All first time X owners have wondered this..

[wjibby]

Being a first time buyer of an X5, only after purchasing it did I find out two important things....

1. You can not purchase 2 tires for replacement. All 4 must be replaced on a BMW 4 wheel drive. This was a big surprise since my two fronts were terrible compared to the rears and they were Bridgestone HL 400 run flats.

2. There is not temperature gage that is active on the dash. I miss this most of all and as far as I can find no indication of what the temp is on IDrive.

Comments..
WJ

[socale39]

You can buy two new tires. The only thing you have to make sure of is the overall diameter is within 1% difference.

Also, a temperature gauge really doesn't give you an accurate reading unless it's giving you actual temps. In most applications the half way mark is determined by a range rather than a set temp. Knowing the X5 has a very efficient cooling system and has systems in place to prevent overheating such as idrive warnings and automated shutoff, do you really need a gauge?

[Thecastle]

Originally Posted by wjibby

Being a first time buyer of an X5, only after purchasing it did I find out two important things....

1. You can not purchase 2 tires for replacement. All 4 must be replaced on a BMW 4 wheel drive. This was a big surprise since my two fronts were terrible compared to the rears and they were Bridgestone HL 400 run flats.

2. There is not temperature gage that is active on the dash. I miss this most of all and as far as I can find no indication of what the temp is on IDrive.

Comments..
WJ

I'll echo the other comments. I've had multiple AWD vehicles over the years, and yes it is possible to replace 1 or 2 or 4 tires at once. The issue with tire changes is their overall diameter. The differentials in the car detect slip when the rotation rate varies between wheels. If the rotation rate is significantly different as would be caused by varying tire diameter between 1 tire or axel, it can cause the differentials to attempt to unnecessarily transfer torque to a different wheel increasing diff/xfer case wear.

But their is a built in design margin as all tires wear differently. So as long as the tires are close in size you shouldn't have an issue.

Yes, I've replaced 1 tire on the rear when I had a blow out. The other tire was new and had maybe 1500 miles on it. So I put 1x new tire on the rear and did no have any issues. Of course the conservative thing would be to replace 2x or 4x, that is what the dealer and tire store will encourage.

[jandref321]

I've had a friend grenade his T-case with new rear tires on an X3...I think he had like 20k miles on them when he swapped though and different brand, I wrote about it in a different thread but can't find it and can't remember the details. Do what your wallet can handle I guess. I have 18's on the wife's 3.0si and I keep forgetting that I can actually rotate these tires...first BMW We've owned that didn't have different sizes.

The temp gauge isn't a huge deal like others have said, but I use it every day in my X5M to make sure the engine is at operating temp before pushing her hard. I'm not sure how big of a deal this is on non-M cars. I know on the E46 M3 the computer actually limited throttle until the engine was all the way warm and wouldn't go 100% until over a certain RPM. There is a table of variables somewhere on the interwebz that describes the relationship between temp, RPM, sport mode, throttle input, and actual throttle position. Very interesting...probably doesn't apply to the normal 3.0si though. I feel the temp gauge would be more useful than the wiggly fuel economy gauge though...there is already a digital fuel gauge, so why the analog? Seems like a BMW thing to make M owners feel special.

[socale39]

Temp gauge on the X5M isn't reading coolant temp though. M cars measure oil temp instead which makes a ton more sense on a high output engine. Cold oil and high RPMs is just asking for rod bearing failure. All too familiar with past BMW Ms.

As for your buddy grenading his transfer case, most likely the other brand tire didn't have the same diameter which caused too much strain eventually leading to failure. Diameter figures can be easily accessed online so when looking at other brands this is the first measurement to take into consideration.

[jandref321]

Originally Posted by socale39

Temp gauge on the X5M isn't reading coolant temp though. M cars measure oil temp instead which makes a ton more sense on a high output engine. Cold oil and high RPMs is just asking for rod bearing failure. All too familiar with past BMW Ms.

As for your buddy grenading his transfer case, most likely the other brand tire didn't have the same diameter which caused too much strain eventually leading to failure. Diameter figures can be easily accessed online so when looking at other brands this is the first measurement to take into consideration.

Yep, tire rack usually lists the overall diameter in the specs. My buddy suggested the brand being the primary factor...he ended up selling the 2 slightly used tires and buying four of the same brand so all were new at the same time. Then he bought a refurb tcase.

I thought the OP was talking oil temp gauge before. I think the way I worded it was odd. It makes sense to have them on the Ms but BMW probably doesn't put them on standard series just to make the Ms stand apart even more. I wouldn't think that putting an oil temp gauge on all their cars would be too difficult, but from a manufacturing standpoint I know pennies add up. Every review I read or watched about the M2 has some rant about the lack of oil temp gauge...wonder if that was an oversight or effort to reduce cost. Maybe it is pricey

[JoeyBimX5din]

I do know some tire specialty shops have the ability to 'shave' tires to a certain tread depth. Its a cheap trick that some people use to make a set of track tires. I read it in a magazine a few years ago, so this is kind of he said she said knowledge set. quite possibly if you buy the same type of tire, have the 2 new tires shaved to the 2 worn tires, maybe you would be ok? At this level of effort though, it may turn out in the end to be a better idea to just buy 4 new.

I don't sweat the temp gauge (pun?) because the computer knows if there is a problem. The gauge is only there to know if there is a problem.

[135ivert]

My 135i (clearly not an //M) has a temp gauge. I use it to judge when the engine is warmed-up enough for me to romp on it. As mentioned, the X5 doesn't. It's probably just as well - my wife (the primary driver) wouldn't give two shits if there was one, and when I'm driving it - I am usually taking someone and have to drive reasonable.

[Flying Ace]

There's a water thermostat gauge via a hidden menu. It's critical to monitor it for D owners

[JoeyBimX5din]

Originally Posted by Flying Ace

There's a water thermostat gauge via a hidden menu. It's critical to monitor it for D owners

what to display in the center information? I assume this has to do with the hidden changes menu that you can access through the cluster?

[Flying Ace]

Originally Posted by JoeyBimX5din

what to display in the center information? I assume this has to do with the hidden changes menu that you can access through the cluster?

correct. And if you're a D owner, it's critical you monitor the temps every few months as the thermostat drives DPF regen cycles.

IIRC, there's also other temp monitors in the hidden menu as well. I never really poked around other for the water thermostat.

[JoeyBimX5din]

It has always bothered me when diesel engine controls require certain temperatures in ECT or EOT to begin or perform a regen. Cummins will let you slide it into regen through the scan tool at ambient. I will have to poke around and try using the secret screen in the center stack.

[JMD]

Well,...you can wear the tread down to the cords on your X5,...get a flat, and mount the spare tire (which is mostly likely brand new) and continue on your travels!

Case in point,...I had a blow-out while traveling through Tampa ('03 X5 4.6is),....I forget if I was running OEM Diamaris or Michelin HPs,....I simply mounted the spare tire and kept on truck'n! No issues.