215/45/47 or 225/45/17 and WHY?
 

well guys the topic is the question, and why, i have two options, the wheels are M3 17"
http://www.bmwtips.com/tipsntricks/w..._wheel_067.jpg

Please help me to take a decicion.

225/45 is the proper size for the E36.

Actually, 215/45 is supposed to give you almost the same overall diameter as the stock ti tires. 225/45 is a bit bigger. I just had 225/45 mounted and it's a couple inches bigger than my stocks. . .though my original tires are a pretty worn now that I think of it. . .

45 sidewall looks a little big on these cars... i say 215/40

I say 215. They'll be close enough in diameter and the slightly narrower tire will help your MPG a tiny bit. That width is plenty of tire for the ti.

I say 235/45/17

That's what I have on my car now:biggrin:

You won't say that when you hit a pothole, and your tire survives.:smile:

go for 205-40-17s!

(or 215-40-17, if you really need so much of the side wall)

stock M3 are 225-40-17s

I suggest either 225/40 or 215/45.

I live in pothole heaven, trust me... and owned 4-5 sets of 17"s in the past couple years... I know what Im talkin about :wink:

Ok i install 215/45/17 in michellin, lokks very similar that the o;d ones 225/45/17, THANKS GUYS FOr YOUR HELP

Glad I did a search before asking the same sort of question.

I'm going from 245/45/17 to 215/45/17 with M3 DSII's, so this makes me feel a little more comfortable knowing that 215/45 is a better balance in terms of keeping the OEM diameter.

245 are a bit too beefy for my Ti I see.

I'll ask here before another search and posting a fresh question:

Will 215 all around also help with rear inner tire wear? 245's were just wearing out on the inside of my rear tires, maybe too wide? Doing an alignment by the way so hopefully its not something to with worn bushing in the rear, although if I need to replace, I'll do it.

A BMW only shop owner dude looked at my 245/45/17's and said that they should be 40 because 45 confuses or gives the transmission speed thing a mis reading of speed, something along those lines, I'm a newbs, but I'm wondering if thats true or a real issue?

I'd hate for the tires being 45 affect the tranny or something else in the long run. Maybe its resulting in inaccurate mileage then as well? Sorry for my green questions. Just wanting a good balance of performance, and OEM spec adherence if I can call it that.

The mechanic doing the job is also a BMW/Porsche, etc shop, experienced and says its no difference in 45 to 40 and vice versa, its got me scratching me head a bit. Getting new tires so I sort of need to know.

Also hoping 215 on DSII's don't look too, you know, whimpy or slender... that's my ti-vanity kicking in!

Thanks!

215/40

Inner rear tire wear due to age and slowly the plates toe-ing out. Just a note, confirmed by two BMW shops with no info given that I knew that was the problem in a way from a previous alignment.

I should start a separate thread on my experiences with basic ti repairs. Like a reboot of my posts.