Had my 2018 JCW in a week or so ago for its 20K mile service. Noticed front tires were kind of worn. (I found the sport mode button and front tire spin if one is not judicious with throttle application can be a real problem. And I admit I was not that judicious with the throttle.)

As part of the service -- which BTW included a brake and clutch hydraulic system fluid flush/bleed -- I meant to ask to have the tires rotated but forgot.

But the other day I had a chance to look closer at the front tires and noticed the tread was nearly worn down to the wear bars.

Rather than have the tires rotated -- which puts the "worn" tires at the back of the car which in my experience means the tires are more likely to get a puncture -- I decided to just have the front tires replaced.

Entering the rainy season here in northern CA -- comes right after the fires/black out season -- and wanted good tires for driving the car in the rain, so had this done yesterday.

Two Pirelli Cinturanto 18" tires at $184.71 each. Same tires as on the rear and the same tires the car came with from the factory. Run flats.

Two TPMS REDI 70 "service kits" at $10.28 each.

$50 for mounting/balancing.

With tax out the door cost was $476.05.

(Two rear tires on my Hellcat cost just over $600. And I don't like to recall how much the at least rear tires for my Porsche Turbo cost.)

Took the car out for a nice spin after and the tires are nicely balanced and much quieter. Bring on the rain!

In the meantime all I have to do is put some tape over that damn sport mode switch.

 

It is worth the money to install a Wavetrac LSD...not cheap by any means...the difference in performance and safety is phenomenal. The LSD is basically just under $1100 and the install is not a simple or short process...but the result is worth every penny.

 

Pirelli P Zero non-runflats. Got 20,000 miles on first set. Rear seat delete and carry a spare. Rotate every 5,000 when change oil.

 

Not sure an LSD would help.

Tire wear from side to side appeared to be even. I wonder does the JCW implement some kind of "LSD" via application of the front wheel brakes?

The rear brakes can be individually applied for stability control. I had to have the rear brakes replaced a while back because the rear brake with the wear sensor -- the driver side rear brake -- turned on the brake warning and sure enough the pad with the sensor was worn down to the sensor.

After new rear brakes fitted I started paying attention to the stability control active symbol -- which required some extra effort as it is mostly hidden by the steering wheel and my hands on the wheel -- and even under rather mild cornering was flashing like crazy indicating at least one rear brake -- the driver side I'm sure -- was being applied.

At any rate I'll do a bit of research on the Wavetrac LSD. It might be worth it.

 

Got 20K miles from the Pirelli run flats. Would have gotten more had I left the car in mid mode vs. switched it to sport mode.

At 10K mile service the tires were rotated but both front and rear tires had the same amount of wear. But from 10K miles to 20K miles with sport mode active -- but not all that often -- the front tires really wore down.

What "tool kit" and jack do you carry for use in changing a flat tire?

 

Sorry, got 30,000 with rotation every 5,000 (oil change) and a good all season tire. I programmed sport mode on always as well. Before I went with rear seat delete, I did the mini spare. After the delete, went with full spare (older Pirelli) and strapped it down (I'll do photo if you want). The mini spare is OK, but will not fit the front because of the brake clearance. You have to switch the back to the front first if the front is bad. I shopped around and did it all for under $200. I would sell the mini spare but shipping would be more than other sources.

 

If I decide to move away from run flats at some point I'll probably do the full sized spare. My VW Golf TDi had a full sized spare and it was an anxiety free car to take on the road because of the full sized spare. With my other cars, both Porsche cars, with just a space saver spare tire and staggered tires and rather exotic tires -- in size and spec -- I had a cloud hanging over me all the time I was on the road.

What jack and tool kit do you carry? For a tool kit I guess I could just carry my 1/2" Craftsman torque wrench with a socket of the proper size. But I wonder what jack to use? I have a spare Porsche scissor jack but it "fits" the Porsche lifting point and probably won't fit with the JCW lifting point.

 

RockC,
The Mini jack is a simple scissor and a wheel chock. Outmotoring has the jack kit (OEM) for 239.95. It is the same kit for the early f56 justa cooper. Other suppliers carry them too. May want to check lug size. I carry an adapter for my wheels. Detroit tuned has the 5 lug spare for 118.

 

The WaveTrac basically removes the "firing" of the ELSD and save your brakes...it also changes your car's behavior 10 fold. If I bought a new Mini right now...The WaveTrac would
be my first mod...

When installing with new bearings it is a good idea to oven heat up the bearing/bearing cages so they expand just a bit. makes them press/slide on much easier and doesn't risk hurting the bearing cages...