[cbcb]

Hi All,

another question for you. My new to me 2007 328i with sport package tramlines heavily on rutted pavement. Now, I am all for feedback through the steering wheel, but this seems ridiculous.

I will soon be replacing the RFTs with non-RFTs, I wonder if that will help.

But besides that, is this normal? It may be that I am not used to driving cars with tires as wide as this car, but I hope this is something that can be improved upon.

Thanks!

[ibimmer954]

Make sure your tires are at the proper pressures (about 35/38 psi). If they are low, that will make the tramlining way worse. But yes, the car does that quite a bit with the OEM tires.

[968tomr]

This is primarily a function of having low sidewall high performance tires (not runflats).

Here is an article that may help.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete....jsp?techid=47

-Tom

[WinoGregorio]

Some tramlining is common with wide, low profile tires but I would certainly look at the alignment front and rear as well as tire pressure and tire wear. If you feel it is still abnormal, go to a dealership and test drive a similar car.

[HighlandPete]

As suggested, it is typically because of wide, low profile tires. A lot of BMW cars are fitted with wheels and tires that don't help this issue. Not a BMW fault as such, but our choice of wheels and tires often add to this problem, when it is not there on a smaller diameter/less width rims with more tire sidewall height and flex.

Choosing fashion over form often brings it on us.

HighlandPete

[ejheverest]

replaced with non-run flats and tram lining issue went away for the most part.

[ceb]

Tramlining is more evident with some trad designs and often gets worse as tires wear.

How much tread is left on the tires?

[ctuna]

Bridge stone pilot sports were susceptible to this,but they handle great . I would go to tirerack.com
and read the reviews on what ever tire you have it should tell you something

[Tom K.]

Originally Posted by ctuna

Bridge stone pilot sports were susceptible to this,but they handle great . I would go to tirerack.com
and read the reviews on what ever tire you have it should tell you something

Did you mean the Michelin Pilot Sports? I had the Pilot MXMs as OE on a Z3 and when the tread was half worn, the tramlining was pretty bad - and this was only a 50 series tire. Replacing them with ContiSport Contacts solved the problem.

(I've yet to have a tramlining problem with a Bridgestone tire - both RE050A and (reformulated) EL42 RFTs seem to do quite well.)

And I agree the OP should definitely indicate the make, model and size of his tires.

Tom

[Want]

Normal. I had the same issues, tramlining went away when I switched to all season tires (non rft)

[cbcb]

Originally Posted by ceb

Tramlining is more evident with some trad designs and often gets worse as tires wear.

How much tread is left on the tires?

Yes, they are getting low - I bought the car knowing it would soon be time for replacement, so I was hoping that this might be a partial factor as well.

The tires are OEM as far as I know, and are Bridgestone Potenza RFTs. Stock sport sizes: 255/40/17 rear, 225/45/17 front.

Sounds like new non-RFTs should help a fair bit.

Thanks guys.

[Blindrage606]

Originally Posted by ibimmer346

Make sure your tires are at the proper pressures (about 35/38 psi).

Are these the normal parameters for 328i sport?

[WinoGregorio]

When changing tires, make sure you check alignment too. The new tires will feel great until they establish the same wear pattern that is contributing to the problem.