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Best Tyres for the BMW 323i 1997

BMW 323i 1997 drivers have left 5 tyre reviews on Tyre Reviews, covering 8,400 miles of real world driving. Every tyre they rated is ranked below, so you can see what actually works on this car.

This page covers the BMW 323i 1997 specifically. For the full picture, the BMW 323i page combines 16 reviews from every variant. All BMW 323i reviews →

  • 5owner reviews
  • 8,400 milescovered on them
  • 5different tyres rated
  • 79%average tyre score
Most fitted size - 2 reviews 205/55 R16 To scale, mm
Ø 632 205 113 16" 113 All 205/55 R16 data →

The best rated tyres that fit the BMW 323i 1997

The rankings above can only speak for tyres a BMW 323i 1997 driver has already reviewed. These are the highest rated tyres we hold that are actually manufactured in the sizes these drivers run - 205/55 R16 - whether or not anyone here has fitted them yet. They are ranked on the TR Score, which is built from independent test results and every owner review of that tyre.

All Season tyres

No BMW 323i 1997 driver has reviewed a tyre in the All Season category yet. Of the ones made in this car's sizes, the Pirelli Cinturato All Season SF3 is our highest rated, at 9.6 out of 10.

Highest rated All Season tyres made in BMW 323i 1997 sizes
# Tyre TR Score Made in BMW 323i 1997 reviews
1 Pirelli Cinturato All Season SF3 9.6 All your sizes Be the first →
2 Continental AllSeasonContact 2 9.5 All your sizes Be the first →
3 Vredestein Quatrac 9.5 All your sizes Be the first →
4 Michelin CrossClimate 3 9.5 All your sizes Be the first →
5 BFGoodrich Advantage All Season 9.5 All your sizes Be the first →
6 Goodyear Vector 4Seasons Gen 3 9.4 All your sizes Be the first →

Want test data as well as owner opinion? Best All Season Tyres → Test winner: Goodyear Vector All Season 4

Summer tyres

No BMW 323i 1997 driver has reviewed a tyre in the Summer category yet. Of the ones made in this car's sizes, the Continental PremiumContact 7 is our highest rated, at 9.5 out of 10.

Highest rated Summer tyres made in BMW 323i 1997 sizes
# Tyre TR Score Made in BMW 323i 1997 reviews
1 Continental PremiumContact 7 9.5 All your sizes Be the first →
2 Bridgestone Potenza Sport Evo 9.5 All your sizes Be the first →
3 Pirelli Cinturato C3 9.4 All your sizes Be the first →
4 Falken ZIEX ZE320 9.4 All your sizes Be the first →
5 Michelin Pilot Sport 4 9.3 All your sizes Be the first →
6 Continental UltraContact NXT 9.1 All your sizes Be the first →

Want test data as well as owner opinion? Best Summer Tyres →

Winter tyres

No BMW 323i 1997 driver has reviewed a tyre in the Winter category yet. Of the ones made in this car's sizes, the Goodyear UltraGrip Performance 3 is our highest rated, at 9.5 out of 10.

Highest rated Winter tyres made in BMW 323i 1997 sizes
# Tyre TR Score Made in BMW 323i 1997 reviews
1 Goodyear UltraGrip Performance 3 9.5 All your sizes Be the first →
2 Michelin Alpin 7 9.5 All your sizes Be the first →
3 Bridgestone Blizzak 6 9.4 All your sizes Be the first →
4 Goodyear UltraGrip 9+ 9.4 All your sizes Be the first →
5 Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3 9.4 All your sizes Be the first →
6 Kumho WinterCraft WP52+ 9.3 All your sizes Be the first →

Want test data as well as owner opinion? Best Winter Tyres → Test winner: Goodyear UltraGrip Performance 3

Fitment comes from each tyre's manufactured size list, and the sizes are the ones drivers reported when they reviewed. Check the size, load index and speed rating on your own doorplate before buying - a size a previous owner ran is not always the size your car left the factory on.

Tyre sizes BMW 323i 1997 drivers run

The sizes fitted in the reviews on this page. Each one links to the top rated tyres in that size, across every car.

What BMW 323i 1997 drivers say

The most recent owner reviews from this car, in their own words.

67%
Taurus Winter 601 195-65-15- BMW 323i 1997 5,000 miles February 23, 2024
This tyres came with car as winter setup (seller was mehanic and he just replaced it so DOT was fresh when car was bought). I was very sceptical but on wet you can't go sideways with this tyre, that's how much grip it has. :) Dry grip is ok but you don't have any feeling on steering wheel with them, also you can drive with confidence, especially RWD cars. Also never had problem with grip in snow (bare in mind that it's on RWD car). Negative side is noise, the faster you drive the noiser they get, so I wouldn't recommend them if you are mainly on motorways. Also, the wear is very high, so after two seasons they have about 5 mm tread depth (less than 10 000 km). If you mainly drive in city and country roads this is ideal. For the price, and everything else considering, I would recommend them, just depends what are you expecting from them (they are not premium and they are not perfect...).
83%
Michelin Primacy 3 205-55-16- BMW 323i 1997 400 miles February 28, 2018
Went out to purchase Pilot Sport 4s to replace the extremely worn out PS3s on the wheels I purchased, but since the shop haven't got the size I needed - the salesman immediately threw the Primacy 3 ST at me, advertised the tyres as one of the quietest and most comfortable around. I'm not too bothered with either, I have loud pipes and pretty stiff springs. I needed grip (hence my desire for the PS4) since my car had proven to be a loose cannon.

