CPO

I bought a CPO 2014 i3Rex two days ago. Yesterday I noticed that the front tires were worn down to smooth on the inside. I took it back to the dealer and showed them. The tech measured the tread with a tread gauge and only checked the center tread which was good. I told him the problem is the inside tread and he said he only had to measure the center tread bar. He also said the tires were made that way. I even told him that the BMW CPO Check list shows measurements for "inside, center, outside". How good is CPO? I called BMW customer support and they told me the it was the service managers call on tires. I said yabut the check list shows 3 measurements not 1, they are inspecting the tires wrong if they are only checking 1 tread. Again I was told it was up to the service manager. Who controls and maintains CPO quality and integrity?

Unfortunately, the inside tread on the i3's tires is significantly shallower than the middle tread when the tire is new, so the inside tread wears out first. Many who lease are being forced to buy new tires because the inside tread depth is below the minimum depth allowed for a lease return, so many have complained to BMW who now might be ignoring the inside tread depth.

I will probably wait until the middle tread wears down to the wear bars or cords are showing on the inside tread before replacing our tires. Hopefully, others will express their opinions about this problem which seems to be due to a combination of the unusually shallow inside tread and BMW's specification of significant negative camber front and back which tends to wear the inside tread faster.

Did you talk to the service manager ? If he/she balks, take it to the dealership owner

Are you a member of the BMWCCA ? They have a (free) ombudsman to help in such cases. Since the BMW CPO Check list shows measurements for "inside, center, outside" I think you have a good case. But you have to "go up the ladder" first.

This is the excessive negative camber problem I've been working.

Bob Wilson

Thanks for the replies, I feel a little better knowing that the problem isn't just my car. Once I get my registration from the dealer I will take it to get it inspected. The Sales manager told me he will deal with it if it gets rejected. He didn't say what he would do but I think there is a law here in Massachusetts that used cars purchased must be able to pass inspection. I'm still surprised that the CPO program would allow this issue to be ignored by dealers.

I find all the consternation over tires a bit puzzling. Don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to diminish the experience of those who have had problems. Particularly the OP who should expect tires that pass inspection in a newly-purchased CPO.

Because of the numerous threads here I was expecting problems at my 2014's end of contract inspection. But the AutoVin tech measured all four tires at 6/32" tread depth. No issue.

During the three years I had that car, I didn't experience an unusual number of punctures either. I replaced one rear tire about six months in because I picked up a screw (near one of the all too numerous construction sites currently plaguing SF streets) where the tread meets the sidewall.

Even then, the Ecopias are relatively affordable for BMW parts. In the US, TireRack lists the EP600 for $143/159. My local Bridgestone dealer was within $10 of TireRack. Plus got it delivered from the warehouse and installed same day.

In comparison, the performance run flats for my E90 3-series go for $241/267. I've replaced two due to punctures and all four for wear before I hit 30k miles. To me, this is the price of driving a precisely-engineered vehicle. Maybe I'm a sucker.

Based on my admittedly limited experience, i3 tire issues are far from universal or even out of line with other BMWs.

I feel the tire issues with the i3 are a problem. If I had gotten 25-30K out of the BMW OEM tires I would have no problem. But, I only got 15K out of my OEM set. The inner thread was not 2mm or even 1mm, it was gone, completely smooth. For a major brand tire rated at 440 they should have gone far more.
I am a very conservative driver with my i3 (5.7-6.5 miles per kwh) and still the inter thread was worn smooth at less than 15K. In addition I had to replace one tire after hitting a pothole because the sidewall delaminated and would not hold air.
Before replacing my tires I had a four wheel alignment done just to ensure there wasn't an alignment issue. While some very slight adjustments were made, I was told the i3 overall was in good alignment and that the tire wear was not caused by misalignment. Were BMW's specs contributing to the inner tire wear, he would not speculate.

Archie

My main problem is BMW advertises all the time about their CPO cars and how they thru a huge safety check and then they neglect the tires. They let a customer buy a wonderful CPO only to have to buy tires right away. The car had 27k miles that sounds like if they are the originals that they are at the end of their life expectancy. I also notice a plug in one of the front tires. I'm still waiting for my registration so I can go for my inspection.

I just got a call from the dealer and they have agreed to replace the front tires.

Sounds like your persistence paid off.
Thanks for the follow up.

One more bit of information about my front tires. As it turns out my CPO had the wrong size tires on the front. It had the 175s and not the 155s. I would expect that would have been caught in the CPO inspection. When the dealer ordered my new front tires the ordered 175s. I don't know if the 175s will wear faster on the front where there are suppose to be 155s?

GRUB said:

As it turns out my CPO had the wrong size tires on the front. It had the 175s and not the 155s. I would expect that would have been caught in the CPO inspection. When the dealer ordered my new front tires the ordered 175s. I don't know if the 175s will wear faster on the front where there are suppose to be 155s?

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Those who have tried mounting the rear wheels and tires on the front report interference when turning fully. If no interference is occurring, the 175's must be mounted on the correct front wheels. 155's were specified for the front tires to reduce aerodynamic drag and thus to increase range a bit.

I can't think of why 175's might wear faster on the front. They might even wear a bit more slowly. But I would probably want the correct tires on the front, especially after paying extra for CPO.

The 175s are a little wider and the way BMW align the wheels I thought it might create more wear on the inside tread especially if the alignment is set up with a negative camber.

The rim width is different for the different size tires. The 175s are mounted on 5.5" wide rims. When you have the tires replaced, you should have the dealership check to make sure that they are using the right size rim. Since this is a CPO from a BMW dealership, they must be able to make this check.

How did the wrong size tires get up front is a different story. I have seen people insist that tire stores rotate their tires even though they are staggered. I saw one store try to tell the customer that it was a bad idea and they were having none of it.