OK, not really a mod per se, but something I'm thinking about...

I have performance tires on my Cooper S, and I'm looking to buy another set of wheels and mounting all season snow tires on them.

I've always liked the stock rims with the "holes" in them, like this:



This is from a very good auction on ebay- problem is that these are 15" wheels and my current ones are 17". They're also from a '02-'04 car, but I assume that won't be an issue (right?). What performance differences will I experience with the smaller rims and, more importantly, will the smaller tires have any perfomance limitations in snow? I live in Ohio and, unfortunately, have to plan ahead for when the white crap starts to fall.

Thanks!

 

I believe that those are called hollies. I think.

There are quite a few people that have a second set for winter driving.

15'' wheels, you will notice a difference. Not necessarly a bad thing though. It might even be a smoother ride.

I dont see why they wouldnt fit. As long as it has the 4 bolt pattern.

 

The 15" holies will fit, no problem on an MCS with stock brakes. The MCS has the exact same brakes as the MC.

 

I have a set of those sitting in the garage waiting for winter. My plan is to buy a set of 205/50/15 Hakka 2 winter tires for them. Those 17's you have will really work poorly in the snow for you. A narrow taller side walled tire will work better in snow than a wide short one. Many folks seem to like the OEM Cooper non S tires for snow use. They are 175/15 I believe.

 

What do those numbers mean, exactly? 175/15, etc.? Glad to know that they'll work- a friend of mine who works for Honda as an engineer was warning me about the performance of my current tires in the snow, and I figured I'd better think it over. Thanks!

 

Stock 15" tire size is 175/65 R15

175 is the width in mm (175/25.4 to get the width in inches)
65 is the height of the sidewall as a percentage of the tire width (.65*175)
15 is the wheel diameter in inches

to get the total tire diameter in inches:
2*.65*175/(25.4mm/inch) +15 = 23.956 inches

 

So with smaller tires, the sidewall should be THICKER, to keep the car from bottoming out?

Also, one last question (thanks everyone for the help)... My Cabrio comes with run-flats standard, because (as I understand it), the convertable was not able to be fitted with a spare. I'm assuming that the tires that come with these are not run flats, so should I, when I replace them, replace them with run flats as well, and are run flats produced in this size? According to the auction, the tires still have about 1/2 tread life left, so all I want to do is get one winter out of them before replacing them (the seller is listing them as "CONTI-TOURING CONTACT 175/65R15"s...

 

Depending on the tread depth you should get a winter out of them. Those tires are not run flats. No big deal though, just buy a can of fix a flat to keep in the boot. I don't believe run flats are available in that size. My thinking is that run flats would really suck on snow & ice.

 

Good idea about the Fix a Flat... the lack of a spare DOES worry me.

Hey, also, has anyone put the Pirelli 190 "Snow Control" tires on their Mini? There are several positive comments about the tires on Tire track's site, all relayed to Minis... We get a lot of slush/rain in the winters here in central Ohio mixed with a few days of really serious snow.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....e1=yes&place=2

 

The sidewalls are just taller because the wheel is smaller so the overall diameter remains close to the same.

Not quite.

The MC and MC Cabrio (MCc) both come with spares whether you get run-flats (16") or non run flat (15") regular tires.

The MCS and the MCS Cabrio (MCSc) both do not come with spares because the battery box and exhaust routing runs where the spare would be located (the MC battery is up front under the hood).

No run flats are available in the 175/65 R15 size. So your only real option is regular tires.

Depending on what half the tread means (half the original tread to the bottom of the groove, or half the tread down to the wear bar), you may be ok.

That said, a set of 15" dedicated snow tires might not be a bad option for pure winter use. I think you'll find you can probably get a full set of 15" snows for about the cost of one 17" run flat tire.

 

If you think back when was the last flat tire you've had? I bet its been quite a while. You are smart to get all your ducks in a row on snow tires. I have no experience with those Pirelli's, but any real snow tire Will be great on your MINI. I've used Blizzak WS50's which were a great winter tire, along with Hakka 10's (now discontinued) & my current favorite Hakka 2's. The Hakka's will be going on my MINI in a 185/65/15 size. Your car is held on the road with 4 patches of rubber about the size of ones hands. Makes good tires seem all the more important doesn't it?

 

Yeah- the Pirelli Snow Controls are only $56 apeice at Tire Rack- I've not price shopped yet, but that seems pretty good. And I know that I'll just end up replacing all 4 run flats when I lose the first one, and just glancing at Tire Rack, I'm seeing prices from $100 to $240 A TIRE there... Holy smokes! All the more reason in my mind to run the cheap yet all-season tires in the cold months and save my performance wheels for the summer. And yes, I totally agree with you, Chuck... I'd hate to go skidding off the road.

