Hey everyone!

My local dealership (MINI Victoria.) has a "Garage Sale" every few months to clear out inventory. They usually offer specials on services as well, for example this time around I'd save $50 on an oil change if I booked it today. So I dropped in to do that. (I know, I know, I should do it myself.) They also had a 1998 3 series for $3500, something you don't usually see on a dealer lot!

Anyway, I've been thinking about going to more of a stock look for the MINI, and finding a set of 15" wheels as well to save some weight and maybe improve acceleration a bit.

They had set of R100 Spoolers in silver with a set of nearly new 175/65/15 ContiProContact All Seasons, and I was able to get a pretty good price on them. From what I can find, they're about 13.7lbs, 15x5.5 ET45. I have a few questions .

1) I plan on running the Conti's for awhile and if I don't find them too bad, probably wear them out. What's a wider tire I can fit on afterwards... will 205/50/15 or 205/55/15 be okay on a 15x5.5 wheel? I'll be looking for a UHPS as I have winters on my Konigs at the moment.

2) I have 205/50/16 wheels now. I see the OD of my new set will be slightly smaller so I shouldn't have to worry about adjusting the suspension height at the time being. However With the smaller wheel width and different offset, should I get spacers to keep a similar stance?

3) Does anyone have these tires? Are they decent for a spring/summer tire?

Thanks for any input guys!

 

205-50-15 is about the widest tire you should put on a 5.5" wide rim. I wouldn't run spacers unless you need them to clear a big brake kit. Not a fan of spacers.

 

Thanks for the reply! I'll skip the spacers. It should look about normal once I switch to 205's anyway.

I have one more question. For my Konigs I'm using "tuner" conical lugs. Are these safe to use with OEM wheels? There seems to be a little bit of play (not mounted on the car, just testing the fit by hand.) compared to an OEM style lug. The reason I ask is I only seem to have 8 black OEM lugs so I'd have to order 8 more if the conical ones are no good.

 

1)See below for several good tire sizes for 15" wheels, you do not need to go wide unless you want more cornering grip, it's not that bad to use a compromise tire size like 195/60-15. As tire sizes get wider they can get heavier. Even if you have winter tires in reserve it isn't bad to consider various All season tires for year round use. 15" sizes are relatively limited for some summer tires and even for UHPAS tires. There is no reason not to consider both HPAS and Grand Touring All season tires.

2) Using OEM 15" wheels and any of the tire sizes I have listed you do not have to use spacers for fitment. You can use spacers for looks but if you have a spacer more than about 3mm you will need longer studs and nuts or longer wheel bolts.

3) If you have ContiProContact (Grand Touring All Season ) tires, 400, $99 treadwear, these are OK to use up, no problems for street use in 3 seasons.
If you have more than light snow you'll need winter tires.
see
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/survey...wws=N&showcm=N
But Tirerack test results are OK-
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...y.jsp?ttid=138

When you are ready you have many other better options for a similar budget.

Looking at Ultra High Performance Summer tires to fit OEM 15" rims:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/survey...wdp=N&showcm=N
Tire selection is limited.

Even in UHPAS tires for 15" wheels, selection is limited.

Moving to HPAS there are several options.
Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 is a new tire, $92 each in 175/65-15, 500 treadwear. It's a decent street tire.
and
Yokohama AVID ENVigor, 560 treadwear, H speed rated
Comes in several good sizes for OEM 15" rims:
175/65-15 $80 each, 18 lbs, 24" tire diam.
185/65-15 $69 each, 19 lbs, 24.4" tire diam.
195/60-15 $68 each, 19 lbs, 24.2" tire diam.
The more narrow tires offer less grip in cornering but less rolling resistance and a little higher mpg for long commutes.

Tirerack test results-
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...y.jsp?ttid=179

Conical or tapered lug bolts should fit your MINI wheels OK.

 

minihune, thanks again for taking the time to post such a thorough, well thought out response. It's much appreciated!

I had S.Drives in 205/50/16 previously and they were pretty good to me, so I may go that route when I get through the Contis (or if I dislike them straight away.) However I take your point about running AS as well. This year we got very little snow (one day.) so the Pilot Sport AS3 is a top contender. I remember seeing recently they had better performance in some categories than their Summer competitors so that could be a pretty good compromise.

It's good to know the conical lugs should work alright... I was about to tear up the garage looking for that box of old stock ones

 

OK,

If you do get some cold temperatures that sneak in before or after the true winter then having All Season tires is a good thing to have.

Depending on who else might drive your MINI, it's good to know that if the weather does turn colder you still have a safe car to drive on the street.

For the R50 and any base MCS or modern MINI model the OEM 15" wheel and sizes to fit represent quite a good option. Many of us have very poor roads and having tire sizes that have a taller sidewall and offer more cushion and comfort is a plus. Using 45 series sidewalls can be quite jarring, just go for a test drive in a new R56 with 17" wheels or larger.

Further, the narrow tire widths are very usable for daily driving and more cornering grip
is nice but not essential on public roads or in traffic. The option for tire sizes that range from 50 to 65 series sidewalls allows use of nearly every basic tire class.

