Looking for new tires for my '04 MCS MC40 - track, rallye and street car, low use. What would you recommend? no snow to deal with but heat & rain common.

any recommendations are welcome! Have not been in the mini forums lately and about to order Pilot SS for my RS4, which gets used much more and is tracked as well. Michelins seem not to compete in this market from what I see..

jmirandes
san juan, PR

 

Depending on what you are looking to do, I would look at:

Yokohama Advan AD08
Dunlop Direzza Z1 Star Spec
Falken Azenis RT-615K

I know from experience that the Dunlop and Advan are superb wet and dry handlers. Falken, I have heard mixed reviews. All of them are great summer tires that provide excellent feedback and tons of grip.

 

Bridgestone Re11 is also worth considering.

Alex

 

Had the Falken Rt615, but the previous generation, on a VW R32.
No track days, but several autocross events.
Got ~16,000 miles on the tires before they were done.
We get a fair amount of rain here, too.
I backed off a bit and concentrated on being smoother when it was wet out and did not have any issues.
As Alex wrote, might want to consider the Re11. I have heard good things too.

 

I like the Dunlops Z1 Star Specs in 215/45 17. Good value for the money. I use them primarily as a wet tire now.

My track buddies do run the Yokos and Bridgestones and like them. Definately less dry chunking issues on the track with those.

 

I like the Conni DW's over the star specs and they will last a longer.

 

On the track? for AutoX?

 

I use the car as a second car and track it often during the year with club events and take it to sunday rallyes on pubic streets..I'm looking for a high grip tire on dry that also provides good wet traction.

 

Hankook Ventus V12 Evo's! In the 2009 Car and Driver summer tire test they placed 2nd. They're very predictable. Very sticky. Quiet. And they work remarkably well in the rain. I've spent 3 day weekends with some friends on driving trips on some of the best roads in Northern California and they've performed flawlessly. Love them.

My Mini is an '06 cabriolet with every possible JCW option. Wheels are 18" JCW's and I'm runninng 215/40-18's. Also, the local shop where I have my Mini worked on is recommending the Hankooks as well. They sponser track days and specialize in modifying high end cars like BMW, Porsche, Ferrari, etc. They've also raced BMW's, Porsches, and Minis. Hope that helps.

 

Thanks!...I read that C&D article to and I believe that's the way i"m going considering performance and cost.

 

How much money are we talking? I bought a set of Nitto NeoGens for $380 shipped from DiscountTireDirect.com. Pretty good compromise between price and performance :D

 

For good price and ultimate dry grip AND very good wet grip, the Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 Star Specs are the way to go.

 

I'm running the Nitto NT05 in 235/40-17. One of their newer street/track tires. So far I've been very impressed.

 

Limited sizes last time I seen them, no R53 friendly sizes. GRM did not test them cause no 15 inch tires. R56 owners are lucky cause they can fit 235/40-17, 235/40-18 and even wider from what I hear.
I wish Hankook RS3, Dunlop Star Specs or Kumho XS came in 225/40-17 for R53s. Maybe a petition drive to Dunlop

 

I recently purchased a mini R52S that came with the Hankook V12's and I'm impressed with them, especially their wet/cold weather characteristics. In the past my summer tires were down right dangerous in anything below 40 but these are quite good this cold.

In the past I had Falken RT-615's on my miata and loved them as a good all around tire. Street and track they were fantastic plus excellent in the rain. Biggest downside on the miata is they are heavy and barely any power on my old 91. I then had the Star Specs on my Honda S2000 and they as well were an outstanding tire. A bit pricey but greatly helped my S2000 with it's oversteer and kept the rear end planted when I wanted it planted. I did not drive it much in the rain so I have no idea but a VERY scary tire at temps close or less than 40 degrees. Not much of an issue though in PR.

 

They got 1st place in that Car and Driver tire test. I'd have chosen them but unfortunately, the smallest width in the 18" size is a 225 and I didn't want to go that large and risk that they wouldn't fit. Fortunately, the 2nd place Hankooks come in a 215/40-18 so I went with them. As it turns out, it's a fantastic tire.

 

True, the NT05s are fairly size limited. In fact the start out at 235/40-17 and only get larger from there. I may go back to 215/45-17 after these wear out and as much as I'm liking the NT05s so far they don't come that small.

I'd really like to see more tires in the 225/40-17 size as well. I'm surprised it's so rare, especially these days with so many performance type cars getting smaller.

 

I just went with the Bridgestone Potenzas RE 760 Sports. Great treadlife, grip and performance in H20. I seem to remember setting aside some of the tires mentioned above mainly due to the treadlife differences. This tire seemed to have the best of both worlds.

I had Falkens before these and ditched them a little early - way noisy.