Best Tires for the BMW 323i 1997
BMW 323i 1997 drivers have left 5 tire reviews on Tire Reviews, covering 8,400 miles of real world driving. Every tire 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 tires rated
- 79%average tire score
The best rated tires that fit the BMW 323i 1997
The rankings above can only speak for tires a BMW 323i 1997 driver has already reviewed. These are the highest rated tires 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 tire.
All Season tires
No BMW 323i 1997 driver has reviewed a tire 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.
| # | Tire | TR Score | Made in | BMW 323i 1997 reviews |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
|
9.6 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 2 |
|
9.5 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 3 |
|
9.5 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 4 |
|
9.5 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 5 |
|
9.4 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 6 |
|
9.4 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
Want test data as well as owner opinion? Best All Season Tires → Test winner: Goodyear Vector All Season 4
Summer tires
No BMW 323i 1997 driver has reviewed a tire 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.
| # | Tire | TR Score | Made in | BMW 323i 1997 reviews |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
|
9.5 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 2 |
|
9.5 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 3 |
|
9.4 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 4 |
|
9.4 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 5 |
|
9.3 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 6 |
|
9.1 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
Want test data as well as owner opinion? Best Summer Tires →
All Weather tires
No BMW 323i 1997 driver has reviewed a tire in the All Weather category yet. Of the ones made in this car's sizes, the Vredestein Quatrac is our highest rated, at 9.5 out of 10.
| # | Tire | TR Score | Made in | BMW 323i 1997 reviews |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
|
9.5 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
Want test data as well as owner opinion? Best All Weather Tires →
Winter tires
No BMW 323i 1997 driver has reviewed a tire 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.
| # | Tire | TR Score | Made in | BMW 323i 1997 reviews |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
|
9.5 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 2 |
|
9.5 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 3 |
|
9.4 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 4 |
|
9.4 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 5 |
|
9.4 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
| 6 |
|
9.3 | All your sizes | Be the first → |
Want test data as well as owner opinion? Best Winter Tires → Test winner: Goodyear UltraGrip Performance 3
Fitment comes from each tire'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.
Tire sizes BMW 323i 1997 drivers run
The sizes fitted in the reviews on this page. Each one links to the top rated tires in that size, across every car.
What BMW 323i 1997 drivers say
The most recent owner reviews from this car, in their own words.
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 tires 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 tires. 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 tires makes the suspension feels shakey. I also didn't think I would notice tire 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 tires. 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.
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.
Drive a BMW 323i 1997?
Review your tires and help the next owner choose. It takes about five minutes, and every review on this page came from a driver who took them.
Where this data comes from
Every rating on this page was submitted by a driver through the review form on this site, naming the car, the tire, 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 Tire Reviews Score rates each tire 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 Tire Reviews test is run by Jonathan Benson, who has been testing tires independently since 2007.

