I know this subject has been beaten to death, I apologize for re-hashing it again. I need new tires within the next few days and am trying to find some definitive answers on tire selection.

I have a 2011 Clubman S with Bridgestone Potenza RE960AS Pole Position tires in 205/45/17 Run Flats.

I've been reading through these NAM threads for the last few days trying to get a feel for the best tires. I've read both sides of the run flat debate and I'm leaning towards ditching them.
I've found alot of people on here who suggest moving up to a 215/45/17 tire, citing better handling and ride and the decreased wheel well gap. The current tires beat me and the car and make a lot of noise. I'm ready for a slightly better ride. They were on the car when I bought it so I have no idea how much life they have on them - I just know they are nearly dead and I'm ready for new ones.

I want a tire that has a decent mileage rating, good tread life (I normally drive conservatively but every now and then get a little aggressive). I want something that has good grip and good control, does very well in the rain. I'm in florida so winter tires aren't really an issue, but I may be moving to Seattle (not much snow or ice but some) so I need to take that into consideration also.

This process is exhausting as there are so many choices and everyone has a different opinion of what the best choice is. I've included some pictures, not sure if the 215/45/17's will work with the gap I have. I don't want any issues with the tires rubbing with full steering lock, not sure if anyone's run into that either.

Tirerack.com has some great prices on both sizes, I'll probably end up going that route and using one of their approved installers as we have some around here with great ratings.

 

I expect with your lowering you can run the 215 with no issues. The Michelin Primacy MXM4 and Pirelli P7AS Plus may be good options for you.

 

We can blend in more handling, but we'd be giving up mileage and comfort to do so. All about personal preferences.

 

You can run the 215/45/17s no problem. The problem comes in at moving from Florida to Washington, there isn't really a tire that will be low rolling resistance, high tread rating, and perform well in both summer/winter months. So you may need to look into buying winter tires and putting them on the stock wheels, and buying a set of nice summer wheels/tires.

If you're leaning more towards a performance tire, the Dunlop Direzza Z2's are a great summer tire.

If you're looking for a good handling tire for daily driving purposes, look into the Continental ExtremeContact DWS's, which are great year round here in Michigan, but we don't see the conditions the northwest does. (this year being the exception)

By all means, ditch the runflats, they do nothing for you. The ride is horrible, handling is poor, premature wear on suspension components, and bent wheels are all that accompanies them. Get rid of them and go with a traditional tire, and invest in a spare, the ride and handling improvements will be worth the money spent.

Here is a link to the spare tire on our website:
http://www.detroittuned.com/mini-cooper-spare-tire/

You will also need this:
http://www.detroittuned.com/mini-spa...ray-hold-down/

Nick
Detroit Tuned

 

What is your tire budget?

Check this for Grand Touring All Season tires in 215/45-17-
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/survey...wws=N&showcm=N
At $138 each the Pirelli Cinturato P7 All Season Plus is a good tire for your requirements. 700 treadwear.
Tirerack test result-
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...y.jsp?ttid=188
And also-
Michelin Premier A/S in 215/45-17 at $143 each, 640 treadwear

In Ultra High Performance All Season tires (same class as your RE960AS)
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/survey...wws=N&showcm=N
Continental ExtremeContact DWS in 215/45-17 at $119 each, treadwear 540.

The Grand Touring AS tires offer more comfort and longer treadlife.

The UHP All Season tires offer a little more handling with decent comfort and slightly less treadlife and slightly better tire selection.

All Season tires should work for you both in Florida and in Seattle without having to have winter tires.

 

We put the Pirelli tires mentioned above on our Clubman and it was a HUGE improvement over the Conti run-flats. And they performed great this past winter here in Missouri.

Also, your Clubman probably already has a spare; our '09 came with a donut/jack even though the run-flats were original tires.

 

Only base Clubman's came with spares, the S models did not.

 

I always learn new things here

 

If you own a clubman there is ZERO reason to have runflats, just buy a spare , I did.

I can tell you my 215/45/17 rub a tad in the front fender on the carpet like stuff, nit much and maybe when loaded down only as it's not going to rub through. My car is stock height.

My wheels are 7.5" wide, if they were 7.0" I would have gone 205 but hate the stretched tire look, so I went to 215.

My wife has conti DW on her MINI, great traction but for sure not a long lasting tire.
I went with Khumo ecsta AST , had them before on a 6 speed Trans Am , a very good tire in rain and I find the same dry traction as DW's and they were like $85 a tire.

 

If you're staying in Fla, look at the Hankook Ventus. Good tire and much improved ride. I've read mixed reviews on their durability and I will say that the initial wear in was pretty fast and I was getting concerned, but since they've broken in, they don't seem to be wearing much.

 

I'm trying to stay around $100 per tire. Tirerack has alot of tires when I filter by size and price <$100. Now it's just a matter of picking one lol.

I looked at the Ventus, they're on clearance for $69 right now. I haven't found many bad reviews about this tire.


Am I going to lose any handling or control if I get away from run flats? I want a tire with very good control and long tread life - those are my two biggest issues.
Also what's the advantage to moving up to 215/45/17? Any disadvantages?

 

You can't really get great handling and long tread life at the same time. Sort of an either or thing. Great handling tires are softer and therefore have less durability. Long lasting tires tend to be harder and handle not as well. The Ventus seem to be a decent compromise, but they're not track tires or anything. 69$ a tire is a screaming deal. I paid $160/tire.

