Before you buy or lease an i3 Be Aware of the Tire Problem

[eNate]

I went into i3 ownership knowing it eats tires, and like MKH, I accepted the trade-off.

Keep in mind that with global logistics today being held together seemingly with shoestrings and bubblegum, inventories are low and shipping costs are high, explaining some of the pricing and out-of-stock issues some owners are reporting.

I bought the last set of i3 tires as a pair — I only needed the rears. The fronts are still looking OK a year later. That's the trade-off for not being able to rotate, and I miss out on the 4 tire discounts and promotions unless I'm willing to hold a pair in my garage (I'm willing, but I didn't the last time). I could also buy 4 rears since I know I'm going to go through those the fastest.

 

[Anonymous]

An added note: Good idea to get a wheel alignment when you get new tires - particularly if you are seeing signs of uneven tire wear. My rear tires seemed to be wearing unevenly, so when I put on new tires this month, had an alignment done at my local independent BMW repair shop. Found that the front wheel were pretty close to spc, the rear wheels were way out of alignment. With the cost of (premature) tire replacement, well worth the $130 it cost me to get them aligned properly.

 

[davidc18]

Excellent advice. We did the same when we replaced our tires.

 

[Arm]

I got a 2018 i3S CPO a few weeks back. They had installed brand new tires on the car and the CPO checklist stated they had done an alignment. However, the car was still pulling to the right...quite a bit actually on the freeway at higher speeds. It was noticeable enough where when I release the steering wheel, the would most definitely begin veering to the right.

I took it back to the dealership where I bought the car and demanded they recheck the alignment. At first they wanted to blame the road cresting. I said that's definitely not it. The steering even centers to the right on its own. Meaning you can easily feel that the steering wants to settle more easily to the right than the left...if that makes sense.

They did re-align it. I've not gotten the car back yet but they stated the alignment was within spec but they adjusted the toe slightly to compensate (still within the spec). Let's see how that works out.

 

[Anonymous]

They did re-align it.

Ask them for the before and after print out from the alignment machine. All alignment machines print out the pre and post alignment data as posted above. If they can't supply it, they didn't do it, How alignment machines work, is the car is put up on the alignment jig, and alignment laser receptors are mounted on the outside of each wheel. The factory alignment specs for the specific car are programmed into the machine, and laser measurements are taken, then adjustments to the suspension, etc are made until all the laser measurements are in spec. Then the car is taken on a ten minute test drive to check handling, then put back on the jig, and the alignment specs are re-checked for accuracy. Job takes about two hours.

Also, check your tire pressure (which they should have done for the alignment). A low tire pressure will cause a car to pull in that direction.

 

[Arm]

Definitely will ask them for the print-out. The tire pressures were 33/41 as per spec F/R

 

[Arm]

They did re-align it.

Ask them for the before and after print out from the alignment machine. All alignment machines print out the pre and post alignment data as posted above. If they can't supply it, they didn't do it, How alignment machines work, is the car is put up on the alignment jig, and alignment laser receptors are mounted on the outside of each wheel. The factory alignment specs for the specific car are programmed into the machine, and laser measurements are taken, then adjustments to the suspension, etc are made until all the laser measurements are in spec. Then the car is taken on a ten minute test drive to check handling, then put back on the jig, and the alignment specs are re-checked for accuracy. Job takes about two hours.

Also, check your tire pressure (which they should have done for the alignment). A low tire pressure will cause a car to pull in that direction.

FYI for anyone who's interested...these are the results of my alignment. The car STILL pulls to the right on the freeway but it's within spec. So I can't really figure out why. Pressures are all good.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/kwKTxKrdpJVTG1Et7

 

[eNate]

Any signs of damage?

 

[Arm]

Any signs of damage?

No none. It's a clean car.

 

[Anonymous]

I've been told that by design the suspension in right-hand drive cars is set up to have a slight pull to the left, while left-hand drive cars are set up to pull slightly to the right. Idea being that if a driver is inattentive or dozes off the car will naturally drift toward the side of the road, instead of into oncoming traffic. If the pull is pronounced, then a more in-depth check of wheel bearings, suspension, and brake components is in order.

 

[Arm]

I was thinking that too but if anything was out of the ordinary on this car, they would have, in all likelihood, found it. It was at the dealer for a full week being fixed and repaired at my request for a few things. The tires are pretty much brand new. It is a CPO as well. Hard to pin point.

 

[Egbert]

Given that the tires have an asymmetrical depth from new (I measured 0.20" on the inner groove, 0.30" on the outer two grooves when new), has anyone considered asking for less rear camber in their alignments to help with inner tire wear? I suspect this would help wear the rear tires more evenly, but there may be a downside- handling. That downside might be significant, too, given that the majority of the real-world braking is done by the rear tires. I suspect lift-throttle oversteer might become more of a thing, particularly on wet roads when decelerating in corners.
It is a bummer. I just bought my 2018 back in February, it had 20086 miles on the odo, and the rears were at 0.04" on the inner groove (below the typical .060" spec that most inspection places will call for replacement), but the outer grooves were 0.18-0.20". Such a shame to have to throw away a tire that had so much life left on 2/3 of it!

Just spitballing here, I haven't tried it. It looks like rear camber rates are -1.6° to -1.7° from the alignment sheets I've seen, so was considering something closer to -1.0°??