2013 BMW 550i tire sizes & fitment
Approved tire and wheel sizes for the 2013 BMW 550i, sourced from manufacturer fitment data and refreshed monthly.
Approved fitments
| Tire size | Rim size | PCD (bolt pattern) | Offset | Load index | Speed rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 245/40R19 OEM | R19 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Best by use case
Four tires, four jobs
Best all-season
Bridgestone
Turanza QuietTrack
all-season touring, UTQG 800, 80,000-mi warranty
Best budget
Bridgestone
Turanza QuietTrack
Lowest cost per mile in this size; UTQG 800
Best quiet
Bridgestone
Turanza QuietTrack
68 dB cabin noise (EU label); quietest in this size
Best winter
Michelin
X-Ice snow
Dedicated winter (premium compound); ice/snow grip
See the best tires for the BMW 550i, ranked by category →
Tire recalls & safety complaints for the BMW 550i →
Compatible alternative sizes for 245/40R19
Sizes within the ETRTO ±3% overall-diameter safe-fit tolerance. Each row links to the size's own page.
| Alternative size | %Δ OD | Category | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
225/55R17 |
0.10% | alternative | Safe |
275/45R17 |
0.10% | alternative | Safe |
245/45R18 |
-0.13% | alternative | Safe |
245/35R20 |
0.13% | plus 1 | Safe |
275/40R18 |
-0.21% | alternative | Safe |
For the full list of alternatives with comfort/handling impact, see 245/40R19 upsize options. To check an arbitrary size pair, use the tire compatibility calculator.
Check a different size against this vehicle
Type any tire size below; we'll compute its overall-diameter delta against the OEM 245/40R19 and verdict using the ETRTO ±3% rule.
Common upgrade paths
- Plus-1: 245/35R20; one rim size up, 0.13% OD change. Sharper steering, mild ride penalty, modest cost premium.
- Plus-2: 245/30R21; two rim sizes up, 0.27% OD change. Noticeable ride penalty, higher pothole risk, meaningful tire-cost premium.
Use the plus-size calculator to evaluate any rim step against the OEM size.
How to choose tires for the 2013 BMW 550i xdrive-sedan-m-sport-package
The 2013 BMW 550i xDrive-Sedan-M-Sport-Package ships from the factory on 245/40R19 tires mounted on R19 wheels. Only one approved fitment is documented for this model year, so replacement options should match the original size exactly unless a plus-size upgrade is being considered. The Compatible alternative sizes table above lists every safe substitution within the ETRTO ±3% overall-diameter tolerance.
Tire choice on the BMW 550i comes down to three trade-offs that matter more than brand loyalty: load index (must equal or exceed the OEM number), speed rating (must match or exceed the placard), and UTQG treadwear (higher means longer life, lower usually means stickier rubber). Owners replacing factory tires with the same compound class, for example all-season for all-season, generally see no change in ride characteristics or fuel economy. Switching categories (performance summer to all-season touring, for example) is where the trade-offs show up at the contact patch.
For 2013 BMW 550i xDrive-Sedan-M-Sport-Package owners considering a plus-size upgrade, the safer option is a Plus-1 step (one rim size up with a 10-point aspect drop and ~10 mm of additional section width). Plus-2 is technically viable on this chassis if the alternative-sizes table lists a Plus-2 candidate within tolerance, but expect a meaningful ride-harshness penalty and a tire-cost premium of 30–60% per tire relative to the OEM fitment. For winter use the recommended pattern is one width step down (e.g. from a 235 to a 225) with the aspect ratio bumped up to preserve overall diameter; narrower tires apply higher contact pressure per square inch on snow, which translates directly into shorter braking distances. The plus-size calculator evaluates any specific rim step against this OEM size.
Before purchasing, verify the tire size on the driver-door placard of your specific 2013 BMW 550i xDrive-Sedan-M-Sport-Package, since trim levels and option packages can shift the original fitment from what is documented here. The placard reading is the authoritative source per FMVSS 110, and dealers will reference the placard rather than aftermarket catalogs when validating warranty claims.
