Hello all, noob here.

I'm a BMW enthusiast, and I've owned several E30's and I currently have an E36 328is. I just picked up an '03 MCS with the 16" X-Lites. The previous owner put on some junky tires (all seasons) for some reason and I'm wanting to upgrade tires.
It currently has 195/55/16's on it, and I would prefer to go a little wider. I've scoured post after post looking for some thread showing tire sizes that work best, with no luck, or no definitive answer.

So my question is: Whats the widest tire I can run without spacers and without rubbing issues?

I'm not really interested in brands and what performs the best, I just want to know how much rubber I can fit without causing problems or having to use spacers.

Thanks in advance,
Josh F.

 

I'm running 215/40/16's on stock rims. I have run 225/50/16 slicks, but you get a slight bit of rubbing on the trailing arms under extreme loads.

 

stick with 205/50/16's in GS-D3's.

 

Widest possible tire:
215/40-16 (fits rims 7 to 8.5" wide but can be fit on a narrower rim)- Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 for $134 each, smaller than stock size 22.8"
215/45-16 (fits rims 7 to 8.5" wide but can be fit on a narrower rim)
225/45-16 (fits rims 7 to 8.5" wide but can be fit on a narrower rim)
225/50-16 Slightly taller tire than stock 24.9"

Best size for street use in your case:
205/50-16 (best fit/widest selection of street tires) 24.1" tall tire
Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 for $114 each

 

Im Facing a similar decision. . . im not sure how wide or thick i want my tires and mostly because im not sure how it will directly effect my drive. i have the stock 2pc 17's now with 205/45/R17 BFGoodrich G-Force pro's and they are great. my car is lowered about an inch so i didn't want to go to much wider because of rubbing issues. Now im buying 16" rota slipstream's and i want to get winter tires for them. im worried about the tire looking funny going bigger than 45.

I figured since I have 45's with my 17's that would mean the right thing to do when getting 16's is to get 55 right? i would like to get 50's tho and as for the width... would it be better to go wider (keep in mind they are for the winter) maybe a 215?

 

225/45R16 would be the widest...

 

The no worry, no brainer size is a 205/50/16. If you want a little more width and don't mind a little more gap and a little less gas mileage then you can go with a 215/45/16.

 

I have run 4 sets of Yoko AVS 100 205/50/16 and love them! Good ride, amazing grip, long life for track days, great price!

 

Great! I run the AVS ES100's on my E36 as well and love them. I'm a Yoko fan, so that's probably what I'll go with.

Thanks to everyone for the input, it's much appreciated.

Josh F.

 

One note - the thin ribs on the ES100's are prone to chunking, especially at the outer shoulder... at least, they chunked on me and I was watching pressures closely. They are very predictable on the track, though. They got a bit greasy on me towards the end of sessions in the Texas heat, but otherwise they're not a bad choice.

I think one of the better choices out there right now is the Hankook z212 for lapping... They also work great on the street, IMHO. A bit more grip than the Kumho MX, IMHO, and really not bad in the wet. And, they're dirt cheap!

 

3 sets of ES100s did the same, on public roads...I wouldn't use these again.

 

doc, it took you 3 sets to determine this?

how've you been?

 

I've got a set of ES100's on my Miata. They've been pretty good with no signs of chucking. I don't track the car though. One aspect of those tires that I hate is the hockey puck effect you get in cold weather. Next set will be something else.

Back to MINI's.... I'm running 205/50/16 Kumho ASX's & I'm pretty happy with them.

 

Me too, great tire in both wet and dry, and a great bargain.

 

Chunking of tires is not generally a problem for modern tires used on the street under normal driving conditions. I had a set of ES100s used for street autocross and track that did not chunk.

Rule one- Don't take brand new street tires to the track and expect them to work like track tires. They will overheat and the tread is too deep to handle the heat. The top layer of rubber will separate to chunk off from the cooler lower layers if stressed during a track session.

Rule two- Less tread depth will help your track performance and lower the risk for chunking. 4/32" works but realize that street tires are about 10/32".
Shaving is an option for a dedicated track tire.

