I have a 2004 Mini Cooper with 16" wheels. The recommended size is 195/55-16.

Discount Tire says I can also run 205/55-16. Is this true? And why would I want to do that?

FWIW, Tire Rack has a much better price on the tires I'm looking to buy. I just want to make sure I get the correct tires. When I call Tire Rack, all they say is "well, that's not the original equipment size, so I can't say if it will work or not."

 

The 205 over 195 would be a bit wider, the overall diameter would increase a bit as well. I suspect Discount Tire brought it up as it probably increases the number of available tires.

 

Is that a bad thing? Does is give a smoother ride? Any reason I should not go with a wider tire?

BTW, the tire I'm looking at is available in both sizes.

 

Personally, I would go with the stock size. I would only go with the 205 if you want the wider tire look. I doubt there would be much difference in performance or ride.

 

The wider tire will give you a slightly larger contact patch, so you'll have more available grip in corners, for stopping, etc. The slightly taller sidewalls will provide some additional "cushion" which could translate into a softer ride because they can absorb bumps better. However, the tires will likely weigh slightly more and with the additional contact patch, gas mileage will be negatively impacted. I think the increased mass will also slow down acceleration a bit.

 

Or... how about 205/50-16 per this post?

The car is 5-speed and is quickly becoming my daily driver for toting the kids around and running errands. For the most part, I am not an aggressive driver. Well, maybe a little. The tire I'm looking at is Kumho Ecsta 4X.

 

For street use, any of the following tire sizes for the Kumho 4X will work for you.

195/55-16 about $85 each, this OEM size works fine, weighs the least at 19 lbs, gives OK handling/ride comfort and has the least rolling resistance for best mpg, Stock tire diameter of 24.4" gives you OEM accuracy for speedometer and odometer. Much better than OEM runflats in the same size.

205/50-16 about $86 each, Slightly wider and lower profile than OEM, weighs 20 lbs each, improves handling response, slightly firmer ride, tire diameter of 24.1" is smaller than OEM but works, slight error on speedo and odometer but not much at all. Good tire size, good for it's handling, not as good if you have poor rough roads.

205/55-16 about $86 each, slightly wider and taller than OEM, weighs 21 lbs which is slightly heavier than OEM size should not make much difference for street use (generally heavier is slower to accelerate and stop), tallest at 24.9" but OK with stock suspension, gives about the same handling as OEM size but smoother/softer ride, increases rolling resistance so you may loose up to 1-2 mpg. A good choice for the daily driver commuter MINI where comfort is a priority.

All of these are fine and just have small differences between them, any would work for you. But if you have bad roads then the 55 series sidewalls will give you more flex to handle the potholes without risking damaging your wheels, suspension or tires as much.

Kumho has a special offer right now for $50 VISA prepaid card with purchase of a set of 4 tires until the end of 2013.

When choosing a tire size the tire shop will match the OEM car load ratings and pick sizes that will fit the car and the wheel within a narrow range. In this case Kumho 4X comes in sizes that will work for the MINI so you have more choices. This is a good thing.

By considering 205/50-16 and 205/55-16 you open up more tires to choose from vs the OEM 195/55-16 but in your case you don't really worry about that since the Kumho 4X is well priced and will work for your needs.

Have fun making your decision. If I was buying in your place I would go with 205/55-16 since the prices are all about the same and it's available from your local source.

 

I went with the different size as there was a much better choice of tires in the alternate size. There were none I fancied using in 195/55-16 it used to be pretty rare, its getting more common. There were about 4 times the choice with 205/50-16 which is a reasonable size, ever so slightly smaller than stock. These days the choices are pretty eual between the sizes. 205/55-16 is a bit larger than stock and looks too large to me, but fits. It reduces the speedo error, there are even more choices in that size, about 4 times the choice in the other sizes.

The 205 section probably gives you more grip, but it may also increase your fuel consumption.

 

FYI, I had all four Kumho Ecsta 4X 205/55-16 installed on Saturday and have already put about 150 miles on them. They are AWESOME! They look nice, grip well, and ride comfortably.