I'm just about to pull the trigger on a new set of shoes for Monty (my 2008 Clubbie S) and I was hoping to get some feedback from you guys about the yays and nays of tire choices.

Right now, I think I'm leaning toward a set of Conti ExtremeContact DWs in a 205-55/16 size. These are not runflats and I realize that they are a smidge wider and taller than the stock Conti RunFlats. Here is my reasoning on these, let me know what you think:

1) They are quite reasonably priced, TireRack wants $112 ea.

2) The wider tire should offer a modest traction increase.

3) Because the tire is slightly taller than stock (24.9 in. versus 24.4 in., and 831 revolutions per mile as opposed to the stock tires 844 revs per mile), this should result in a bit of speedo correction. Currently, my speedo displays about 5% too fast. IOW, 84 mph indicated is actually 80 mph. These taller tires should result in a 2% correction meaning that it will now display only 3% too fast.

4) These tires are also 3 lbs. lighter each. This is a significant weight savings and should result in quicker turn-in, better response over bumps and such, and quicker acceleration and braking. Additionally, since every 8lbs. of weight is the effective equivalent of adding 1 hp, this should result in an (effective) additional 1.5 hp. Every little bit helps, right?

4) Finally, because the additional tire height is coming from a taller sidewall, and this tire's sidewall is probably not nearly as stiff as the RunFlats, this should give me a bit more cushion and result in a slightly softer and smoother ride. That is something that I'd really like to have, the stock tires are a bit harsh, IMHO.

So, I'm looking for any feedback you guys can offer on this choice. I don't think that I will have any fitment/clearance issues, the tires are only 10 mm wider and .5" taller than stock. Is this okay?

Will the taller, softer sidewall result in mushy transitions and sloppy turn-in? I don't mind giving up a bit of the current tires' immediate response characterisics. But I sure don't want it to be too loose and sloppy.

Does anyone have direct experience with this exact tire? How was the handling vs. stock? How is the noise, vibration, and harshness vs. stock? It would be nice if these tires were a bit quieter than the stock RunFlats.

Waddayathink, fellows?

 

I went with the Continental ExtremeContact DWS 205/50/16 about a year ago and have had a good time.

I -think- that they're a little grippier but they definitely feel a little softer over bumps than the stock runflats.
As far as noise, didn't notice much of a change. Maybe someone else has though!

 

That size most def works - see my sig for the tire we picked.....

 

Thanks for the feedback on the fitment working, MCS, that's good to know. While I was away from this thread, I came across what looks to be a very good deal on some Kumho tires at TR: Ecsta LE Sport in 205-55/16 for $100/tire.

However, they come with a $100 rebate when you buy 4 tires, making the cost for 4 tires only $300, $75/tire. That seems to be a VERY good price on some pretty nice rubber. Now I'm torn between the better-performing Contis and the smokin' deal Kumhos. I really like the performance rating of the Contis, but I would save $148 buying the Kumhos. Decisions, decsions, decisions...

What would you guys do?

Kumhos:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....6ELE&tab=Sizes

Contis:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....ECDW&tab=Sizes

 

I did the exact same switch a few months ago from run flats to Conti
DWS (except mine are 17") Never regretted it and upsizing mostly fixed the speedo issue.

 

I have always found a better price for tires at discounttiredirect.com. Have purchased at least 6 sets of tires and have yet to find a better price then what they have offered. They have free shipping also. Your first choice, the Conti ExtremeContact DW were $4 more per tire, but free shipping so maybe a better deal depending on where you live.

 

Thanks for the heads-up on Discount Tires! I just found some Hankook Ventus V4 ES H105 in a 205-55/16 size for $86 ea. delivered. PLUS, if I order in the next week, they come with a $70 rebate, making each tire $68.50 *delivered*!! This is too good a deal to pass up - I just found my new tires, w00t!! 4 tires for $276 is an incredible deal, IMHO...

 

I too want to get a better tire (non runflat, too noisy) but I want to still have good performance. Thanks for starting this thread - I am curious, what about the Tire pressure monitor?

 

Since it was time to change the run-flats I read up the various comments on this site, concerning the results of using non-run flats. Well I must say you guys are right about less noise and a smoother ride. What can I say. It's makes the mini a much better car. Actually I think the run flats give the mini a bad reputation for being noisy and rough riding.

I went with the Hankook Ventus V12 in 205 55 16 size.

