[epic]

Big noob here. Just got in a M235i from a 335xi and will be needing a set of wheels/tires for Chicago winters. I wish I had some now with how bad it is but I'm hoping I can get through the next few weeks. The MPSS are laughable even on a light dusting of snow (as they should be).

Do I downsize to 17s for the winter and what about wheel sizes that fit? What would you guys do in my situation?

Thanks for any help!

[epic]

OK - well I landed some very local Blizzaks in 225/40/18 and 245/40/18. Perfect.

What are some cheap wheel options?

[MikeG12]

check Tirerack. I believe the 2 has the same offset as the 1 series and they have a lot of wheels listed <$200 each. For the 2 series, they say to call.

[epic]

My service tech recommended against the 225/40/18 and 245/40/18 tires since the rear 245's are a 245/35/18 and will be too tall and may cause a few issues.

So - is it true my only option for winter tires are Pirelli Winter Sottozero Serie II Run Flats? They are Set of 4: $1,126.00 - a lot more than I wanted to spend and I really don't want runflats but guess it's the best bet.

Just a heads up, 245/35/18 is a hard winter tire size.

[th1rd3y3]

Have you tried downsizing the rears? There's no benefit to running staggered in the winter time, you want narrow tires for snow anyways. Match the front and rear at 225/40/18 and you'll probably find a much cheaper set.

[dirtdog]

Does anyone know if 17" will fit the M235i?

Thanks!

[epic]

^ That's the other part of this riddle if you want to downsize. Finding 17s that clear these brakes that are the right offset.

[Mark's M]

^Yup...all of this. Car's too new and no guinea pig fitments yet. Just a thought...go into the M3/M4 forums, Tires and wheels section and find the name of the latest Tire Rack team member who keeps the TR sponsor thread going and up to date. Give him a call and see where they're at with acquiring an M235 for fitment purposes. Never know, they might already have one but aren't ready to post product yet.

And I grimaced too when I saw the only OEM sized winters were those expensive Pirelli's. But agree totally with th1rd3y3...no need for staggered in winter. Square all around and as skinny as you can stand looking at and will fit. 225's would be my choice.

[epic]

Yea - this is the penalty with having the newest of the new I guess.

I did reach out to Tirerack. They came back with the following:

Thank you for your interest. Pirelli has advised us that these are sold out for this winter season. They will probably start building them again for fall of 2014 in preparation for next winter.

I talked to my parts manager and he said BMW has some tires in Germany that could be shipped over but if I wait it out, they'll have full winter sets for August/September he predicts.

Discounttire has no sizes available.

Another thing to consider is different manufacturers may go to this tire in some new models which will spark tire manufacturers to adopt this size. So - we wait.

[BEM-S4]

Nothing posted for M235 yet but ShopBMWUSA.com has winter packages (wheel / tire combo). When I put in the 135is for comparison purposes they have a 17x7 set up there. M3 they have 18x8. 1M is also 18x8. Not sure where we fall in there, but it seems the 17x7 might be an option. I wouldn't get from BMW since I am not thrilled with the tire selection, but at least it's a hint that the 17 might be doable.

[ska///235i]

Good topic...my guess is 235 will be very close to the current 135

[BEM-S4]

Originally Posted by ska325xi

Good topic...my guess is 235 will be very close to the current 135

Hope so. I'd do a Blizzak and 18x8 Sport Edition w/ BMW center caps combo. Have had really good experience with that setup in the past, and the rims are cheap enough to be "disposable" during a Chicago winter. Roads are ridiculously bad, looks like Beirut.

[ska///235i]

If u already have the car...the offset should be printed on the inside of the rim