[Tintin]

Well - its happenned. The warning light came on and sure enough the front tyre was down to 16psi - reinflated but it came on again after a few days.

A few calls to the tyre shop indicate that "repairs are not allowed". Cost of a replacement is around $500. Interestingly, a couple of tyre shops have recommended not to switch to normal tyres as the suspension is tuned for RFTs. Apparently, the handling will be compromised.

So, should I switch to a full set of new rims and normal tyres and keep the the RFTS for when I sell??

comments from those who have switched and those who havnt would be appreciated....

[themonotron]

I would go with non-rft's. Less road noise and cheaper cost would probably be the main benefits for using non-rfts. FYI, I am running Michelin PS2s.

[kash_0]

Mate, give Drummoyne Bob Jane T-Marts a call (9819 7422)

They sealed my punctured run flat tyre no problem as long as the puncture is not close to the sidewall. Apparently, Canterbury BMW send a lot of their cars here to fix RF punctures.

[WOPALX]

Changing to normal tyres IMHO;

Pros

Larger range & therefore you can get a tyre to suit your budget
Better road holding - assuming its a quality tyre
Less noise - assuming its a quality tyre
More compliant over ripples, bumps and pot holes

Cons

No spare tyre
BMW mobility kit, jack & wheel nut lug needs to be carried (or other brand, your call)
Above mobility kit will get you out of the poo but only if the damage is to the tread area of the tyre, my 1 flat was a sidewall slit which then required towing
High speed flat would be more dangerous than with RFT's.


Summary - I changed and have not looked back. I did have 1 flat tyre that resulted in a tow but that was covered by BMW assist so no biggie apart form the time it took. On a long drive to the country I'd probably take a spare tyre, mainly as the size of my tyres is not common and most city tyre shops need to order them in.

[ansch]

Where would be a good place to get a spare tyre for the long trips? can you get space saver spares in the right size?


Also, just thought of this.. if you ditched the rft and went for normal tyres. When you want to sell your car, would the car pass road worthy with the normal tyres? would suck having to fork out close to $3000 for new tyres just before selling.

[VGR00]

I've ditched the RFT and havn't looked back. Always going to be a tradeoff somewhere but i've got a mobility and jack kit and have keept my origional RFT and wheels for when I sell the car. In the event of a flat that the mobility kit cant fix, then i'll call breakdown service and get the car towed. I rearly travel further than the Gold Coast and if I was going to go somewhere further then I'd probably put my origional wheels with RFT on just to be safe.

[WOPALX]

Originally Posted by ansch

Where would be a good place to get a spare tyre for the long trips? can you get space saver spares in the right size?


Also, just thought of this.. if you ditched the rft and went for normal tyres. When you want to sell your car, would the car pass road worthy with the normal tyres? would suck having to fork out close to $3000 for new tyres just before selling.

For a spare just buy a cheap wheel to suit from eBay. I don't think there is a space saver available.

No reason your car will not pass roadworthy (in NSW at least) providing the new tyres are the correct size and have greater than the minimum required tread.

[VGR00]

Originally Posted by WOPALX

No reason your car will not pass roadworthy (in NSW at least) providing the new tyres are the correct size and have greater than the minimum required tread.

Lots of cars are sold with neither RFT or spare tyres but come with a mobility kit of sorts so I agree there should be no roadworthy issues.

[deep green]

Originally Posted by Tintin

Well - its happenned. The warning light came on and sure enough the front tyre was down to 16psi - reinflated but it came on again after a few days.

A few calls to the tyre shop indicate that "repairs are not allowed". Cost of a replacement is around $500. Interestingly, a couple of tyre shops have recommended not to switch to normal tyres as the suspension is tuned for RFTs. Apparently, the handling will be compromised.

So, should I switch to a full set of new rims and normal tyres and keep the the RFTS for when I sell??

comments from those who have switched and those who havnt would be appreciated....

I too have suffered two punctures to the same rf tyre on two seperate occassions. First time around, got a fair bit of pushback from one particular BMW recommended tyre place, telling me of all sorts of reasons as to why they were not permitted to repair rf's and would therefore need to buy one (or four) new ones to replace. Aparently the story is that some are able to be repaired and others are not?
Eventually agreed that it was OK to repair mine. Simple $22 plug and all was well.

One week ago got another rather large self tapper embedded in the same tyre as previously repaired. Different shop had no probs putting another plug in for $20. All is well again.
Will switch to conventionals when these are worn out. I agree with other comments re: harshness of rf's and will opt for mobility kit extra when I switch.
Good luck.

[ansch]

well the story I hear is that it is "not legal" to repair rft's. Not because they cannot be repaired. A tire is a tire after all.. The question is when you get a puncture and then proceed to drive the deflated rft to your tire place, you have no idea how driving on them, no matter how short a distance, would affect the side wall integrity.

So in short, they can repair the puncture, but there is a risk that if you stressed or damaged the side wall during the drive to the repair place, it could potentially cause a blowout later on. Completely unrelated to the spot of the original repair.

[johnnydad]

Surely if the warning light comes on, you reinflate and drive immediately to the repairer (and the leak is slow enough that you don't drive on a significantly underinflated tyre) there shouldn't be a problem.

Past few punctures I've had in non-RFT cars (read screws through the tread) I've been able to reinflate and drive 10-15km without losing more than 10psi.