 

Is the TPM still working when you use non runflats?

 

Another vote for HanKooks Ventus. After seeing the good reports here and with a cost of $400 shipped plus $60 rebate= no brainer. Took them to the Dragon and they did well. And they are quiet.

 

Also you can walk into a Discount tire and they will match the online prices from their own or any online site. They pay for trade-in tires too... even the evil runflat rocks... even with miles on them. The runflats on the MINI had 2,600 miles on them when we traded them in for the Michelins in my sig. They even offered to pay trade-in for the 4 year old Toyo's on my truck, when I mentioned I would like Michelins but the darn Toyo's wear like iron.

I swear by Discount Tire now after some bad experiences with another large tire store. Plus our Discount tire shop uses nitrogen at no extra cost. They have a nitrogen air check dedicated station quick and free too.

I was having trouble getting my 2008 GMC truck TPMs to program, as you have to learn each tire seperately. They did it quick and free with their hand-held gizmo. Really like those TPMs since I can check tire pressures for each tire on the dash at any time, MINI should be like that.

Friday before Mother's Day was having Discount put Michelins on my kid's car we bought at TireRack a month prior to get the $70 Michelin rebate. Was thinking waiting for a few months to put them one, but the kid's front tires wore to the legal limit quicker than expected. We pulled into Discount on that Friday morning expecting to leave the kid's car, they put 4 guys on it, mount balance and all - we were back on the road in 15 minutes! When I balked at the cost of their road hazard, they threw-in the mount/balance for FREE! Got out of there with mount/balance and road hazard on tires they didn't even sell me for $101 including our redunkulous 10% Washington State tax.

 

Fill out your sig so we know what you drive. For the 2nd gen the TPM sensor is part on the valve stem and stays with each wheel with whatever tire you rock.

 

I pretty much made the decision to go with non-RunFlats after driving a loaner Justa when I had some work done recently. Being a Justa, this car had the less-powerful motor and the standard suspension. I think the tires were 175-65/15.

Anyway, while the car did exhibit some understeer and a bit of body roll, I can tell you for sure that it hung on thru the turns *tenaciously*. And, no matter how hard I stuffed it into the turns, it absolutely refused to give up and I was unable to make the tires squeal at all. And the ride was great!! It was *very* smooth and quiet, a MUCH better highway car than mine.

So, I'm thinking that the Hankooks, being 10 mm wider, will provide me with even more traction, body roll should be a non-issue since my car has the sport suspension, and they *should* have a little quicker turn-in than the rental car's tires due to the Hankooks 50 aspect ratio. I'm also guessing that they'll be quite a bit quieter than my current Conti RunFlats on the highway.

Another small bonus is that the Hankooks need fewer rotations to traverse a mile. This means that the 5% speedo error (75 mph indicated is actually 70 mph) should be reduced a bit, too.

What's not to love?!!

 

TPMS works fine on non-run flats. I am probably going against the grain but my new Michelin Pilot Exalto AS tires are very nice to ride around on. My back is thanking me each evening!

 

Nothing to apologize for buying Michelins! Pilot Exalto AS is the same tire I put on my kid's Mazda in the OEM size 195/50-16 at the last visit to Discount Tire described above.

Another thing that adds to the "Cadillac ride" in a Justa are the thicker seats. Couldn't believe how nice a Justa rode when we had a loaner for 2 days and still had the run flats on our S.

 

I run the continental Extremecontact DW's on both my M5 and the MINI. It is a great tire, and is currently getting top reviews in it's class. I personally would spend the extra bucks on this tire over the cheap chinese/korean stuff.

In the last 2.5 years, I have ordered 9 sets of tires(that's higher than average!) never choosing the same tire twice. This is the first set of tires I have ordered twice, they are great tires for street driving! When my wife takes the MINI out on track for a HPDE, I'm sure the DW's will work just fine for her too.

M5:



MINI:

 

fwiw, I have the exact size Conti DW tires in the first post. Been happy with them so far. Good grip wet and dry. Currently at 20k miles on them. Will be rotating them this weekend and when I take my tread measurements I'll get an idea of how much life they have left. Just eyeballing, I can tell I really went through the ones on the front while at MOTD.

As noted, the upsize will give some extra cushion and correct some speedo error.

I have found the additional grip of a summer tire offsets the additional sidewall flex of the AS RFs that came on my MINI.

