Im trying to put together a set of winter tires for my 2010 clubman. I found some used r90 rims on craiglist for around $275. I was thinking about getting the General Altimax Arctic winter tires. What would fit the clubman with those r90 rims? The Generals come in 205/50/17 or 215/45/17 and a few other 17inch rim sizes. I think that r90 originally came with a 205/45/17. Is there any other size tires i could get with that 17inch rim? Would one size be better than a another in the snow?

 

The 205 will technically be better than the 215 if you are comparing the same tires just in different sizes. This is because the narrower the tire the better it can "cut" through the snow. HOWEVER the selection of higher quality tires is much better for the 215 size tires. I personally went with 215/45/17's on my clubman for the winter. I purchased a set of Nokian Hakkapelitta r2. These tires are arguable the best winter tires available right now. Another top contender would also be the Bridgestone Blizzak WS80. I also HIGHLY recommend staying away from runflats for the winter. The ride will be much more harsh as well as sacrificing grip and bump compliance if you do go with runflats. Either way I believe that even though it is a wider tire, the quality of tires in the 215 size much outweigh the sizing downside.

 

What about the conti DWS? They are supposed to be a very grippy all season tire. That's what I'm putting on my car.

 

Thanks, that's exactly what I wanted to know!!

 

I actually have a set of DWS for my summer option. I live in Duluth MN so the weather can change at any time, so in the late fall I don't want to get caught with some pure summers on. On that note I did have mine on last spring when we got a huge dump of snow and they handled fine, but in comparison to having a winter tire set they weren't even close to the performance of my hakkapilitta's. If you HAVE to only have one set of tires the DWS are a great option as well as Michelin Premier A/S as well as Pirelli Cinturato P7 All Season Plus are two other great options

 

the only winter tires I could find are runflats and I'm all set with those.

 

I will say this, read it very clearly.


There is NO allseason tire that competes with a winter tire in wintery conditions. Even the outright cold an allseason cannot compete with a winter tire.


"allseasons" are for lazy people who run 1 tire till it runs out or have no want for performance, braking, or adhesion. Smart people have a set of summers and winters.


but if you see 1 inch of snow a year, do you need winter tires? no. Do you live in buffalo NY? you want snow tires. I can easily push 6 inches of snow down a road with my 225/45/17 snow tires on my S model and feel perfectly fine. I used to run on all seasons. never again. a True Snow/Winter tire will have the mountain and the snow flake.


as for the tire choice, technically the skinner tire would be better for snow to "cut" but the difference between the 205 and the 215, youll never see the difference


also, no need for studded unless your roads are consistently ice

 

THIS!!

Once you go through a winter with winter tires you will never go back to all seasons.

 

I have Hankook R-S3 for autocross season and Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 for the rest of the year. Mediterranean climate. See my "if [you] believe all seasons do nothing well..." thread.

 

I have a 2008 Clubman. First three years I used snow tires. The car got through the worst of the winter of 2008/2009 without a problem. After three seasons, the winter treads were pretty much shot as were my summer run-flats, so I switched to the Conti DWS all season. Honestly, they are as good as the snow tires in snow and FAR better in icy or just wet conditions. In summer, they have a much smoother ride than the no flats. Hardly a compromise in my view - I would not go back to snow tires again and I would gladly exchange the smoother ride for the small performance gain of a summer run-flat tire.

 

You should get some Nokian WR D3 or if you want hardcore wintertyres Nokian Hakkapeliita 8. Probably the best wintertyres ever!
http://www.nokiantyres.com/

 

I've had the Blizzak LM60 for the past 4 winters on my 2010 Cooper S Clubman. Really liked them, but they were at their 4mm point. I am trying the Hakkapeliitta R2 this winter. Not 100% sold on the for MINI. Have them on my AWD winter car too and they are unbelieveable. They have a higher speed rating than the Blizzaks did. This might sound like a dumb point to mention , but I don't feel like they make as much noise at higher speeds because of that. Braking on the MINI feels about the same as the LM60, but handling is similar to summer performance tire on dry roads. Unfortunaely, we've only had one good snow here in the Central Iowa area so far accompnied by 40+ degree temps, so my wear indicators are at 6(7) mm after 2 months of daily driving.

 

Keep in mind that there are snow tires and there are winter tires. The bridgestone WS80 is a snow tire intended to get through lots of snow and on dry roads it will feel like you are driving on marshmallows. The bridgestone LM32 is a winter tire intended for cold climates and give more performance with a firmer sidewall and rubber compound that will work well when really cold (available in a 205/55r16 and 215/45r17). There are similar tires in both categories from other manufactures, these are 2 tires I've researched so far. I purchase a used car that came with a set of LM60 runflat snows on 16's which I'm finding to be very grippy in cold temps. I'll use them up before I buy anything new.

I live in Chicago where it's cold a lot but we don't get multiple feet snow falls very often, so a performance winter tire makes sense. I was pleased with the LM60's so far. Mostly wet and cold so far this year. The stock all season run flats were hideous and they will not be going back on the car ever.

I have some experience with a set of conti DSW's on a honda fit. They are great all season tires that do pretty well in the cold and snow. But that car only has 118hp so the tires are not exactly taxed to the limits of adhesion. Were these tires fall short is at the limits. On a warm day in a hard corner they will just roll the sidewall and I found them to be lacking on wet cold roads (fired the abs lots last winter). But the certainly go me through the winter without a scratch. For the clubman S, I'm looking for a little more performance so I'll stick with a summer / winter setup.

Cheers

 

I run Blizzaks LM60's on my Clubman S. I do a bunch of driving.... 25,000 miles on pot-holed filled Rhode Island roads. We had a lot of snow and icy weather and these tires did very well.
I am a healthcare worker, so I don't get the luxury of waiting for the roads to be cleared.

This was the first car I did this with but will always switch to winter tires from now on.