Hi All,

My 2009 Mini Cooper S just passed 130,000 miles and I feel it's time to put it to bed and move on. Of course I'll get another Mini - once you have one it's hard to "settle" for anything else! I'm toying with either a late model 2D hardtop S, or a new Electric Mini. In either case, I'm wondering if MIni's still come with Run-flat tires? I've vowed my next car will NOT have them. I just can't take the rough ride anymore. The streets in my area aren't well maintained, and I feel like I'm going to loose fillings when I hit those potholes and bumps. Plus my wife refuses to ride in the car anymore for that reason as well. Could also be the car needs a new suspension, but it seems to have always been like this and all the mechanics I talked to said it's normal.

If run-flat is still the standard, is there an option to NOT get run-flat?

Thanks for any info.

-Dan

 

I think you'll find the new Mini suspension light-years ahead of the suspension in your 2009. Run-flat or not, it will ride MUCH nicer. That being said, I believe they come with run flats.

 

There is a brand new 21 MCS in the parking lot, it has run flats. They just washed it this morning, tires are shining and the run flat stamping stood out on the side wall.

 

Electric Mini comes with non run flats.

 

If the car doesn't have runflats it has to have a spare tire stored somewhere. Most Minis don't have room for one, they can't just put it on the floor of the boot it takes up too much room. Only a few Minis (the Justa I think) ever had a spare.

 

My 2009 JCW Clubman has a compact
spare well - wasn’t sold with the spare
itself but I had one from my old R50
so it’s in there now. It does need a
16mm spacer to clear the rear Works
brake calipers and that works fine.

 

Pretty much universally accepted on this board that ditching the run-flats should be your first mod...

 

Nope, the Cooper SE doesn't come with a spare either. It comes with a compressor and a bottle of slime.

 

My Countryman S ALL4 came with the Compact Spare, Jack, etc. The first thing that I did was to trash the RunFlats, and replace them with Non-RunFlat Michelins.

Why BMW insists on equipping most of their vehicles with RunFlats is a total mystery to me. I drove BMW's from 1970-2005, when BMW decided to answer a question that no one had asked, by switching all of their vehicles to RunFlats. If you are more than 50 miles from home on a weekend and get a flat with RunFlats, better get a hotel room, as virtually no tire store stocks them. Rough Ride, Expensive, Short-lived.

 

I just got back from test driving a 2-door Mini SE electric. It does have runflats. But you're right, the suspension was MUCH better. The salesperson said that the 16-inch wheels had a smoother ride but a little wobbly in hard turns. But the top-trim-level 2021 SE we drove had 17 inch wheels and the ride was very smooth. Anyone been able to compare 16 vrs 17 inch wheels as far as the effect on the ride? Thanks...

-Dan

 

Really? I could have sworn I read that the SE came with regular tires to save weight. Maybe I made that up

​​​​​
Edit: found it https://www.insideevsforum.com/commu...57/#post-96371

Now I don't know what to believe

 

It's against the law to sell a new car without a spare tire/rim/jack/lug wrench unless it has runflat tires. It's akin to selling it without airbags or shoulder harnesses. DOoooooooh! My 2020 Mini rides a LOT better on RFs than my 2007 MCS andn 2014 Coupe did no question about that. Even with the suspension in the Sport setting. And they were all 17" RFs.

 

Source? Pretty sure there's no federal regulation that mandates a spare tire.

 

No federal law that I know of, but
in Rhode Island a few years ago ….

https://apnews.com/article/5e88db6e6...f85d9a68f9eb99

 

That's surprising, but possibly the dealer could have swapped them from another car. I checked with my dealer and they confirmed that the SE does not come standard with run-flat tires. Because of that, they come equipped with a mobility kit.

My car came with Hankook Ventus S1 Evo3, which is a really nice tire. It is definitely not a run-flat.

 

Thanks, that confirms what I've read elsewhere. Though maybe some dealers are adding them later to comply with state laws

 

I can tell you my newly acquired 22 F57 JCW came with Goodyear Eagle F1 runflats. Manual says there is a spare but haven't checked yet.

 

Not a federal law, I think the states have laws about it though. If you have RFs you don't have to have a spare of course. And probably 90% of new Minis have runflats.

 

OP - put to bed at 130,000 :(

As for runflats, I don't believe it's a law. When I bought my MINI way back they told me that because they didn't have a spare they had to have runflats, so I assumed that was a law. When I bought my Model 3 a few years back it came w/ nothing, so spare, no runflats, no jack, no lug wrench, nothing. They did have road side assistance so .....???

Nik

 

No laws that I'm aware of. BMW has been selling M-cars for years with no run-flats and no spare.