Wheels and Tyres

[johnny73]

E-mailed BMW M recently regarding future M6 wheels and choice of tyres just thought I'd let you know the response:

Regarding the wheels:

I was told that there were no plans for 20 inch wheels in the pipeline.They said that they felt upgrading to 20 inch wheels with lower profile tyres would affect the handling significantly.

Not a suprising answer really but I still wonder if something like a Hartge suspension set up plus larger wheels would be ok, as I have heard positive things about that particular company's ability to increase the size of the wheels, lower the suspension and maintain a good ride quality and give a slight improvement in handling. Any thoughts?

On tyres BMW M confirmed that the Pirellis would be available in the Autumn, so I asked if they would be a no cost option, this is what they said "It is true that Pirelli tyres will be available especially for the M6 soon. It is just a logistic matter how a customer can choose between the two different manufacturers.
We are still working on this issue."

So it remains to be seen if one can have the car delivered with them, I for one will be insisting.

[Gustav]

I think you seem to have a great contact with BMW M. Great job BMW M!

[M6 Forever]

Me too! As BMW M advertised the prowess of the M6 with the Pirelli, so the cars must come with them.

[Ronan]

This is very helpful,Johnny. I have written to BMW NA and will post any results when I get them on this subject. We simply have to have the Pirellis.

[Ronan]

I received an email this morning from BMW Canada that said that the Canadian M6s will be equipped with either Continental Contactsport2 or the P-zero's but that the final decision would be made closer to production. They also confirmed that the P-zeros would be gradually introduced into Europe this Fall.
At worst, if the Canadian cars do not have them OEM I will pick up a set in Germany when I take delivery if I can. Your info sounds bang on,Johnny.

[johnny73]

Originally Posted by Ronan

I received an email this morning from BMW Canada that said that the Canadian M6s will be equipped with either Continental Contactsport2 or the P-zero's but that the final decision would be made closer to production. They also confirmed that the P-zeros would be gradually introduced into Europe this Fall.
At worst, if the Canadian cars do not have them OEM I will pick up a set in Germany when I take delivery if I can. Your info sounds bang on,Johnny.

Sounds like they have not made the final decision yet as to whether to give customers the choice yet.

Info was direct from a technical guy at BMW M so should be accurate, I'll let you know if I hear anything further.

[Wolverine]

Originally Posted by Ronan

I received an email this morning from BMW Canada that said that the Canadian M6s will be equipped with either Continental Contactsport2 or the P-zero's but that the final decision would be made closer to production. They also confirmed that the P-zeros would be gradually introduced into Europe this Fall.
At worst, if the Canadian cars do not have them OEM I will pick up a set in Germany when I take delivery if I can. Your info sounds bang on,Johnny.

Will this apply to the M5 also, or only the M6?

[johnny73]

Originally Posted by Wolverine

Will this apply to the M5 also, or only the M6?

The e-mail suggested M6 only as the tyres have been developed for that car. I'm sure they could be added to the M5 especially as the M6 wheels are an option.

I think M6 owners are more likely to demand Pirellis as all of the tests I have seen are with cars sporting P-zeros. But it seems that in the US that if there is enough of a groundswell of opinion BMW can be persuaded (for example manual box u-turn) so I guess that if enough M5 owners demanded a choice they may well listen.

The only downside to the stickier tyres of course is that you will have to replace them much more often because of the softer compound.

[Ronan]

It would be useful if you hear anything about tire life.A number of the reviews mentioned tires going off after some of the tests at Ascari. My intention is to run the car in in Europe as per manufacturers instructions and then basically take lots of wear at the Nordschliefe.
I was told by a couple of BMW technical people that the P-zeros wear quite quickly in track conditions.

( ASIDE:My dealer recommended that I leave the worn tires on for shipping to Canada, and not to wash or clean the car. The depreciation hit in terms of the value of the car will significantly reduce the import VAT on the car, and will more than pay for the tires and the trip. They have done this before. This is perfectly legal as a car with 4-5000Km on it is worth a lot less than a new one.)

As Johnny says it is likely that the Pirellis will be quick to wear, so if there is a very big difference between the Pirellis and the Contis I will probably buy a second set of wheels, and use the softer tires just when I am on a track somewhere, given the restrictive speed limits in North america.

Will post NA decision on tires when I get it, and BMW has promised to let me know directly.

[johnny73]

I'll let you know if I hear anything on the tyre life but it will certainly be shorter than normal road tyres but the pay pay off is amazing grip.

I run little lotus elise for the track with Yokohama AO48's which are also soft and sticky, they don't last as long but the increased grip over the standard tyre is amazing.

I suppose it comes down to what you are going to use the car for if it will stay on the road I suppose you could argue that the normal tyre is a "better" option however if you must have the extra grip and are going to do a little tarck work you have to pay the price, i.e replacing your tyres more often.

Don't know how much action mine will see on track but would be curious to try it out of some of our faster circuita, perhaps I'll need to invest in some Amourfend or even one of those ugly sort of aprons to protect the car.

PS aren't dealers the same the world over, masters of deception!