Looking to buy a new set of tires. What does everyone recommend for a 2008 Clubman S?

 

Check the tire and wheel section of the forums. What are you looking for in your next set of tires? What climate will they be for? How spirited do you drive? Expected life out of them? Price?

Nothing about tires will change for the clubman vs the hardtop or convertible.

I know my next set will be Michelin Pilot Super Sport summer tires.

 

I'm located in Lancaster, CA and just need for daily driving. Not looking to pay much, and wondering if I should even look into the run flats?

 

go to tirerack.com

click on "shop by vehicle"

follow the prompts to select your car and current tire/wheel size

you will get a listing of all the tires they sell that fit your car

they range from very sticky/short lived tires to less sticky/longer lived tires to much less sticky/very long lasting tires

read the reviews

you could also call tirerack and speak with Alex, he has been very helpful and knows minis


Alex Mouroulis | Sales Specialist
__________________________________________________ ________

Tire Rack
7101 Vorden Parkway
South Bend, IN 46628
O: 888 428 8355 ext. 4294
O: 574 287 2345 ext. 4294
F: 574 236 7707
Alex@tirerack.com
scott

 

+1 for talking to Alex. I called and emailed him a few different time when choosing my tires last time. He is super helpful and knowledgeable.

 

I've got a set of Continental DWS's on order for my 08 Clubman. Only problem is that I wanted the 215/45-17 size and they are on back-order all across the US.

 

Still waiting for a reply from Alex, but found some nice Pirelli P zero run flats. 130 each

 

TireRack's been good to me, I've bought more than a few sets of tires from them. I ordered from them, drop shipped to the house, bagged them up and MINI put them on without charging an arm and a leg.

You might want to check your speedo against a GPS before buying tires (if an accurate speedo is important) - mine is 3mph off at 65mph (showing 68 at 65) with the stock size tire. Mine are 15's (non-S) and 175/65/15 - never again - I'll be looking for a larger size even for the winter/mpg use these are supposed to be. I asked MINI, and the speedo cannot be calibrated like some can, I was told the question comes up fairly often.

 

Yes Tire Rack is great, always ordered from there with no issues.

 

here is my example of tire size changing the speedo error built into minis

using an aviation grade GPS, accurate to 1/10 MPH

stock OEM summer tires: 225/45-18, 25.9" OD, speedo reads 1.9 MPH over actual speed from 20 MPH to 100 MPH

winter tires: 205/70-16, 27.3" OD, speedo reads .6 MPH under actual speed from 20 MPH to 100 MPH

my summers are more than half gone, my next set of summers will be 225/50-18, 26.9" OD

i will post my speedo error next summer

scott

 

I canceled my Continential's (because of the backorder on them) and planning on ordering a set of Bridgestone RE970's from Costco in the same 215/45-17 size.

 

Good luck with Costco. I called once and they said since I was not putting an OEM size on (215 not 205) they would need a phone call or letter from my MINI dealer stating it was ok.

The second time I tried calling and asking about the size thing (8 months later than the first time I called) they said the size was no big deal but since I wasn't buying runflats I would need to have a spare in the car. I explained how it was not a requirement by any law to have a spare and I even carry a kit to plug and inflate a down tire but he still said no go...the car gets runflats or it comes in with a spare in it.

 

I have used Kumho's with absolutely no issues. While inexpensive, they hold up well and perform well too. I have bought them in 15 inch and 17 inch. And, I have purchased them from Tire Rack.

 

At least they are consistent. They said about the same to me as well.

 

Try discounttire.direct. They will mail the tires to you home and give you a list of places who will install them and the price. I purchased 4 tires from then and took them to NTB to have them mounted and balanced. It worked great for me.

When I got to NTB there was a little confusion on what they going to charge to put them on but I showed them a copy of the prices listed on the Discounttire web page which had their name and number on it and they honored the price.

 

CostCo isn't famous for doing good work - I'd buy the tires there and carry them out. One story, they overtightened the wheels on my grandma's 2000 Mbz C230 years ago - warped all 4 rotors - rebalanced the tires and shrugged on the return.

My mom was driving the car and didn't think the shimmy was "that bad" - end result? A new steering assembly (tie rod end to tie rod end - only available complete - typical mbz), new front wheel bearings, and the driveshaft isolator - after about 10k miles on the wobbly rotors - oh yeah - and a completely new set of rotors, pads, etc. Great deal, right?

All because I was visiting them at the time, and drove the thing to the store - I was in awe - felt like a 40k mile Benz had been through a high speed chase and back! Only $2,200 in repairs :-) what a deal. Oh, and btw - they had no problem installing the wrong size tire, as they didn't have the right size.

Another note: I don't know about where you live, but where we live the Continental "warranty" is worthless. The replacement (OEM) tires for that C230 were Continentals and drove like hell. When I remarked that 2.5 ounces of weight was a problem for a 15" car tire, they acted like I was from space. I finally had them "adjusted out" (at a shop that didn't act like I was from space, although 45 minutes away) for some Bridgestones.

Michelin is also infamous for "warranty issues" - they would only credit towards Michelin tires....... arrrrrgh!

I'm a firm believer in great tires, and I prefer them to be made in the US. That said, I check the specs before buying tires these days. Firestone/ Bridgestone - not usually a problem, Michelin - pricey and rarely worth it, Falken - never had a bad tire, Yokohama - had good and bad, BF Goodrich - good and bad, Good(for a)Year - never again.

We bought a 2000 Turbo Beetle that came with GoodYears, and traction control made 1st gear useless. Switched to Dunlops and it was an instant race car.

TireRack reviews are priceless, and be sure to search by the vehicle. The same tire on a MINI or a Mini Van is a LARGE difference.