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very little clearance between my calipers and my wheels
Got my exhaust and springs installed today and discovered how little clearance there is between the front caliper and my wheels when the car was up on the rack. I was actually quite surprised and it made me a little uneasy. Shop assured me that it is not an issue but I think I may go with 18's when it comes time to replace my tires. AWE Touring Driver side Passenger side
Those are both metal parts that are fixed to one another. Wherever one moves so does the other so you will never need to worry about them being in contact with each other. My car has the same amount of clearance and never once had an issue in the past 3 years which has included racing it.
Buying new wheels is always fun and exciting! If you want a new look, go for it. 17” wheels are what MINI designed for it, so they will be fine.(Heck, my 2005 MINI non-S came with 15” wheels! Lol). Be prepared to pay more money for 18” wheels and then more money for 18” tires and the ride will be stiffer too(even shorter sidewall). Just do your research and enjoy the ride.
Your shop is correct. Not an issue. Don’t sweat the small stuff. You’ll be fine.
Originally Posted by hadjiikong
Those are both metal parts that are fixed to one another. Wherever one moves so does the other so you will never need to worry about them being in contact with each other. My car has the same amount of clearance and never once had an issue in the past 3 years which has included racing it.
Originally Posted by elsnaibs
The Team Dynamics Pro Race 1.2 wheels I got are very close to the caliper, and they actually have more clearance than my OEM wheels.
It's nothing to be concerned about, even the OEM wheels are super close to the calipers.
Thanks for the reassurance. I have been driving around with my windows down and hoping to not heatrscraping sounds all day yesterday lol.
Buying new wheels is always fun and exciting! If you want a new look, go for it. 17” wheels are what MINI designed for it, so they will be fine.(Heck, my 2005 MINI non-S came with 15” wheels! Lol). Be prepared to pay more money for 18” wheels and then more money for 18” tires and the ride will be stiffer too(even shorter sidewall). Just do your research and enjoy the ride.
The stiff ride was a major factor when I decided to stay with 17's. I changed to Michelin PSS tires and it helped a lot but still pretty stiff.
The stiff ride was a major factor when I decided to stay with 17's. I changed to Michelin PSS tires and it helped a lot but still pretty stiff.
On my daily wheels/tires (Sparco Podio 17x7.5 +45, MPSS 215/45 r17), I went with a 215 to add a bit more meat from the stock 205's, and it made the ride a bit nicer.
On my daily wheels/tires (Sparco Podio 17x7.5 +45, MPSS 215/45 r17), I went with a 215 to add a bit more meat from the stock 205's, and it made the ride a bit nicer.
100% agree, that is the MPSS size I'm running also