 

That's a very good price for those tires. My guess is that the Hakka's may be close to twice that price. You are making me rethink my tire choice. Having a set for summer & winter is the way I've always done it. Makes the summer tires last that much longer.

Edit >> One more thing. Don't wait until the last minute to buy your snows. You may find they've sold out.

 

The overall diameter of the 15", 16", 17" and 18" wheels is approximately 24". The 15" wheels have the tallest sidewalls and the 18" have the shortest sidewalls.

More sidewall = smoother ride

I have been using a set of the 15" "hollies", that you pictured, ever since 2002 on my first MCS. I am still using the same wheels, now with, 185/65-15" Hakka2 snow tires (with studs). You should have no problems fitting the 15" wheels as long as you have the stock brakes and have not ungraded to a "big brake" kit.

Snow traction and general winter driving is improved by mounting NARROWER tires than what you would run in the summer. That is why I have chosen to run the 185/65-15 as opposed to the 195/55-16 that I run in the summer. The taller sidewalls also offer more protection from the dreaded, yet ever-present, winter pothole.

A winter tire needs much more tread depth to do it's job, so the Contis with half tread are only marginal as winter tires. I used this same tire as my first winter tire and they are better than the stock runflat preformance tires. My recommendation would be to get the wheels and then get the best dedicated winter tire that you can afford, Nokian Hakkapeliitta 2, Bridgestone Blizzak, Michelin X-Ice all being good choices.

With that being said, I have never driven any snow tires over the past 30 years of driving that offers the traction of the Nokian Hakkapeliitta 2 winter tires. When I ordered mine I made sure to get the factory studs. These things are awesome!!!! With them on my MCS it drives like a little tractor, just point and go. Ice or snow, no problems, mate.

As far as run-flat tires go. I am running runflat summer tires and conventional tires for the winter. I just carry a small 12VDC air compressor, a bottle of "Slime" and a simple tire plugging kit. So far, never had a problem with any of the conventional tires, but have had to plug 2 run-flat tires after having a puncture from a nail right in the middle of the tread area. As for whether or not to replace your runflats with conventional tires that is a very personal question.

How comfortable are you with the idea of having to "Slime" a tire in the middle of the night, in the rain, on a bad road, in a bad section of town? If that causes no reservation, then you could go with conventional tires. If that causes pause, then stay with runflats. They really are not as bad as some people make them out to be, and they offer excellant piece of mind. Although at a cost $$.

 

Well I've changed my mind back to the Hakka 2's.

Thanks Bilbo!

 

Right on, dude!

I haven't had this much fun driving in the winter since I had my old '65 VW beetle with some Firestone Town&Country bias ply snow tires (on the rear only) driving north thru the Birkshires in 6"s of fresh snow on my way to Stowe, VT for a little weekend R&R.

 

Hey Imago,

You definately want to go with either all-season or dedicated snow tires for use in the snow. I don't think it will make a difference whether you choose the 15" Holeys, that you posted, or even 16" X-lites, the standard MCS OEM wheel. Both will give you a softer ride than the 17's and both will cost less than the 17's. The 15" tires should be considerably less expensive!

I'm in the midwest, too, but since we don't get much snow here I opted for all-season Michelins. Dedicated snow tires have a soft rubber compound which I believe wears more quickly on dry pavement (ask Alex @ Tirerack to confirm that). With snow tires, your MINI will go anywhere. All season tires aren't as good in snow, but better than snow tires everywhere else.

 

Since I live in a part of town where they're fairly obsessed with clearing the roads (they've been known to start salting like 2 DAYS before a storm is due), I'm thinking that the Pirellis will do me just fine. We have a 4WD Suburban that I'll be driving in really bad conditions- I'm just looking for tires that will hold up to occasional bad weather and that will prolong the life of my performance run flats.

Plus, to be honest, I REALLY want a set of the "hollies". they are, to me, an archetypical "Mini" wheel, and I think the car will look great tooling around wearing them. Shallow, I know, but since there's no down side to doing so (THANK YOU Bilbo for your excellent write up) I figure why the heck not?

Dimini- I'll check w/ Tire Rack for the best price/performance mix and see if something else is better than the Pirellis, but to be honest at $59 even if they wear a bit faster, the all seasons will have to be pretty agressively proved to compete.