I just got my 2009 Cooper S. The OEM Dunlop Run Flats (205/45/17) are really noisy. I also live in Florida (always hot) any recommendations for new tires?

 

get away from the run flats. I love my new Falken 452's

 

so there are lots of choices. What do you want out of the tire? Better traction? Better MPGs? Longer life? What kind of driving do you do? Freeway/commute or "sporty" or trackwork? Without answers to these questions, there's really no way to answer....

Matt

 

Toyo T1R 215-45/17 good tire and great price

 

Where in Florida are you from? General Exclaims are one of the best bang for buck from what I've read/heard.

 

What is so bad about the run flats? Sure the ride is a touch stiffer,but don't notice any handling issues.

 

It's wife-proof.

After three flats in a month on new non-runflats...I switched back to runflats...

New non-runflat tire and two repairs, three visits to the tire store, performance handling issues, and a stress level $200...

Changed to Run-flats, no performance worries, no visits to the tire store, not taking three days off, and no stress level...priceless

 

When we got the car they came with the RF tires and we could have exchanged them at that time. Our first long Mini trip up to New York Wine Country and the Glenn then up to Niagara Falls was such a pleasant trip, that could have been ruined when we got the dreaded RF alarm, it was east of Niagara Falls Canada out in the middle of nowhere. We found a location that fixed the tire with an internal patch, we had picked up a long but skinny nail, ala finishing style, and we were on our way. Mini has since checked the tire and could find no reason to replace it, which was fine with us, and the warranty is still in place.
Of course never having had "performance tires" on this Mini I can't compare, but the tires hold the road very nicely, and even at very illegal speeds they handle quite well

 

I dumped the RFTs.. hated them.. Went for the BFG g-force T/A KDW.. they're pretty good with aggressive looks.. but for comfort and grip, nothing beats the Michelin PS2s..

 

i'm sure i'll eat my words when i get a flat however...

i'd look at the good all seasons at tirerack. the bridgestone potenza g 109 grid or the michelin pilot sport as+..the bridgestone is a deal at 103 and the michelin is nearly the price of the run flat.

as far as what to do with no spare...carry and extra wheel or some kind of repair kit...the reality is almost all flats are slow and when the tpms lights up you'll have enough time to go directly to a tire shop.

 

I have Yokohama S-Drives - I did a lot of reading on Tire Rack's site before I chose them. Reviews, tests, etc... I wanted a good balance of performance, ride quality and low noise. These seemed to be the ones. I live in Miami - I am not disappointed. Especially wet traction (now that we're going into summer and hurricane season) They're about 140 each - but worth every penny.

 

Dunlop Direzza sport Z1 Star Spec 235-40-17. Very grippy and quiet compaired to RFT. They have a very stiff sidewall so you don't change the way the care handles compared to a very soft side wall tire.

 

I have been using Toyo Proxex 4 for several sets but have just installed Nitto NeoGen ZR and they are great. Outstanding for $92 and handle great:
http://www.discounttiredirect.com/di...n=NT+NeoGen+ZR

 

Switch to non-runflat performance tires and you'll answer your own question.

 

JENGLAND, I am interested in learning more about your setup. First of all, what are the width and the offset of the wheel that you put your 235-40-17 tire on? I see you are using spacers. Did you have to do any trimming of the fender liners to avoid rubbing? Finally, have you changed your alignment to take full advantage of wider tire width?

 

AGREED AGREED AGREED AGREED!!!! the PS2s are a highly chosen tire choice for my friend who has an extremely modified E46 M3... i have a set of them and i have absolutely no problems with them at all... they work like a charm, grip like a clingy gf that calls every two minutes, predictable at the limit, warm up very nicely, and considering i'm in florida right now driving my uncle's CTS-V which has PS2s on , i know theyre a great tire to choose... obviously whatever u choose will probably be good, but i love the PS2s...

 

If I go with the Nitto Neogens, I'll need the VR not the ZR due to my 16" tire size. I'm assuming the qualities are the same with the two tires????? Ony $83 at Discount Tire!

 

I have bought three set of Toyo T1R in the past, for my e39M5, E46M3 and the current MCS. They are light and quiet which i like for daily driving

 

UZUN,
sorry for the delay,
I am running Konig 17"x7" et 40 like all of their wheels for our cars. I am not using spacers anymore, they were for the factory wheels. The rears rubbed in the beginning but they pretty much grind to fit after a while and i no longer hear them anymore. This is a big advantage for the Mini with plastic fenders.
I have not realigned the car. I did lower the car and put it on the alignment rack but found that the numbers where still in spec so i left it alone. The rear is running right at -2% camber so i know i can't go anymore positive or i will get more rubbing from the fenders. I took it to the track for the first time this weekend with this tire set up and hand some rubbing under hard cornering but it doesn't hurt anything. I was handing with Caymans with Hoosiers, it was a blast.

 

+1 Also decide tires and rims separately as cause you might have to buy them from 2 different places

 

Currently running 215/45 17 Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 Star Spec, and loving them, and great price for an Extreme performance summer. Reviews on TR are excellent as well.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....t+Z1+Star+Spec

 

Just had my tires rotated at Discount Tire and asked about a number of options to get out of my RFs. I mentioned a number of tires discussed here. The salesman could have suggested much more expensive tires, but his personal recommendation was the Yoko S-Drives. He had test driven many different tires on a track at a demo day for the salesmen. He loved the S-Drives.

I think my size 205/50/16 are only $116 at Discount Tire, cheaper at Tire Rack (including shipping).

 

when I picked up my Yoko Parada Spec V's in October, they were $96 each on tire rack and the S-Drives were $90 each (P205-45-R17 size). I also highly recommend both of these tires for fantastic performance all around at a very reasonable price... but maybe the price went up a bit since then...

The Paradas are a little grippier and transmit a little more road noise. The S-Drives are recommended for most daily street driver applications though.

 

I wouldn't say priceless.. I'd say more like $300-$400 per tire.

 

^exactly. cost of a repaired tire? 20-30 bucks. Cost of a new runflat (since you can't repair them) 200+

i carry one of these to get me to a tire shop: http://www.sportsimportsltd.com/cotiemaircof.html Granted, you'll have to pull over and do some work yourself, but a 30 dollar fix for a nail is much better then a 200 dollar fix.

I'm loving my dunlop SP sportmaxx.