NHTSA-reported issues for 2013 BMW 550i
Top issue category: Tires (General)
Reported across: 2013 – 2013 (1 year)
What owners described
Bubble or bulge in the tire appears in 65% of these reports; about 11.1× as often as across all tire complaints. Percentages are shares of the 23 reports covering every model year of the BMW 550i that include a written account; a single report can describe more than one problem, so they do not total 100%.
| Reported problem | This subject | All tire complaints | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bubble or bulge in the tire | 65% | 6% | 11.1× |
| Sidewall failure | 39% | 15% | 2.6× |
| Blowout or sudden deflation | 26% | 20% | 1.3× |
| Loss of control, rollover or collision | 17% | 8% | 2.1× |
| Tread or belt separation | 4% | 13% | 0.3× |
| Cracking or dry rot | 4% | 9% | 0.5× |
Mileage at failure
12 of these reports state an odometer reading. The middle report is at 10,750 miles, with 8 in 10 falling between 4,900 and 30,000 miles.
In owners' own words
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA about BMW 550i. Reports are published by NHTSA as filed and are lightly cleaned here only to remove intake codes.
GOODYEAR RUN ON FLAT 245/40/19 GETS BUBBLE ON TIRE. I HAD TO CHANGE THE SAME TIRE WITHIN 10 DAYS WITH NO WARRANTY COVERAGE AVAILABLE. THEN A WEEK LATER HAD TO CHANGE ANOTHER TIRE WHICH IS 3 TIRES WITHIN 5,000 MILES AND COST OF $1,600.
THIS IS THE SECOND OCCURRENCE OF A SIDEWALL BUBBLE ON MY BMW GOODYEAR EXCELLENCE19" RUN FLAT TIRES 98 ON MY 2011 BMW 550I. IN JANUARY 2013 AT 11,000 MILES MY RIGHT FRONT DEVELOPED A BUBBLE AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. I ONLY NOTICED BECAUSE MY TIRE PRESSURE MONITOR ALERT CAME ON AND WHEN I TOOK MY CAR TO HAVE MY TIRES CHECKED THEY NOTICED THE BUBBLE. NOW AT 14,000 MY LEFT FRONT SIDE TIRE IS ALSO DEVELOPING A SIDEWALL BUBBLE. THE TIRES HAVE PLENTY OF TREAD AND I DO NOT ABUSE MY CAR. I AM VERY CAREFUL ABOUT AVOIDING POTHOLES AND DRIVE SLOWLY OVER RAILROAD TRACKS.
I GOT THIS ZENNA TIRES FROM CARSHOEZ.COM AND THE TIRES HAVE A TREAD PATTERN WRONG. IT DOES NOT FOR WITH THE FLOW OF ROTATION OF THE TIRE. THE INSIDE SIDE TREAD IS GOING BACKWARD AND THE OUTSIDE TREAD IS BACKWARD ON TWO TIRES AND FORWARD ON THE OTHER TWO TIRES. TIRES SIZES IS 275/30/19 REAR AND 245/35/9 FRONT.
NEXEN TIRES N5000 PLUS SIDEWALL ON ALL TIRES ARE STARTING TO CRACK AND SPLIT WITH LESS THAN 30,000 MILES AND 24 MONTHS OF USE. GOING TO REPLACE TIRES WITH ANOTHER BRAND AND REMOVE THESE DUE TO UNSAFE AND POTENTIAL CATASTROPHIC FAILURE OF TIRES COMING APART OR BLOWOUT AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS..
Complaints are voluntarily submitted to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation and are not verified by NHTSA; they represent owner-reported problems, not proven defects. Counts can be useful as a relative quality signal across comparable tires or vehicles.
Frequently asked questions
What size tires fit a 2013 BMW 550i?
Can I run a different tire size on my 2013 BMW 550i?
Where can I buy tires for my 2013 BMW 550i?
What is the recommended tire pressure for the 2013 BMW 550i?
Can I fit winter tires in a different size on my 2013 BMW 550i?
How often should I rotate the tires on my 2013 BMW 550i?
For broader tire questions; replacement timing, UTQG, EV-specific tires, winter swaps; see the tire FAQ.
Sources for this page
- Vehicle owner's manual tire & wheel placard; door-jamb placard on the BMW 550i is the authoritative source for OEM tire size, load index, and cold-inflation pressure for your specific trim.
- NHTSA SaferCar; recall lookup for the 2013 BMW 550i.
- ETRTO 2024 Standards Manual §2.3; overall-diameter math used for the alternative-size verdicts above.
- Tire & Rim Association 2025 Yearbook; load-index to maximum-load reference.
Last verified 2026-09-02.