This means if you wanted to have super grippy Extreme Summer or even Race tires on OEM 15" rims, you could do it in 205/50-15 (albeit a better fit for 15x7" wheels). This would be the case for those that do short commutes, drive low mileage per year, and live close to a track or autocross venue with ample opportunity for performance driving.

In fact, with my R53 MCS, I have used OEM 15" rims with nearly every tire class that is usable for the MINI from OEM Continentals to the best racing tires. They pretty much all work OK, having suspension tuned and modded for performance is a plus if you are racing (this allows better use of the race tire for handling wear and heat).

A limiting factor for some MINIs is front brake caliper size, the OEM 15" wheel only accepts base front brakes. Upgrades to the rotors and pads are very usable options.

Modern tires like the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 will hopefully set the trend for better tires in all tire classes. In UHPAS and HPAS tires you can get a good compromise of handling with decent comfort and longer treadlife that tolerates weather changes and is within a reasonable budget.

 

I used to live quite close to work and drove my car mostly for fun on the weekends. Now I'm in the car commuting for an hour a day or so, and I think I'll really start to appreciate the taller sidewall on the 15" wheels. With my car being lowered on coilovers and on 50 series tires right now it's a pretty stiff ride. I still drive "aggressively" on back roads on the weekends now and then, but I rarely squealed the 205's so I imagine I can live with the compromised lateral grip of a 175 or 195 tire. It may even help to keep me out of trouble!

I worked out the weight of my current setup compared to the Continentals on the R100 wheels, and I'll be saving about 6.3lbs per corner. I know going from 22lb wheels to 15lb wheels I felt a big difference in driving feel and response, so I imagine this weight savings will be a nice bonus, too.

 

Just to update, I got these wheels and tires mounted yesterday morning. I failed to notice that two of them were actually quite damaged from being driven on while flat... my tire shop told me they really needed to be replaced.

I went down to MINI and we reached a compromise: One new tire at cost, the second at 50% off, installed at no charge. Used parts are "as is," of course, but a safety issue is another thing. Fair enough, I thought.

Although there is a little slippage under heavy acceleration in the rain, no surprise there as they're not scrubbed in yet. Overall I quite like the ride, much more forgiving over bumps, and the car feels incredibly nimble and responsive at low to moderate speeds. Braking and acceleration are slightly improved.

I'm sold on 15" wheels, for sure. I don't quite like how narrow they look, and the amount of space between the outside edge of the tire and the fender. I may temporarily run 10-15mm spacers, or just wait until I burn through the Conti's and go for a 195 series tire.

Thanks again for all the help and input. I think these tires will serve me quite well for street driving.

 

Having worked my way through 15s, 16s and 17s (not all on the same Mini), I wouldn't be so sure that it is the wheel diameter that is delivering all the changes. People tend to use tyre diameter as a shorthand for tyre width too. I would be interested to know for sure whether a wider 15 may well lose that 'nimbleness'.

 

I believe that the OP has mounted 175/65-15 OEM tires on the OEM 15" wheels and commented that he thought they felt nimble. Part of that is due to the lighter weight of the tire and wheel combo, the OEM Continental tire is not the most grippy rubber but it works.

Moving to a wider tire size like 205/50 or 205/55-15 would add some weight but if combined with a reasonably light rim up to 15x7" it should be somewhat "nimble". How much would be subjective.

If one was already used to OEM 16" or 17" wheels with OEM runflats then almost any non runflat on a 15" wheel would feel more responsive. Typically when tire and wheel are lighter in weight, steering effort is reduced, braking and accelerating feels more responsive (takes less power to initiate the change in speed).

So a wider 15" tire size should not result in a change in nimbleness unless you had a tire (or used a wheel) that was significantly heavier. It's not uncommon to use 225/50-15 on a rim 6-8" wide.

For the OP, when you use 10-15mm wide spacers you will need longer wheel bolts or change to long wheel studs. The OEM wheel bolts won't fit those spacers and have enough threads to work.

 

Thanks for the good info! My last set was relatively lightweight, 15lb 16x7 wheels and S.Drive non-runflat tires. Would the decreased width (and therefore lateral grip) explain the increased steering response and "nimble" improvements, or would you say it's mostly due to wheel/tire weight overall, or the difference in wheel diameter (weight closer to the hub, etc.) I believe this 15" setup is something like 5-6lbs lighter per corner.

I concur that these are not the grippiest rubber. Fine around town and even for a bit of spirited driving (if cautious about it.) but I have been spinning the tires a bit on hard acceleration around 90 degree turns, out of parking lots and so forth.

I think I'd like to swap out the Conti's for something wider. I believe the S.Drives, which I liked quite a bit, come in 205/50/15. Is that too wide for a 5.5" wheel? Should I limit it to 195? I may consider adding spacers as well, 10 or 15mm to get the car looking right again. I do have some longer bolts that I picked up when I bought 5mm spacers for the front, in case I needed them to make my coilovers work, but I never used them. I suppose they wouldn't be long enough for a 15mm spacer, though.

Is it safe/prudent to run spacers that big, provided I get good quality parts?