Rule three- Heat cycling can be helpful (available from tirerack for a fee) and extends tire life without causing any reduction of tire performance or lap time.

Note- I have tried to do my own heat cycling and it isn't that easy depending on where you live- I always have tirerack do it for me. I live in an urban suburban area and there are not many good places to drive that allow me to get up to speed to do the heat cycling.

Rule four- Adjust your tire pressures when on the track to allow maximum use of your tires whether performance tires or not. Chalk the tire edges or use a pyrometer.

Rule five- if you have a stock suspension do not expect your tires to wear evenly, they won't and you will wear out any tire you have installed in a fairly short time. You have to be able to adjust your suspension and alignment in order to make better use of your tires when on the track.

I would not worry much about chunking for normal street driving. I have seen many tires chunk on the track from ES100s to Potenza S-03s to Stock MINI runflat tires.

 

Yeah, I follow all the rules - but they still chunked on me.

 

I have the ES100's on my E36 328is, they were still new (less than 500 miles) when I did a track day with them. They did great, with no "chunking" what so ever. I pushed the car pretty hard, and track temp had to be close to 100° that day.

I guess its different with everyone.

 

I'll have to echo Crashton's comments. I have ES100's on my Miata also and they've been "pretty good". Not as sticky as some other tires, but good overall. Since I live near Houston, I can't comment about the cold weater problems.

I recently replaced my Toyo Proxes T1-S tires on my MINI because of the extremely high noise level of these tires. Absoutely the loudest tires I've ever owned. I researched the quietest perfomance tires and found the Avon M500 205/50-16s to be the best combination. (Thanks to all the NAM folks that recommended them.) After driving on them for several months, I'm extremely impressed. For the first time since buying my MINI, I can actually hear the exaust note over the road noise. Even better, the MINI is now the quietest car I've ever owned thanks to the Avons. For my cars, Avon M500's are now the tire of choice.

John

 

I recently purchased a set of tires that were used for track day by the previous owner. The front set of these tires have some chunking on the outside edge, Are these safe for me to use as a every day driver? I was thinking of moving the chunked tires to the rear. Am I better off trying to sell these advertising them for use as track day tires for another Mini owner. I'm really not sure how to proceed with these tires...

 

Unless the tires are HORRIBLY chunked, like you can see the belts or something, I wouldn't say it's a huge problem. I have a friend who has Kumho tires, and his are chunked from a track-day... and he uses them every day without any problems. But be your own judge here... if it looks dangerous, then you might toss them, but if its some pieces of tread missing that aren't compromising the tire's ability to retain air and rigidity... I wouldn't worry.

Josh F.

 

I am running 215/40/16s. You pick up an 8% gearing improvment with these short tires. This is great for track and street play. It does throw the speedo off 8% and would not be great for lots of long highway trips - I now run high three thousands on the highway in 6th. They also look small in the fender. Flys on the track though - I run with vetts at Road Atlanta.
Wes

 

I live about 20 miles from Road Atlanta, that's quite a feat to run with Vettes out there. What tires are you running? I took a ride around Road Atlanta with a driving instructor in his C5-Z06, and it was very impressive. E46 M3's were the only thing that would give him trouble out there.

 

I am running Toyo Proxes T1Rs. I also have a Willwood BBK on front, upgraded brakes on rear, poly bushings everywhere, camber plates, adjustable rear lower arms, big rear sway bar. I should be around 205 wheel/hp but have never dinoed. AGS3, 18%, light crank pulley, DFIC, Giac, Big injectors, Miltek CB. It also halps that I was three time Atlanta region SCCA champ in the late 90's in a VW SCIRROCO ITC and do not mind driving sidways at speed. This is somthing many of the more expensive cars seem reluctant to do ;-)

 

Wes,
Based on mods and driver skill, I would say you shouldn't have any trouble running with Vettes. I was thinking you had a stocker, and were claiming to run with Vettes... which made me believe that it was senior's day at Road Atlanta. Maybe I'll see you around out there.

 

Now lets not be ragging on senior drivers. Some of us old farts can still drive.