front wheels turn left/right, the electrical wires and brake lines coming to the wheel hub have extra length, and may be damaged by tire chains on the inside of the wheel.

I would definitely use the Hill Descent Control (HDC) in this circumstance. It works very well, and is better than braking yourself since it can apply individual brakes. If you haven't already, use the speed control buttons once it is engaged to get a reasonable descent speed.

also a truck 4WD system is a 50/50 split front / rear, where the X5 is 38 / 62, so I would guess that makes a difference. If you had a pilot which was mostly a FWD car, put them on the front. But BMW's are mostly RWD based vehicles - even the AWD ones, so put chains on the back as a general rule.

I don't think it is about the torque split. I would rather have braking and steering than drive traction, myself. Best of all would be to have them on both axles. However, since BMW specifically say not to put them on the front, I believe it is an interference issue.

Maybe someone should try chains on the front axle and see if anything hits.

snow socks can be fitted to all wheels quickly for short distance use .

YouTube - WeissSock Snow Socks