--The basics :
Get snow tires appropriate to your climate and driving style. If you don't see much snow during the winter, and you like to drive/corner fast on cold, dry roads then look into the H-rated or V-rated high performance snow tires like the Bridgestone Blizzak LM-22/LM-25 or the Dunlop Winter Sport M3/3D.
If your area gets heavier snow or a lot of packed snow and ice, or if you are willing to give up some dry grip and steering response for maximum safe winter traction then look into a more aggressive Q-R speed rated snow tire like the new Blizzak WS-60 or Dunlop Graspic DS-2. Winter tires like these will offer the best in snow traction, but will give up some dry road responsiveness over an H/V rated snow tire to get it.
Choosing between these two categories may be difficult and is mostly a personal preference choice for the tradeoff between snow traction versus dry road handling.
--New/Updated this season and reminders from last season :
New this year is the Blizzak WS-60 which is the 3rd generation of the original Blizzak tire for maximum winter traction and is replacing the WS-50 and Revo1. Compared to the old WS-50, the new WS-60 is a marginal improvement in snow traction, a more noticeable step up in ice traction, and is also more stable in dry handling than the WS-50. The dry handling and cornering stability has been improved to the point that even the speed rating has been upgraded from a Q to an R. Wear should be slightly improved by the more stable tread blocks on the tread. They will still feel pretty soft/spongy compared to higher performance H and V rated snows (especially at full tread depth!) but offer the most ice and snow traction of any winter tire we carry.
Dunlop informed us that they've updated the compound of their Graspic DS-2 winter tire for better ice traction. We believe them. It had better braking and cornering than the higher-priced Michelin X-Ice in our ice-rink testing and although not quite as good as the WS-60 it is a good entry-level winter tire option.
335i cars : The popular 17X7.5" 32mm offset ASA JH3 wheel from last year isn't due in stock until late November or December and may be delayed further as they are coming in an overseas shipment. For an alternative, look at the nearly identically-styled
Sport Edition A7. Same offset and width as the JH3 with brake clearance for 335i cars without having to use spacers. It also accepts the BMW center caps (which I can include for you - simply refer to 'Gary/add caps' as your previous contact at the end of your online order, or call in the order to me directly).
TPMS sensors and stems can be added to any wheel order (as of today $46 each) and we'll mount them in the wheel/tire package order before they're shipped out.
--A final word of advice : Don't wait too long. Ordering early when most products are still available lets you choose what you want to buy rather than being forced to settle for what is left over. Best to be ready with products in hand before it snows so that you can put them on when you are ready rather than waiting for a shipment to arrive after the first snow. We should have most inventory available in early October. Tires and wheels purchased together are mounted and balanced at no charge to make changeover easy.
Here is a direct link to the winter tires area :
http://www.tirerack.com/a.jsp?a=BC5&...nter/index.jsp
Don't forget to refer to 'Gary/E90Fanatics' when you order online so that I can look over the order and get the forum credit for the sale.
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