BMW adding new factory tire to M3/M4 - Continental ContiSportContact 5P

[E90Fleet]

     Featured on BIMMERPOST.com

Been looking at the February BMW Parts system update and something new has popped up for the F80 and F82:

Factory fit 19" tires can now be :

1)Michelin Pilot Super Sport (as before)
or
2) Continental SportContact 5P

Speed ratings for both are exactly the same.
18" remain Michelin only.

[gthal]

That sucks for anyone getting the Conti's. Michelin's aren't great at the track but they are the best high performance street tire, when everything is considered, out there.

[E90Fleet]

Originally Posted by gthal

That sucks for anyone getting the Conti's. Michelin's aren't great at the track but they are the best high performance street tire, when everything is considered, out there.

Auto Review rated the Continental as slightly better than the Michelin overall, beating it in the wet.
http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article...-Tyre-Test.htm

Remember its the "5P" version, not the "5"

[Wah]

Wasn't there something about how Michelin developed this version of PSS specifically for the F8x? I'll look into it.

EDIT: See Michelin Press Release below... it was developed with BMW M GmbH for the M3 and tested with the M3 and M4.

A star* for the MICHELIN Pilot Super Sport, which is fitted as original
equipment on the new BMW M3 and M4.
For its two new models – the M3 and M4 – BMW has maintained its very exacting
performance standards and as a result is fitting them with the MICHELIN Pilot Super Sport
tire.
The Pilot Super Sport ensures that the M3 and M4 are able to offer the drivers of these cars
the precise steering response and sporty handling characteristics that they demand, both on
road and on track.
For the tires that equip its vehicles, BMW is constantly seeking the right combination of
sporty performance, exceptional grip and the ability to be used every day, which implies a
certain level of driving comfort and long-lasting tires. MICHELIN Pilot Super Sport ensures a
comfortable ride and superior precision in extreme driving conditions.
Since 1986, when the first generation of the BMW M3 was released, Michelin has been the
German carmaker strategic tire partner and has equipped all M series vehicles.
To ensure that the MICHELIN Pilot Super Sport delivers in all of these areas of performance
for the BMW M3 – and even plays a key role in the car’s sporty driving – engineers from
Michelin and BMW M GmbH worked together to develop the tire. This certification is another
illustration of the long-standing tradition of successful partnership between the tire maker and
the car manufacturer, which have always shared the same passion for superior automobile
performance.
For Michelin, the challenge was to meet the specifications set by BMW M GmbH, while
maintaining the fundamentals that make Michelin tires unique, especially in terms of
production quality and longevity. The proof that this challenge was successfully overcome is
reflected in the fact that the Michelin Pilot Super Sport functions like a top-of-the-line racing
tire while offering greater total mileage and enhanced safety for drivers and passengers
alike.
Sizes :
255/40 ZR18 (95Y) TL Pilot Super Sport *
275/40 ZR18 (99Y) TL Pilot Super Sport *
255/35 ZR19 (92Y) TL Pilot Super Sport *
275/35 ZR19 (100Y)XLTL Pilot Super Sport *
*The star is a special marking displayed on Michelin tires to indicate that they were specifically designed for BMW
vehicles.

Michelin and BMW M: Key Figures
Strategic partners since 1986 for the BMW M3
100% of BMW M3/M4 fitted with the MICHELIN Pilot Super Sport in 2014.
60% BMW M5 equipped exclusively with the MICHELIN Pilot Super Sport.
60% BMW M6 equipped exclusively with the MICHELIN Pilot Super Sport.
5. The number of tracks on which the MICHELIN Pilot Super Sport was tested on the BMW
M3 and BMW M4. The tracks were Michelin's Ladoux circuit, BMW's Miramas test center,
the Nürburgring circuit in Germany, the Charade circuit in France and BMW’s Aschheim
Testcenter in Germany.
9 is the number of test sessions conducted jointly by the car maker and the tire
manufacturer.
3884, is the number of prototypes tires developed in 19 months for these vehicles.
Technical features of the MICHELIN Pilot Super Sport
The MICHELIN Pilot Super Sport’s leading-edge technology combines a aramid reinforced belt, a Bi-
Compound tread band and the Variable Contact Patch 2.0.
- The aramid belt is a high-density fiber primarily used in aeronautics whose key feature is its
high traction resistance. Strong and light at the same time, aramid is five times more
resistant than steel at equivalent weight. Thanks to its variable tension, the belt tightens the
tread more than the shoulders so that centrifugal force is more effectively overcome and
pressure is more evenly distributed.
- Developed for racing tires, Bi-Compound technology uses different rubber compounds on
the left and right sides of the tread. On the outside, an elastomer ensures exceptional
endurance in tight cornering, while on the inside, a different elastomer combines with a
special tread design to enable the tire, on wet pavement, to break through the water’s
surface and adhere to even the slightest irregularities in the road.
- The innovative feature of the Variable Contact Patch 2.0 is that it changes shape depending
on actual driving conditions, thereby guaranteeing complete control of the vehicle. In this
way, even as the patch’s shape changes when cornering, the amount of rubber in contact
with the road remains the same.

