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Tyre Pressures

Discuss your latest mods or ideas, and anything to do with the BMW X5 (E53).
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X5-D-Sport
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Tyre Pressures

Post by X5-D-Sport » Tue Apr 13, 2021 4:07 am

I have an E53 D-Sport.
Matching rim set all round - standard rear wheel on each corner with 285x45x19" tyres.

One garage says one pressure, another says some thing else...

I have been running about 34psi with cold tyres on all 4 wheels.

reason for asking is, I checked the pressures after a drive & was a little surprised that a 15 mile gentle drive was enough to heat up the tyres & add 3psi to the pressures to 37psi

So another question.... are pressures best tested when tyres are hot or cold ?
What are peoples ideas on pressures for 285x45x19" tyres inflated/checked when cold ?

regards to all
Grant B

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Alan Gunn
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Re: Tyre Pressures

Post by Alan Gunn » Tue Apr 13, 2021 4:36 am

I run a staggered setup but put 34 in all round and have done for 3.5 years now with no uneven tyre where,
Tyres should be checked cole.

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X5Sport
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Re: Tyre Pressures

Post by X5Sport » Tue Apr 13, 2021 8:37 am

There should be a tyre pressure plate on the drivers side B-pillar with sizes and payload to help you set the correct pressure. It will probably be in ‘Bar’ though. The label might be the other side as BMW seem to change where they put them!

Always done cold as doing it hot could lead to under-pressure once the tyres cool down. An increase of 3psi with the tyre sizes we use doesn’t surprise me at all.

I have always run mine at standard pressure unless the car is fully laden. 34psi rings a bell if that’s 2.2bar? Some owners run theirs at much higher pressures to help tyre wear. I’ve not had any excessive wear at normal load factory settings.
:ant: Never anthropomorphise computers. They hate that.

X5-D-Sport
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Re: Tyre Pressures

Post by X5-D-Sport » Tue Apr 13, 2021 3:03 pm

My Suspension modifications...
what I have also done to My X5, because it has extended Hubs - no spacers, the track width is amazing,

Rear
I raised the rear air suspension by 3d printing a mating plate each side for the ride height sensors that tilt the sensor a fraction & gave 50mm lift on the rear...
This also had the effect of tilting the camber a fraction & negated the need to replace the old bushes lol...

Front
Lifted the front suspension 50mm too.
I had some 50mm tall rings about 90mm dia made to fit between the strut & the strut top mount... these a bolted in each side & very secure.
Additionally because the front camber settings are total crap on the X5 to lighten the steering, the effect is chronic outer tyre wall scrub..
So... I slotted the strut top bolt holes & pulled the strut tops in toward the vehicle centre about 25mm.
Now the front wheels are exactly vertical & I set them to perpendicular to the road...
Zero tyre edge scrub & an even wear across the front treads.... even when doing macho speeds off motor-way slip roads the tyres don't scuff on the outer edges.

34 psi all round i will now do too - following the advice from your smarter members above

Happy to share the ride set-up with anyone that cares to come look.

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Re: Tyre Pressures

Post by Themoog2 » Wed Apr 14, 2021 5:17 am

I've always run my tyres at 36psi. I have to check at least every two weeks as the front os has a small rim leak which I keep meaning to get fixed..
Talk to me more about these suspension modifications - extended hubs? How?
I run spacers as it makes the car look a bit more chunky and I did think about lifting it 30-50mm. I never thought about altering the sensor angle at the rear. Any pictures of this bracket / plate..
There is a lift kit available for an E53.

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