E36 328i Tyres

shoes · 8 Feb 2012 at 14:07

Just bought myself a set of BBS RC041s for my 328i and need two tyres (two of them have brand new tyres on, although no idea if they're any good, two are at 2mm or so and need changing).

I'm considering contis as these are what I have on the other car and they seem excellent, however, I am aware you cannot assume all tyres by the same brand are good.

Currently I'm looking at 225/45/17 ContiSportContact 3.

Any suggestions or advice fellow OCUKers?

rodenal · 8 Feb 2012 at 14:20

The CSC3's on my Civic are superb wet and dry - My E36 328i had FK452's on which were great in the dry and coped well in the wet/cold/ snow. They'll also be significantly cheaper so I guess it depends on what you're expecting/happy to spend.

[TW]Fox · 8 Feb 2012 at 14:40

CS3 is excellent.

Dandle · 8 Feb 2012 at 14:54

Or Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2s. They seem to be lasting longer than the SC3 did by a fair bit. Both great tyres though.

shoes · 9 Feb 2012 at 17:20

Ok, so the new tyres on the rims already were Falken 452s. I have ordered two CS3s which should arrive tomorrow and be fitted saturday.

So, my question is - which way round do they go? Which get better lateral grip, braking and traction?

This is for my daily and there's a chance the mrs will be using it from time to time so would like to go for safety over fun, so to speak.

Gibbo · 9 Feb 2012 at 18:21

shoes said:
Ok, so the new tyres on the rims already were Falken 452s. I have ordered two CS3s which should arrive tomorrow and be fitted saturday.

So, my question is - which way round do they go? Which get better lateral grip, braking and traction?

This is for my daily and there's a chance the mrs will be using it from time to time so would like to go for safety over fun, so to speak.

For safety always put better tyres on the back in a RWD car.

If you like oversteer and want good braking, put the better tyres on the front.

MikeHiow · 9 Feb 2012 at 18:57

I'd think I'd rather have 4x452s than a mix and match of 452s and better tyres.

It'll save you a few pennies, too.

They aren't an amazing tyre, but they do offer good value at least.

NickXX · 9 Feb 2012 at 19:06

shoes said:
Just bought myself a set of BBS RC041s for my 328

One thing to check before ordering anything. The BBS 328 Sport wheels are RC041 on the front, and RC042 on the back. The fitment is staggered with 225mm front and 245mm rear.

If it's two front tyres that you need, the 225s are fine. If it's rears - check first that they are in fact RC041s on the back (rather than the correct RC042), as 225s will not be the correct tyre size.

Concrete · 9 Feb 2012 at 19:07

Avon ZZ1s for plenty of oversteer based fun, anything better and you will have trouble breaking traction in the dry (I was running 235s though). Owned the car for two years and never had any problem as long as you treat it carefully in the rain, same with any RWD car really.