Hello NAM, I've been surfing the forum for awhile. Great forum we got here. Anyway, I picked up a 2014 White/Blk roof Countryman S with 6spd manual for my wife.


We traded in 2010 VW CC because of our baby daughter's car seat not fitting inside our CC.


We always wanted a cooper but never had chance to until now.


So far, great little car but the noise and ride with RFT is just


What are some good aftermarket tires you guys are happy with? Also with non run flats, what are your solutions of having a spare other than having actual spare?

 

Congratulations! We love our CM R60.

The performance run flats that came on our JCW handle pretty well-Pirelli P-Zeros, but they are a no go in the winter, and I don't like run flats period.

As for replacements, for winter tires we are using Nitto Motivo A/S tires. fantastic tire and a great price. Check out the several reviews of the tire on the web.

For summer, we are using the "gold standard" for Mini performance tires: Michelin Pilot Super Sports. What a grippy tire it is

As for flats, we did what numerous other Mini folks do. For both cars we got the green slime/compressor combination. ordered it from Amazon, it injects green slime and inflates the tire at the same time, in about 7 minutes I am told. Comes in a handy case.

 

Welcome to NAM! Good looking MINI! I've been considering a black vinyl roof mod for my Countryman, and your picture makes me want to do it more.

I've read about "flat in a can" aerosols that can be used if you don't have a spare, or carrying a small spare if you feel you might be traveling somewhere that service is not available (are you feeling lucky approach).

Tire Rack is a good website to get some basic information. I'm sure others on the forum can be more specific.

 

Ah! That sounds great! I will look into that, thank you very much for your input and welcome. I've always liked Michelins.


Thank you for the welcome, you should definitely do a black roof. It gives nice contrast. We have pano sunroof as well, so it blends it nicely.


Flat in a can it is once I swap these tires out soon.

 

I carry a bottle of Slime, and compressor. I have had to use the slime in a tire (one of my factory RF's) and I drove around for 10 days or so before I switched out to my winter tires. Never lost a lbs of air! For a replacement tire look into the reviews of the Continental DWS Extreme Contact.

Congrats on the new CMS!

 

Ah, the panoramic sunroof. One of the many unique Mini features that is fantastic. I almost hate to open the roof since the front lays on top of the rear roof panel, blocking it. With the roof closed you get so much light in from both pieces of glass, it almost seems like you have an entire glass roof

This was one of the primary reasons I bought my R56 JCW instead of a GP2. The pano roof was non-negotiable for us on both Minis

 

I bought my 2011 Countryman S ALL4 a year ago and it had run flats that were really harsh over any road imperfections and absolutely scary in snow. I quickly changed to non-run flats, Continental Extreme Contact DWS tires (225/45 R18), and they made an amazing difference. I carry a plug kit and 12volt pump since I figure a catastrophic failure is extremely unlikely.