18 Inch Winter Run Flats Now Available
#1
18 Inch Winter Run Flats Now Available
I know it seems silly in mid July to be thinking ahead about winter tires, but the Bridgestone summer run flats that came on our CMSA4 won't cut it for our winter needs as we often take ski trips to northern New England. When our car first arrived earlier this year I had noted that no run flat winter tires were available in any size that would fit the 18 inch Turbofans we ordered with the car. Tirerack is now showing Pirelli Sottozero runflats in the 225-45-18 size, in both H and V speed versions, reasonably priced at $239. While I usually don't like the stiffer ride of run flats, the ride of the Bridgestone summer run flats that came on the CM is tolerable (in our opinion) as we did not order the sport suspension (we previously had an R53 with sports suspension and runflats, and the ride was nothing short of BRUTAL), and based on our experience with the exact same summer and winter tires on our X5 with 20 inch wheels, I would expect the Pirelli winter run flats to have a somewhat softer ride versus the Bridgestone summer run flats, with a somewhat noticeable tradeoff in handling. While there's little doubt I would like the ride comfort of non run flats on the CM, I'm now leaning toward the winter run flats as I have this nagging picture in my head of my GF being stuck in a winter storm with a flat tire, and at least the price being shown by Tirerack is not in the crazy range. With all wheel drive we could probably get by with all season tires, but in my experience there's a big difference in the winter weather capability of winter tires versus all seasons, not only with traction, but also with snow, ice, and slush braking. Last winter I was so impressed with the winter tires on the X5, especially given that we used the very wide OEM sizes, 275-40-20 fronts and 315-35-20 rears (love the look of the big wide 20 inchers on the X5).
Last edited by shark715; 07-15-2012 at 06:51 AM.
#3
I know it seems silly in mid July to be thinking ahead about winter tires, but the Bridgestone summer run flats that came on our CMSA4 won't cut it for our winter needs as we often take ski trips to northern New England. When our car first arrived earlier this year I had noted that no run flat winter tires were available in any size that would fit the 18 inch Turbofans we ordered with the car. Tirerack is now showing Pirelli Sottozero runflats in the 225-45-18 size, in both H and V speed versions, reasonably priced at $239. While I usually don't like the stiffer ride of run flats, the ride of the Bridgestone summer run flats that came on the CM is tolerable (in our opinion) as we did not order the sport suspension (we previously had an R53 with sports suspension and runflats, and the ride was nothing short of BRUTAL), and based on our experience with the exact same summer and winter tires on our X5 with 20 inch wheels, I would expect the Pirelli winter run flats to have a somewhat softer ride versus the Bridgestone summer run flats, with a somewhat noticeable tradeoff in handling. While there's little doubt I would like the ride comfort of non run flats on the CM, I'm now leaning toward the winter run flats as I have this nagging picture in my head of my GF being stuck in a winter storm with a flat tire, and at least the price being shown by Tirerack is not in the crazy range. With all wheel drive we could probably get by with all season tires, but in my experience there's a big difference in the winter weather capability of winter tires versus all seasons, not only with traction, but also with snow, ice, and slush braking. Last winter I was so impressed with the winter tires on the X5, especially given that we used the very wide OEM sizes, 275-40-20 fronts and 315-35-20 rears (love the look of the big wide 20 inchers on the X5).
#4
Feel free to call me indecisive, but I'm now probably going to go with the new Michelin Xi3's (non run flats) based on what I've been reading about them. Part of this is because it seems like every few days I read a new post on this forum from someone else who has glowing comments after ditching their run flats. I also like that the Xi3's are going to be available in 225/50/18 as I'd like a bit more sidewall to protect my rims from all the potholes here in the northeast. Tire Rack is showing them in this size for $193. I will admit I've never met anyone with Nokian winter tires that did not rave about the winter traction.
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