# Gary: Help with 19" tires for 2008 X3 Sport



## Fiesta_Tex (Nov 4, 2009)

Gary: as you and other Bimmerfest posters know, options for 19" tires for the X3 are limited.
I would like to switch to an all season, longer mileage tire other than the OEM summer tire short mileage Pirelli PZero Rosso's but keep my 19" rims. I post here as I know many other X3 owners have the same questions.
Question one: I have Style 191M Y spoke rims. Do you know what the dimensions of the rims are? The 2008 sales brochure in one place states they're 19 X 9 front and 19 X 9.5 rear but in another place it lists them as 19 X 8. Several other places I looked including this link http://felgenkatalog.auto-treff.com/ state that they're 19 X 8.5 front and 19 X 9 rear and this seems to be what I have when I try to measure them (on the vehicle...not an easy or accurate job).
Question 2: If I have 19 X 8.5 in front and 19 X 9 rear, would the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus 245/45ZR19 work. My review of specs seems to suggest so, and as it would a higher profile tire, I suspect the ride would be better.
Thanks for your advice, sorry for the long post!


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## [email protected] (Jun 10, 2003)

Fiesta_Tex said:


> Gary: as you and other Bimmerfest posters know, options for 19" tires for the X3 are limited.
> I would like to switch to an all season, longer mileage tire other than the OEM summer tire short mileage Pirelli PZero Rosso's but keep my 19" rims. I post here as I know many other X3 owners have the same questions.
> Question one: I have Style 191M Y spoke rims. Do you know what the dimensions of the rims are? The 2008 sales brochure in one place states they're 19 X 9 front and 19 X 9.5 rear but in another place it lists them as 19 X 8. Several other places I looked including this link http://felgenkatalog.auto-treff.com/ state that they're 19 X 8.5 front and 19 X 9 rear and this seems to be what I have when I try to measure them (on the vehicle...not an easy or accurate job).
> Question 2: If I have 19 X 8.5 in front and 19 X 9 rear, would the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus 245/45ZR19 work. My review of specs seems to suggest so, and as it would a higher profile tire, I suspect the ride would be better.
> Thanks for your advice, sorry for the long post!


Unfortunately I'm not sure on the OE wheel widths, but we have had some success with customers using 245/45R19 on all four corners of the car. These tires have a recommended rim width range of 7.5-9" so that should be no problem. I doubt the OE rears are as wide as 9.5" but the width should be stamped on the back of the wheel if you were trying to confirm. 
The Sport A/S+ would be an outstanding choice for an all season tire that has top rankings in wet and dry grip, cornering, as well as fast steering response but with a better ride and longer wear than a summer performance tire.

Tires http://www.tirerack.com/a.jsp?a=AB2&url=/tires/index.jsp


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## Fiesta_Tex (Nov 4, 2009)

Thanks Gary!
Will take off a couple of wheels in a day or two and post back for others benefit what I find on inner side of rims. If I find a different rim size, we'll have to go at this question again.


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## lilskel (Jun 10, 2005)

Please let me know, I'm not sure if I have to replace all four tires right now but the rears need replacing. I was going to go with a cheaper tire at factory size 255/40/19, but if I could get something better and longer lasting at 245/45/19 I might do that. I'm not sure how much it will mess up the speedometer and if it will cause any other problems.


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## [email protected] (Jun 10, 2003)

lilskel said:


> Please let me know, I'm not sure if I have to replace all four tires right now but the rears need replacing. I was going to go with a cheaper tire at factory size 255/40/19, but if I could get something better and longer lasting at 245/45/19 I might do that. I'm not sure how much it will mess up the speedometer and if it will cause any other problems.


With an all wheel drive vehicle, this may cause problems since these two sizes have slightly different overall diameters. It is also important to not to mix different tire types on an all wheel drive vehicle.


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## Llarry (May 17, 2002)

Fiesta_Tex said:


> Do you know what the dimensions of the rims are? The 2008 sales brochure in one place states they're 19 X 9 front and 19 X 9.5 rear but in another place it lists them as 19 X 8. Several other places I looked including this link http://felgenkatalog.auto-treff.com/ state that they're 19 X 8.5 front and 19 X 9 rear


Don't trust the brochure info.


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## Fiesta_Tex (Nov 4, 2009)

Front, cast into the back of the Y spoke:
8.5J X 19 EH2 and on another spoke 3 417 267

Rear, cast into the back of the Y spoke:
9J X 19 EH2 and on another spoke 3 417 268

I think that answers the final question for all of us


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## lilskel (Jun 10, 2005)

[email protected] said:


> With an all wheel drive vehicle, this may cause problems since these two sizes have slightly different overall diameters. It is also important to not to mix different tire types on an all wheel drive vehicle.


Thanks, so if I just replace the rears with the factory size but not Pirelli's will that be ok for awhile? And if I replace all four I can go with 245/45/19 all around?

I'm not sure if I'm keeping the car and the lease is up in July, but it would be a waste for them to tell me at turn in that I need new tires, so I might as well get them now.


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## [email protected] (Jun 10, 2003)

Best to match the same brand and model of tire for an all wheel drive vehicle if only buying two tires.