[CanAutM3]

Originally Posted by E90Fleet

Auto Review rated the Continental as slightly better than the Michelin overall, beating it in the wet.
http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article...-Tyre-Test.htm

Remember its the "5P" version, not the "5"

In the article you linked, both tires finished with a score of 99. Not sure why they put the conti on top. It should have been a tie .

At least BMW will be offering either one of the best two

[E90Fleet]

Think it will be like the M5/M6.
They launched with Michelin Pilot Super Sport being the exclusive tire, but then later cars began being delivered with Perelli P Zero tires fitted.
Now only 60% of M5/M6 get the Michelin


From Michelin

100% of BMW M3/M4 fitted with the MICHELIN Pilot Super Sport in 2014.
60% BMW M5 equipped exclusively with the MICHELIN Pilot Super Sport.
60% BMW M6 equipped exclusively with the MICHELIN Pilot Super Sport.

[Jockey]

Still would go with the PSS

[E90Fleet]

Originally Posted by CanAutM3

In the article you linked, both tires finished with a score of 99. Not sure why they put the conti on top. It should have been a tie .

Because for handling the Continental got 74 against the 71 for Michelin (Wet + Dry)

[E90Fleet]

Originally Posted by Jockey

Still would go with the PSS

Unfortunately customers cannot choose. Its whatever the factory has had delivered on the day your car is built.

[Jockey]

Well then that is really lame

[E90Fleet]

Originally Posted by Wah

EDIT: See Michelin Press Release below... it was developed with BMW M GmbH for the M3 and tested with the M3 and M4.

Same with the M5/M6 and X5M/X6M

Doesn't mean Continental has not done the same work with BMW to get theirs approved now. Michelin was just the launch OEM. Just like Pirelli now supplies P Zero for the M5/M6

[E90Fleet]

Originally Posted by Jockey

Well then that is really lame

Same as any other BMW

[Blksnowflake]

Any price difference.

[Jockey]

Originally Posted by E90Fleet

Same as any other BMW

Still sucks

[E90Fleet]

Originally Posted by Blksnowflake

Any price difference.

Not from the BMW factory

[myzmak]

Originally Posted by Jockey

Still would go with the PSS

Originally Posted by E90Fleet

Unfortunately customers cannot choose. Its whatever the factory has had delivered on the day your car is built.

Originally Posted by Jockey

Well then that is really lame

A modest reason to buy MY2015 instead of waiting for the fancy taillight so in 2016?

[Jockey]

Originally Posted by myzmak

A modest reason to buy MY2015 instead of waiting for the fancy taillight so in 2016?

Choices choices choices.

Buy now with the tires I want or the tail lights that are "new".

Or, just burn off the Contis and then put on PSS

[E90Fleet]

Originally Posted by myzmak

A modest reason to buy MY2015 instead of waiting for the fancy taillight so in 2016?

Part numbers are already out and listed under pre-LCI, so 2015 can also have them

[E90Fleet]

Originally Posted by Jockey

Buy now with the tires I want or the tail lights that are "new".

You probably have a greater than 60% chance of getting the PSS anyway.

[CSBM5]

Originally Posted by E90Fleet

Auto Review rated the Continental as slightly better than the Michelin overall, beating it in the wet.
http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article...-Tyre-Test.htm

Remember its the "5P" version, not the "5"

Yet the PSS beat the Conti in dry grip, noise, comfort and wear (not to mention the Michelins have, in my experience, much better manufacturing control -- i.e. dimensional, stiffness and mass uniformity).

[Rick955]

Continental is a German company. Perhaps a little pressure to show a little love for the home team??

[Blksnowflake]

Originally Posted by E90Fleet

Not from the BMW factory

But how about for replacement.