 

Do you like your Ventus? Anything you don't like about them? If they had really good handling I wouldn't mind a shorter life if I only paid $69 for them. I don't drive on the track and never plan to. I just want a tire that I know won't let me down if I take a hard corner or get slightly aggressive on the street. My Potenza's are almost bald and they still do very well on the dry street.

 

I like them and would buy them again. Really no drawbacks at $70 a tire.

 

Does anyone know if there's another spare tire that will fit on the MINI? Is this a proprietary bolt pattern? All the MINI spares I've found are expensive. If there was something else that would fit I just go to the junk yard and get one.

I like the Ventus V12 and I really like the price. The Ventus S1 Noble 2 got significantly better ratings however, and I'm leaning towards this one.

 

I went nuts looking . Just gave up and bought a mini spare, the 4x100 pattern is normal but with a hub that fits not so much and one you can know will clear the brakes and fit in car.

 

If you need a spare tire to pack into your boot with a cover to keep it all clean,

Tirerack.com sells steel 15x6" wheels cheap at $58 each that are used for winter tires.

If you have a base cooper Clubman this wheel should fit and you can mount any OEM sized tire like 175/65-15 that can be used as a spare, not even a compact spare but only marginally larger.

A good example of a tire that would work is-
General Altimax HP Grand Touring all season tire, 440 treadwear, $67 each closeout.

So wheel for $58 and tire for $67, tirerack does the mounting and then ships it to you. Put it in a bag and place in boot. You don't really need to bother with TPMS. Allow wheels start from about $85 each,

As for your priority of "good" handling and long treadlife, that would be Ultra High Performance All Season tires as I mentioned.
Example for $100 budget in 215/45-17:
Hankook Ventus S1 noble 2 $102 each, 500 treadwear, W speed rated XL sidewall (stiffer sidewall due to construction helps handling but may reduce comfort)
Firestone Firehawk Wide Oval AS $101 each, 400 treadwear, W speed rated XL sidewall
General G-max AS-03 $92 each, 480 treadwear, W speed rated XL sidewall
These tires handle better dry or wet than Touring tires, considering they have treadwear ratings close to the Grand Touring AS tires in the same budget, these seem to be a good choice for you overall.

If more comfort is important, but still has OK handling and long treadlife then Grand Touring All Season meet your needs. This is well suited for a commuter or if you like to drive cross country. Note that treadwear of 440 is not very high for this class due to budget of tire purchase.
Example for $100 budget in 215/45-17:
General Altimax HP $82 each closeout, 440 treadwear. Matches the spare tire mentioned.

 

Honda Jazz/Civic 15" but will not clear S front brake callipers so if you get a flat on the front it requires two tyre changes to move a good tyre from the back to the front and put the space saver on the back.

Recently changed from RFT to standard tyres went to the wrecker and picked up the above spare and a jack which fits the polystyrene cut out under the cargo cover with a slight trim. Total cost $38

 

Downside of 215/45-17 tire vs 205/45-17.

Some tires come in both sizes some only in one.
Taller sidewall help with comfort on bumpy roads, if you roads are good then it doesn't matter much.
More important for comfort is the tire you select as some are much more comfortable than others.
A taller tire diameter means that if you do ever lower the suspension there will be less clearance and more risk for rubbing.
A wider than OEM wheel like 17x8" will also give you less clearance and more need to use negative camber to make things fit which can wear the inner treads faster.
Some tires in this size either cost a little more or weigh a little more but it's not much or even the reverse so check both sizes.

Overall using Stock suspension and wheels, 215/45-17 is a very good size for the MINI.

If you really care about performance driving you would want-
205/45-17
205/40-17
215/40-17
These give a stiffer sidewall that helps with handling responsiveness, and have OEM or smaller tire diameters which help with lowered gearing and faster acceleration at lower speeds.

 

Thank you so much for the wealth of info. I'm learning alot of this for the first time and your input has been valuable. I've done alot of research in the last two days on the Ventus Noble, I think I'm going to go with that one. Handling is slightly more important to me than comfort. My nearly bald Potenzas beat the crap out of me and the car, I feel like anything would be an improvement at this point. I'm going to get a spare - I feel like it's a good trade off for all the downsides of run flats.

 

Minibeer-I ditched stock runflats for Ventus S1 noble 2 in 215/45-17 on my new F56.Three weeks in ,600 or so miles and can attest to their handling,comfort and much quieter ride.They also look great..

 

Minihune-Your vast knowledge of all things tires is invaluable,always enjoy reading your posts,thanks.Do you have any input on what my pirelli P7 runflats with 500 miles are worth? $225 ea. at tirerack!! Not lookin to get rich, just a fair price on CL

 

I think this is the route I'm going to take. I like everything I've read ad heard about these tires. Just looking for a spare tire now - went to 3 junkyards today and no one had a Chevy Cobalt for the spare. I just don't want to bite off the $150-$200 a new spare will cost me.

 

With no provisions to mount a spare and not wanting to take space in the boot in my F56,I bought a mini compressor,bottle of slime and plug kit at walmart for 25$.Not an ideal solution,but an option....

 

I have a Clubman with room for a spare. I've also considered getting the slime, compressor, and plugs along with the tire. Can't be too prepared