Hi- Just ordered a new Mini, non S. Car will be coming with 175-65-15 tires. Likely Continental all seasons. Car will have 15 x 5.5 holies. Looking for opinions if there is a benefit going with a wider tire such as the Bridgestone 960 in the 195-60-15 size. I have been told by by Tire Rack the 5.5 " is the minimum acceptable wheel for that tire. Thanks in advance.

 

I drove one with the 175/65 and they handled fine. I personally would feel more comfortable with the 195/60, and if you can spend it do it. But remember, the engineers know more than us; if they put 175 and you want 195 then just wait until the 175s wear out.

and congrats on your purchase

 

Drive the 175's first. You may like them if they are the Conti summer tire.

I have 205/50-16 Dunlop Star Specs for autocrossing. I prefer the 175's for the street.

 

I had 205/55/15's on the stock 5.5" inch spoolers. They ran fine. These are close to the stock diameter. Cornering was amazing. Ride quality was great. Go for it and enjoy. You can sell the 175/65/15's here in the maarket place.

 

Both tire sizes fit fine for street use. I have used both on stock 15" wheels for many years.

Start with the OEM tires until you wear them out then try the RE960AS and you will find that they have more grip, better handling but lower mpg due to higher rolling resistance.

Don't forget to rotate wheels to get more wear out of the front tires.

 

I've had these on my R81 Imola wheels ("holies") over the past few years:

Conti ProContact (V rated) 175/65/15 (stock size)
Toyo Proxy Four (V rated) 205/50/15
General Altimax Arctic (Q rated) 185/60/15
General Altimax HP (H rated) 195/60/15

The biggest factor I've found after the importance of a stiff sidewall is weight. The stock ContiProContacts are a 16 pound tire. Mounted on the 5.5 pound holy, that's a hair over 21 pounds for the entire wheel per corner!

Compare that with the 205/50/15 Toyo Proxy tires which, by themselves weigh over 21 pounds bring the wheel weight up over 26 lbs. This CAN be felt in the ride and performance of the car; especially the normally aspirated base Coopers.

As soon as I drove off with the heavy Toyos, I knew right away things were going to be different for as long as I had them. First of all, the ride got a lot more numb; considerably less feedback from the suspension and road surface. I also noticed how much more strain they put on the car getting it up to speed. I actually had to adjust my clutching technique to account for the extra mass.

On the plus side, it got a lot more stable at high speeds. My commute is about 20 miles over the rural roads north of the Quabbin Reservoir here in central Mass. These are rolling, twisty B-roads with 45 to 50 MPH speed limits. With the Toyos, I could pretty much drive it as fast as wanted; comfortably north of 100mph. Whereas with the stock Contis, that would be pushing the limit of grip and stability.

I know this doesn't exactly answer the OPs question. My advice would be to wear out the stock tires and replace them with something a little bigger, maybe a 185. Unfortunately, there aren't a lot of tire options for us 15" wheel guys.

 

The R81 holies are 5.5" wide, but not 5.5 lbs in weight. They are 5.45 kg = 12.0 lbs (still pretty darn light for oem wheels).

http://www.mini2.com/forum/faq.php?f...factory_wheels

 

Right. I was reading in haste. Sorry about that.

I just want to report that I've come full circle back to the stock 175/65/15's and am loving it! They are so much more nimble than the 185,195 and 205 I have run since wearing out the stock Contis. I've lost a bit of high speed cornering stability; corners i could take at 105+mph get a little sketchy north of 90 mph now, but what I've gained in low speed agility more than makes up for it!