Hi All:

Question for everyone out there, do you have any recommendations for all season replacement tires (non-runflat) for OEM Countryman 17'' wheels?

TireRack doesn't seem to show much of anything in the All Season range of tire choices that will fit.

I purchased our 2012 Countryman S All4 with 17'' wheels thinking the ride would be better but it never occurred to me that the choice in replacement tires would be worse than for 18''. We are looking to purchase replacement tires in the next 2-3 months and can't wait to dump the runflats.

Thanks in advance for your input!
Mike

 

check out the michelin defender in size 215/55R17, $144 each @ tirerack with a 90,000 mile treadwear warranty

probably not the stickiest tire out there, but probably the best bang for the money

i have always had good luck with michelins and will be installing 225/50R18 michelin pilot supersports when the oem tires wear out

scott

 

i replaced my RF within 500 miles for ownership with Continental ExtremeContact DWS 225/50ZR17

this is one of the most highly rate all season tires on tirerack.com

 

Continental DWS all the way. They are quiet and smooth. They handle well. Check out TireRacks arctic test
http://www.tirerack.com/videos/index...=48&tab=winter

 

The Conti DWS is what I use for winter. Excellent, highly recommended.

 

I really like the Michelin Primacy MXM4. I had them on my GTI and I thought they were the best riding tires I've owned. You would need to go to a 225/50/17, but your speedo would still be accurate. There's a lot more selection in that size, too. The Conti DWS seems to be good in the snow. I think the Primacy is hard to beat for a smooth ride / grand touring style tire. Wet traction is also really good with this tire.

 

Scott, thanks for the feedback. Re: Super Sports, I have those on my 2009 factory JCW car....unreal...the road noise is virtually gone and the ride is very good. They are also incredibly sticky...they are basically just challenging you to try and make em slip...in my experience my nerves have given out before the tires have on hard corners...

 

Thanks to everyone else who has provided recommendations. DWS looks like the way to go at only $139 each.

So nobody has had any problems going 225/50/ZR17 with Speedo? Odometer? Traction control? etc. They also offer a 205/50 and 215/50...wasn't sure if these would be better/worse or the same.

Thanks again!

best,
Mike

 

I would get the standard size for your car. Anything else will not feel right from a handling perspective. Been there done that don't make the same mistake I did.

 

Here's a useful calculator for comparing tire sizes:

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

The 225/50/17 is virtually identical to the stock in every dimension except for ~3/4" more width, so your speedo will be accurate. I'm not running this size yet, but it seems like a lot of CM folks are, and I don't recall anyone indicating it messed up the handling. You could also reach out to Alex at Tire Rack (alex@tirerack.com). He's the official NAM TireRack dude, and he is extremely helpful.

 

It's not that it necessarily messes it up but it feels different. Not as precise may be better way to put it.

 

The stock size really has limited choices. It's almost as if it was designed to enrich the dealers. There are a number of factors to consider when buying tires - ride, handling, availability for replacement, tread life, weather application. You have to determine your most important factors and decide from there. Luckily, there are a lot more resources for making an informed decision these days, including this forum and "the rack".

 

I put on 215/55-17 DWS. They look great in the wheel wells. I love 'em; quiet and handle very well. Sweet spot for me is 34 psi in rear, 36 psi in front (cold). Added bonus: speedometer shows now only about 2 mph high instead of about 3 mph which is typical with stock size tires. I'm never going back.

 

I have http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....Altimax+Arctic and have to say they do feel great.

 

What he said^^^^^. I did the same thing. Improved ride 100%. If you get them filled with nitrogen........you will also eliminate the annoying low temp ding when the temps get cold.

 

nitrogen may eliminate a low tire pressure warning caused by temperature fluctuation, but it will not eliminate the low temp warning when outside temp drops to 37 degrees.

 

I did the Michelin Pilot SS II/AS in 235/50/17 and they ride like a dream over the Conti.AS run flats

 

Nitto Motivas. Much better handling than the Conti DWS which only lasted me 21,000 miles. And a lot better on ice.

 

So sorry. I meant Low tire pressure not low temp. Every time the temp dropped last winter my low pressure indicator would come on. Nitrocizing my tires eliminated that.

 

Conti's were ok, Michelins are 100% improvement

 

I was going to get the DWS for mine but they were out of stock the day I needed to buy (a snowstorm was coming that evening.) So I went with the Michelin Pilot Sports A/S. Awesome tire, even if it cost me $800 installed. Was worth it though, ride was vastly improved; grip went way up in all conditions, rain performance was markedly better, snow/slush performance is actually impressive! Had to drive down Lake Shore Drive last Thursday night in a bit of a storm and even though I have FWD these tires cut right through 3" of accumulated slush/snow/ice. Since the road is 4 lanes wide and there weren't any travelers as brave(dumb) as myself I let it get up to good speed and played with the braking and turning. Impressive.

DWS I've had on a Saab, next best thing IMO. For the price they can't be beat, but I do find the sidewalls squishy on those. A bit of squidge on initial turn-in that you simply don't get with the stiffer (but not runflat-stiff) sidewalls of the Pilots.

Either tire is a sea change, and makes me wish I had the sport suspension...

 

Jonzeke, what size did you end up going with? I was looking at the 225/50ZR17s because they seemed to have the closest revs per mile compared with stock size (803 vs. 802). I've had great luck with MS Pilot A/S on two previous cars (MB E350 and Saab 9-3).