[Sparky66]

Once your RFT's wear out, the best thing to do is give BMW the one finger salute for their gross mistake at this money making rort and fit conventional high performance tyres, that will not only cost less, ride better but also improve handling.

Their excuse for high speed puncture safety with RFT's may be their only valid point but how often has this occured to anyone here or before, or when RFT's didn't exist ?

Tyre technology, structural integrity and reliability has improved greatly......just make sure they are replaced within the 4-5 year expiry from their date of manufacture.

On a positive note, not having a spare wheel has saved weight and help balance the cars near 50:50 weight distribution but I don't think RFT's should have been the solution..................and it wasn't, on BMW's top performance V8 M3.
A puncture repair "mobility kit" is sufficient in plugging the hole short term and inflating your tyre to its correct pressure, before you go on your way to a tyre repair shop.

[mark325]

ahmen

[Tintin]

okay - I will go to yet another tyre shop this Saturday (smaller one this time) and if they refuse to repair, I will get all four tyres changed to normal tyres and get a mobility kit from Supercheap Auto.

Btw - its only a friggin small nail thats caused the puncture. Its takes a couple of days for it to fall to 27psi. What a joke that I have fork out $500plus cause I got a nail in my tyre.

Very disappointed with BMW on this one...

[amberzombie]

Originally Posted by Tintin

Very disappointed with BMW on this one...

+1

another non-RFT converter here. when i purchased my BMW one of the reasons why i chose not to fork out $2000 extra for the 18" m-sport wheels was because if i had bought them and then fit non-RFT tired on them it would be almost twice the price than if i had stayed with the started 17" ones and changed the wheels + tired - which is what i've done.

using Exclaim Generals... nothing bad to say about them. quieter. works well in the wet. great for city drive. did a nice drive down to Geroa a couple of months back and loved every single minute of it.

also, BMW gave me a $100 Lifestyle store voucher when i bought my car so i used that to get the mobility kit and paid an extra $35 on top of that.

[Tintin]

Originally Posted by amberzombie

+1

another non-RFT converter here. when i purchased my BMW one of the reasons why i chose not to fork out $2000 extra for the 18" m-sport wheels was because if i had bought them and then fit non-RFT tired on them it would be almost twice the price than if i had stayed with the started 17" ones and changed the wheels + tired - which is what i've done.

using Exclaim Generals... nothing bad to say about them. quieter. works well in the wet. great for city drive. did a nice drive down to Geroa a couple of months back and loved every single minute of it.

also, BMW gave me a $100 Lifestyle store voucher when i bought my car so i used that to get the mobility kit and paid an extra $35 on top of that.

can I ask where you got the m3 reps from and the ride quality. Looks like a great fittment. Doesnt have that aftermarket look at all.

[bl335i08]

I have plugged my RFT 8000 miles ago. No problem, it cant be repaired.

[E92325i]

Does anyone know where to get runflats repaired in Melbourne, anywhere at all?. I've got a screw in the front left tyre which i spotted while cleaning the wheels, I checked the tyre pressure and it has dropped down around 5 psi so its a slow leak but not big enough to trigger the warning yet.

[amberzombie]

Originally Posted by Tintin

can I ask where you got the m3 reps from and the ride quality. Looks like a great fittment. Doesnt have that aftermarket look at all.

i bought them from JLevi www.jlevisw.com as he had a group buy on them sometime last year.

i'm not sure if you can get them brand new now as the maker of the wheels, Exclusive Alloys have gone belly up.

ride quality - bear in mind that i went from 17" WITH RF to 19" WITHOUT RF - fairly similar, although my current setup does absorb a little more of the horrific sydney roads than the 17s did.

i get great looks when i'm on the road too coz the wheels look really unique - unless you own an M3. even my in-laws couldn't stop staring at them!

[johnnydad]

aberzombie - how hard do you push your car when cornering? Do you drive with DTC off, taken the car to a track day etc?

Also which RFT's did you have on before the upgrade? RE050A's?

[VGR00]

I found that with the 17" RF, going over some bumps sent the suspension crashing into the bump stops however going 19" with conventional tyres this has not happened. I still think the whole RFT issue is a great idea but at this moment it's technology is still in the early stage. In 5 years time we probably will have no reasons to grumble as there will be no ride difference. I'm sure the tyre manufactures are taking note of peoples issues with RFT and are working to improve.

[amberzombie]

Originally Posted by johnnydad

aberzombie - how hard do you push your car when cornering? Do you drive with DTC off, taken the car to a track day etc?

Also which RFT's did you have on before the upgrade? RE050A's?

i'm not an aggressive driver if that's what you're asking.

i totally subscribe to the RTA's "no one thinks big of you" campaign and stick to road rules as much as possible within the Sydney CBD area.

i've never pushed my beemer to the limits of grip because you can't really do that while keeping to the speed limit. i never take DTC off because being the sole breadwinner in the family, arriving home in one piece is the most important thing to me

i've not taken my car to a track day because of 3 reasons:
1) my car still has some alignment issues
2) i cannot find enough time away from my 4 month old boy
3) it's only a 2l, 4-cyc engine! i'll get humiliated even by the Golf GTI on a track!

as for the RFT i had before, i dont remember what it was. if i do get the time, i'll go into the garage to look for it. but it's the standard one the bmw puts on all their 17" wheels? unless they've changed?