The main problem I had with the previous Achilles 2233 and Dunlop SP01 on the car is that they're fine on dry roads, but murderous once the going turns damp, with the Achilles being a step ahead - nearly killing me by sending the car sliding to another car once. The old rear tyres occasionally produces an unmistakable squealing noise even on slightly damp roads, even with the lightest throttle, and the fronts were dangerously prone to aquaplaning - happens quite often and when it happens, they do lose all grip which is fairly frightening. The Michelins eliminated ALL of these issues. The rears only squealed once in the wet, and that's when I deliberately gave too much throttle to test it. The fronts are less prone to aquaplaning - though not entirely impossible, but it happened once, and when it does, it doesn't entirely lose grip and rectifies itself almost immediately. Cornered quite quickly in various degree of wetness with these a few times, a dangerous act, but proven the Primacy retains grip very well in bad weather.

I haven't tested them at the absolute peak, but so far, the old E36 handles and feels far better than it ever did with the my previous tyres. Not a huge surprise compared to the cheaper Achilles, but with the equally premium priced Dunlop? Steering feels immediately lighter and more direct. Dry grip is phenomenal, wet grip feels great too. And it made the car more comfortable, the old tyres makes the suspension feels shakey. I also didn't think I would notice tyre noise due to my exhaust, but apparently, the cabin is actually noticeably quieter, particularly at higher speed.

Cannot provide any information on wear yet, as they're relatively fresh off the racks now, but considering the car's rear heavy tendencies combined with my idiotic driving, I'm pretty sure the rears would go out a year or two from now.

Read a lot of bad reviews on these (mostly installed on new, higher-end vehicles instead of a 20 years old clunker like mine) which didn't help to my early skepticisms about the tyres. Would I buy them again? Yes - Unless they finally have the 16 inch Pilot Sports I was looking for. But otherwise, glad I have tried these because it did make me realise how comfortable and stable the sub-200 HP E36 could be. Something I haven't truly felt since I bought the thing.
76%
Achilles 2233 215-45-17- BMW 323i 1997 February 7, 2018
I used to ran 17" 2233s on all fours (ideal front width, slightly stretched rears), before the fronts were replaced with worn 16" Dunlop SP01s after a pothole accident. I can only say good things about its behaviour in the dry. Pretty comfortable even on rough roads, possibly quiet (I have loud pipes and wind coming through the window, so I can't truly tell), excellent grip - all in a very affordable package. They also seem to last very long; I fitted them in August 2016. Two years and some 7000 miles of daily spirited driving later, they still have hairs on them.

However, in the wet, oh dear... My car only has a modest 245 Nm of torque, and even with the lightest throttle, on a slightly wet road, I can feel the rears losing grip accompanied with an unmistakable screeching noise. As for the fronts, they seem to be quite prone to hydroplaning, making handling on the wet rather unpredictable. These were relatively new, mostly city driven tires, mind you.

Although, overall I'm very pleased with em. I blew a couple rear tires and replaced them with another pair of 2233s.
71%
Vredestein Quatrac 5 205-55-16-V BMW 323i 1997 1,000 miles February 10, 2015
These tyres give a lovely comfortable quiet drive. Felt a bit soft after initial fitting but improved after a number of miles. In mild conditions the car feels as though the back wants to break away, but it doesn't. In the cold conditions of this January the tyres felt firmer and handled better. I don't think these tyres are for the boy racers though. Have yet to try them in summer conditions as have only completed 1000 miles in them so also cannot comment on wear rate.To sum up, these tyres are fine if you are a sensible driver and they give a very comfortable quiet ride
97%
Nitto Invo 225-40-18- BMW 323i 1997 2,000 miles December 17, 2013
Had on a BMW. Made the car feel like it was on rails. Recommended!

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Every rating on this page was submitted by a driver through the review form on this site, naming the car, the tyre, the size and the distance covered. Reviews are checked by hand before publication, and the page rebuilds automatically as new ones arrive.

About the TR Score

The Tyre Reviews Score rates each tyre out of 10 using independent test results and the full body of owner reviews, so you can check a car-specific ranking against the wider evidence.

Who does the testing

Every test published as a Tyre Reviews test is run by Jonathan Benson, who has been testing tyres independently since 2007.

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