 

I went with the firestone Indy 500 Wide Ovals in 205/55 R16's after reading widespread good reviews on tire rack.

Observations so far:

- MUCH much quieter (one of my major gripes about the run flats)
- a bit less grip perhaps but I haven't really put them through their paces yet
- mpg is down. This makes sense as they're a larger tire but I hadnt really thought this bit through when I made the purchase.

I guess I'll just have to start logging from now and compare throughout the life of the tires.

Cost-wise they were $480 mounted at the Firestone tire place. I was going to go the discount tire route but it worked out at $20 more without the hassle of carting tires and the advantage of a better (albeit still small) warranty.

 

Have to agree with Conti DW's also. Have several thousand miles on them and like them a lot.

 

Woo hoo!! Monty has a new set of shoes! I just got back from the local Goodyear store from having Monty's new shoes mounted. They did a great job and I was lucky enough to be the 1st car in today so they took me right away.

I purchased a set of Hankook Ventus V12 Evo K110 (that's a friggin mouthful, isn't it?) in size 205/55-ZR16 from TireRack. BIG shoutout to TireRack - their price was very good ($71 - incl. rebate - + $13.50 shipping ea.) and they got 'em to me in 1 day. That's right, 1 day!! I couldn't believe it when I saw the UPS link on my online Invoice. But, sure enough, the nice man in the brown van dropped 'em off last night. VERY cool!

Goodyear charged me ~$150 to mount/bal., etc. I asked them to pump 37 psi into 'em and also to wash the insiide of the wheels. They dutifully complied and I'm a happy boy.

So, how do they perfom, Richard? I'm glad you asked! They're pretty darn good with mostly pluses and some minuses:

The Pluses:
========
1) MUCH quieter than the Conti RunFlats

2) Much smoother ride than the Contis

3) Speedo error is almost gone. These tires are 1/2 inch taller than the stock 195/55-16 Contis.

4) Highway ride is outstanding. These tires are also 2 lbs. lighter than the Contis so the suspension can work faster and turn-in is pretty quick.

5) The absolute grip is definitely higher than the Contis in dry conditions. I don't know about wet, no rain today. However, looking at the tread pattern they appear to be able to move gobs of water.

6) They look WAY cooler than the Contis. Look 'em up on TR and see what I mean.

The Minuses:
==========
1) There is a slight amount of sidewall flex that causes the car to feel like the rears are slightly "behind" the fronts when making sudden lane to lane moves. And there is a small amount of "overshoot" requiring you to correct for slightly. The Contis felt like they both responded simultaneously, and I really liked that trait.

But the Contis rode like bricks compared to the Hankooks. Hitting Botts dots when changing lanes caused a noticeable thwack which was transmitted up into the suspension and the steering wheel. You still feel the dots with the Hankooks, but it's more like "Oh, did we just roll over a hiway dot?"

If I was going to AutoX the car, the Contis would definitely be my choice. But I won't and the Hankooks, while giving up a bit of the immediacy of the Contis, are *much* better tires all-around. And I've encountered this before when switching tires. After a week or so the Hankooks will feel quite normal and I will automatically correct the overshoot without thinking about it.

One final note: I am now 6-0 versus the So. Florida cops in the past year. I have been pulled over 6 times and never gotten a ticket. My 6th time was 10 minutes after leaving the Goodyear store. Here's my story amd I'm sticking with it...

I rolled onto 95 heading North to get a feel for the tires on the hiway at, ummm, "elevated" speeds. So, I'm rolling along doing a bit of lane weaving and also checking my speedo readout versus the GPS's. BTW, my 5 mph optimistic reading at 80 mph (80 mph indicated is actually 75 mph) is now down to 2 mph optimistic - 80 mph indicated is actually 78 mph. That's what a taller tire will do for you.

Anyway, I'm cruising along in the right lane and overtaking a van in my lane and a semi next to me. The van starts to slow so I kick down a gear - LOVE those paddle shifters!! - and I squeeeeeeeeze in between the van and the semi. I had at least a foot of clearance fore and aft. Piece of pie, easy as cake, no? Still, pretty effin' close. But I've been doing stuff like this all my driving life and have never tagged another vehicle.

However, the un-marked State Trooper back a few cars was none too pleased with my lane changing shenanigans. I'm checking my GPS when all of a sudden he lights me up. Ruh roh!! I immediately put on my turn signal and begin braking so I can pull over. I did NOT brake very hard. The Trooper damn near rear-ends me and he comes to a sliding stop behind me on the shoulder.