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## lilskel (Jun 10, 2005)

Just looking at other size options for the X3..considering replacing the factory rear tires with the same size, or going to a different size all around.

Overall diameter on rear/front is 27"/27.3" on the OEM's

245/45/19 all around 27.7" overall...Pirelli Pzero Nero All Seasons, seems like a great tire, $152

245/40/19 all around 26.7" overall...Goodyear Eagle...not a great tire but $97 after rebate, good deal short term? Could get four of these for about the price of two OEM sized rears. I don't need winter traction but need at least 30,000 miles of life.


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## Russell W (Apr 20, 2010)

*Help with tire size*

Hello , can you use 245 40 19 on the front of a X3 2008 and still use 255 40 19 on the back? Or is there another size I can use on the front (not 235 45 19) and still keep the 255 40 19 on the back? Please Help

Thanks Russ


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## [email protected] (Jun 10, 2003)

Russell W said:


> Hello , can you use 245 40 19 on the front of a X3 2008 and still use 255 40 19 on the back? Or is there another size I can use on the front (not 235 45 19) and still keep the 255 40 19 on the back? Please Help
> 
> Thanks Russ


245/40R19 and 245/40R19 have different overall diameters so technically may not mix. I can't say for sure if the difference would be enough to cause a problem.

The only other front size that matches to 255/40R19 other than 235/45R19 is 225/45R19.


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## Russell W (Apr 20, 2010)

Gary , Thanks for posting so fast , are you saying, I could put 225 45 R19 on the front of my X3 (useing the OME 19" front wheels) and put 255 40 R19 on the back and be OK? If that is the case I have alot more tires I can look at.

Thanks Russ


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## [email protected] (Jun 10, 2003)

Russell W said:


> Gary , Thanks for posting so fast , are you saying, I could put 225 45 R19 on the front of my X3 (useing the OME 19" front wheels) and put 255 40 R19 on the back and be OK? If that is the case I have alot more tires I can look at.
> 
> Thanks Russ


Although this size is pretty narrow, it does have the same overall diameter as the 255/40R19 so I don't see a problem with using it up front. Rim width range is 7"-8.5".

Tires http://www.tirerack.com/a.jsp?a=AB2&url=/tires/index.jsp


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## Thomcat (Apr 11, 2010)

Sorry to be anal, but I know nothing about tire sizes. To re-re-confirm, if one were to put the same size tire all around on 19" rims for the X3, 245/45/19 are recommended right?

I'm thinking of upgrading from 18" Bridgestone Turanza Serenity to 19" rims. I like the Serenity and have mild weather where I live. So if I get the 19" rims, I can put 245/45/19 Turanza Serenity all around and can rotate the tires evenly right?

How do the Serenity compare with the Pirelli PZero Nero? I'm looking for (in order of priority):

1. Quiet
2. Soft riding
3. Lasts 35k or more miles
4. Handles well in dry and rain (can be summer or all weather)

Thanks,
Thomas


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## [email protected] (Jun 10, 2003)

Thomcat said:


> Sorry to be anal, but I know nothing about tire sizes. To re-re-confirm, if one were to put the same size tire all around on 19" rims for the X3, 245/45/19 are recommended right?
> 
> I'm thinking of upgrading from 18" Bridgestone Turanza Serenity to 19" rims. I like the Serenity and have mild weather where I live. So if I get the 19" rims, I can put 245/45/19 Turanza Serenity all around and can rotate the tires evenly right?
> 
> ...


Correct 245/45R19 all around is good.

While the Turanza Serenity is quieter, softer riding, and longer wear than the Pzero Nero A/s, it is nearly *twice* the cost and only slightly better.

Tires http://www.tirerack.com/a.jsp?a=AB2&url=/tires/index.jsp


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## Fiesta_Tex (Nov 4, 2009)

Bought the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus 245/45ZR19 's all the way around and worked great. Couldn't be happier


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## Merrillaw (Dec 30, 2010)

Just put on a set of Pirelli Scorpion Zero Asimmetrico 245/45 R19 all around. Link to tires below. 
http://www.us.pirelli.com/web/catal...OASSIM_ALL_SEASON.xml&vehicleType=CAR-SUV-VAN

Put about 1000 miles on them and so far so good.

Regarding Thomcat's post, I would be careful rotating them since the rims are different sizes. I'm going to rotate the rears and fronts separately. I wouldn't want to put narrow wheels in the back and wider wheels in the front.


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## Llarry (May 17, 2002)

Merrillaw said:


> Regarding Thomcat's post, I would be careful rotating them since the rims are different sizes. I'm going to rotate the rears and fronts separately. I wouldn't want to put narrow wheels in the back and wider wheels in the front.


Welcome to bimmerfest! You are planning to rotate side to side? I would avoid doing this unless blessed by the tire manufacturer and BMW. And I think that your owner's manual probably recommends against rotating tires on our X3s.


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## Merrillaw (Dec 30, 2010)

*Rotating*



LMC said:


> Welcome to bimmerfest! You are planning to rotate side to side? I would avoid doing this unless blessed by the tire manufacturer and BMW. And I think that your owner's manual probably recommends against rotating tires on our X3s.


What's the harm in rotating separately? I would think that's only a problem if the tires were directional.


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