Recommeded tyres for M3

[stammerman]

Hi!

I have had a 97 M3 for the last three years and now that summer has finally started here in Sweeeeden, I've taken the car out of the garage!

Anyway, I've just noticed that the back wheels will very soon need replacing, so I have a couple of questions:

1. Is it OK to replace just the back two or should I replace all four?

2. The car is fitted with Michelin 235/40 ZR 17 Pilot tyres, which I assume is standard issue. Should I stick with these or should I be considering some alternatives?

Any advice woudl be appreacited.

Cheers,

Martin

[BeelZibub]

I'm afraid tyre choice is really down to personal preference and the way you drive the car.

For example I love the grip given by Dunlop sp sport 2000 but other people think they are crap.

As I said it also depends on how you drive the car + your budget. If you want supreme grip in the bends and you drive very hard you should be looking towards a soft sports tyre which offers the required grip but costs a lot and wears out quickly.

If you just drive the car normally and are after a comfy quiet ride continental, bridgestone, dunlop and most likely other manufactureres offer Economy tires which offer all these traits but also claim to save you money on petrol.

As far as just replacing the rears is concerned - no problem. A lot of people (including myself) will find a type of tyre which suits the front of the car and one which suits the rear as both require different characteristics. eg. As stated I like Dulop sp Sport 2000 but only on the rear as these have wide rubber between the grooves which allows more surface area on the tarmac. On the front I go with Dunlop SP sport 01 which have more grooves and give a little more flex when receiving the sideways forces of steering allowing better grip in the turns. Both of these tyres are a bit noisy though.

Just don't mix tyres on the same axle unless you reallly have to - you can get away with this on your family mondeo but a highly tuned beast such as an M3 can show really poor handling qualities with mixed tyres (like one gripping and the other not - not too good halfway round a bend!!!)

I haven't tried them myself but am told Pirelli P6000's are a good all round tyre.

[97alpineM3]

You can read all the reviews till your hearts content at tirerack.com Try there... and you might find what your looking for.

[Slvr e39]

On our E46 M3 we just replaced only the rear tires...