Another X5 (G05 chassis) came in for a winter setup, but opted for a 20" wheel setup. The factory setup was a staggered 22" setup, on run-flat summer tires for comparison. Finding stock for 22" winter tires is already difficult, and the price would have been costly. The only options available for 315/30-22 sizing were performance winters. These are fine for dry/cold environments and offer sportier handling, but are not suitable for deep snow and icy conditions. As a result, we switched the setup over to RAC R11GB's mounted on Michelin X-Ice Snow SUV tires. The entire setup plus TPMS costed way less than anything 22" offered.
A couple of things to note for this setup: On this wide body BMW, it did need a much lower offset so it wouldn't look so weird and sunken in. With most winter tires larger than 20", they're usually more vehicle-specific applications, whereas 20" still allows for traditional winter tires such as the X-Ice Snows. These fare much better in deep snow. Now that the wheels are downsized, there is much thicker sidewall, offering much better ride on rough winter roads.
Michelin X-Ice Snow on R11GB
- RAC R11GB in Gloss Black
- 20x10.5 +30 square
- 5x112 bolt pattern
- Michelin X-Ice Snow SUV winter tires
- 275 square
- TPMS installed