He gets out of his car and marches up to the passenger window. He's not very happy, is he? I roll it down:

"Good morning , sir!"

" Do you know I just about rammed you because you slammed on your brakes?!"

"I'm terribly sorry, sir, I just had these new tires installed (motion to my receipt from Goodyear) and I guess I didn't realize just how grippy the new tires are. I'm terribly sorry, sir." He has NO IDEA how MUCH faster I could have braked. The new tires have *enormous* grip and I'm betting my stopping distance is 10% better than what I had with the Contis.

"And did you know you were doing 85 in a 65? That's about a $400 ticket! And if I saw a construction worker here that doubles!!"

Gulp. "I'm truly sorry, sir. I admit I was not paying the closest attention to my speed. I was trying to see something on my GPS (quickly changing the 124 mph Max. Speed being displayed, heh, heh) and I must have let my right foot get the better of me."

"Well, if I had hit you I would have charged you with speeding, improper lane change, and reckless driving!"

"I'm truly sorry sir, you are completely right. I should have been paying more attention."

"I'm not gonna write you up " YES! "But you better slow it down out here. If I see you again doing what you did, I'm gonna haul you off to jail."

"Eat me, copper."

I actually didn't say this, but I was thinking it...

BTW, Monty already told me he LOVES his new shoes. He feels like he just got a cool new pair of PF Flyers - run faster, jump higher. Remember?

 

I've got the same tire, but in 215/45-ZR17 on my S. Just got back from a 5K run (Rockies, Wasatch & Bear Tooth Mtns) in some awful weather. Everything but ice. Not once did they exhibit the dreaded "super power steering" effect when hitting puddles at speed and did very well on snow, too. Best year round tire I've ever had and will gladly buy another set!

 

Update on the Hankook Ventus: I've now had the tires for a few days and several hundred miles. They continue to impress me with their very quiet and smooth ride - MUCH better than the stock Conti RunFlats.

I am becoming more used to their handling characteristics versus the Contis. They do not have quite the "immediacy" of the Contis. But their overall grip seems to be a bit higher.

I bought a new tire pressure gauge yesterday and discovered that the Goodyear folks screwed up a bit when inflating mine. I asked for 37 psi all around. When I checked mine, I found 40 psi on the two left tires and 37 psi on the two right tires. There were 2 guys working on the car and I'm betting one guy did the right side while the other did the left.

Since I felt that the tires might benefit from slightly higher pressures (firm up the sidewall a bit), I put them at 40 psi all-around. The car is riding quite nicely now and I am becoming more and more familiar with the different handling characterisitcs (vs the Contis) and am adjusting my driving style to suit.

I think I made a pretty wise choice and I'm quite satisfied with the Hankooks. I'm really itching for rainy day so I can get a handle on their wet-road capabilities.

Additionally - the Hankooks look MUCH more bad-a$$ than the Contis. I really dig the tread pattern, they LOOK like serious rubber. Plus, being 1/2 inch taller and almost 1/2 inch wider, they fill out the wheelwells a little bit better than the Contis.

Finally, I have noticed that I am now seeing 88 mph indicated at 3,000 rpm. This is on a Clubman S Auto. I seem to recall that with the Contis I was seeing 85 mph indicated at 3,000 rpm. Can anyone out there confirm this for me? It seems reasonable since the Hankooks are a bit taller. If anyone has a Clubbie S Auto. with the Contis, please tell me what your indicated speed is at 3,000 rpm...

Best Wishes,

 

So I have been looking at these Hankook evos as well. Given the Tirerack price and rebate it is a pretty awesome deal. However, the size of 205/55/16 isn't recommended by TR. They are suggesting 205/50/16 would be better. Don't know why. I emailed them back for more details, but in the meantime can someone educate me?

I have a stock 2005 R50. Using 16x7" kosei wheels with a 38mm offset.

Does the 205/55 not fit? rub? ride like crap? compared to the 205/50?

Thanks.

 

I imagine that TR is giving that recommendation because it comes closest to the stock tire's diameter. However, I wanted the extra cushioning, quieter ride, and speedometer re-calibration that a 55 aspect ratio would provide.

I'm betting that either tire would work well on your wheels, you just have to decide if you want the properties that a larger diameter tire would provide. FYI, my tires are nowhere near rubbing, but I'm using a stock S-Winder wheel...