The biggest postive change I made to my MINI was to lose the runflats and go to high performance summer tires with lighter wheels. What a difference!!

 

Can you run regular tires on the run flat rims. And what do you do about the low tire pressure light? Does it still work on the regular tires?

 

The MINI tire-pressure monitoring system uses data from the ABS sensors and not sensors on the wheels, so it will work with any wheels or tires. You can run conventional tires on OEM wheels.

 

Even if the TPMS had sensors in the wheels, it would still work with non-runflat tires because (as MINIAC posts) the wheels are not specific to runflat tires.

 

I suspect you're sort of comparing apples and oranges, since the wheel size on the dealer's MCS was most likely a 17'' wheel and your MC is most likely either a 15'' or 16'' wheel. Wheel size makes a significant difference when it comes to runflats.

 

tirerack's showing the 17" goodyear RS-A at $219 today (nothing special noted); better than I expected.

 

Also, the MCS has a stiffer suspension, so the comparison is not valid.

But it will be a harsher ride, that is for sure.

regards,
Red

 

I was under the impression that run-flats could not be plugged..this is not true though. I recently found a small screw in my right front tire and had it plugged. I was told by a BMW service rep. that these tires cannot be plugged, however, when I spoke with the Mini service rep. I was told they could be.

My mechanic even said they couldn't be plugged, to which I told him, you JUST did it. Obviously there's alot of confusion and misinformation regarding at least this aspect of the run-flats.

I hope this information is valuable to someone else out there....imagine having to buy a new tire everytime you snag a nail or screw? Seems rather unrealistic. It'd be pretty expensive if you had a bad week and caught 2 or 3 nails eh?

 

I thought the same thing until I had a run flat plugged a couple of months ago. (There must be some crazy guy running around the country dropping screws in random places on our highways. ) I called around, but no one wanted to touch a run flat. Then I finally found a tire place 30 minutes away; they had no problem with fixing it. I think people are scared of what they don't understand.

 

I had run flats... and because at that time I hadn't driven any other Mini with non-run flats, I was happy with them.

At 15K both my rear run flats had to be replaced because of wearing on the inside... they were Dunlop 9000's... I was NOT happy.

I checked around on MetroplexMini.org and found lots of info and advice on tyres.

I finally decided not to pay my dealer $386 per run flat tyre... and no, the price did not include install. The cheapest I found locally was $276 and they were not Dunlops... I have an issue with mixing different tyres.

I went to Discount Tyre, bought four new BF Goodrich G-Force Sport tyres for less money than the price of two run flats, installed AND with warranty ( and on performance tyres I was very surprised!) Free rotations and replacements...
The ride is smoother, the noise level has been dramatically reduced, and they do not follow ruts in the road like the run flats did!

No, I don't have a spare... yet I do not feel in the least worried about this fact.

Best decision I ever made was getting rid of the run flats... I'll post back here if my opinion ever changes!!!

 

They can be plugged, but most places do not, to avoid the 'liability'. The liability being a combination of a potential safety issue, selling new tires, and out right lack of knowledge of their own industry.

Discount Tire had plugged one for me and also denied plugging one for me that were both normal fixable nail holes in center of tire. Of course the one they fixed was while I was buying snow tires on another set of wheels.

 

See my thread regarding second generation runflats (Currently fitted to all new MINI R56 from factory) fitted to my '05 R53 MCS... HUGE DIFFERENCE!

http://eu.goodyear.com/home_en/tires/runonflat/

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ad.php?t=93829

 

I couldn't agree with you more. Personally, my insurance against a flat is a can of fix-a-flat and one of those small air compressors that are powered by the 12v power source. If that model is good enough for BMW with its M3, it is good enough for me. Somehow, I rather doubt you will be posting back if your decision to get rid of the run-flats changes....

 

I love these runflat threads because it gives me a chance to post some humorous reasons to get them:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lcd__BpkopA

 

The reason most tire shops won't repair a run-flat is because they have no idea how long the tire has been driven on "flat". By doing a repair they are implying to the customer that the tire is good to use now. They do not want to take the chance that you could have a blow out and possibly get into an accident and blame the tire shop.

 

I'll throw my three cents in..

I only ride on Runflats. After my first set went, I tried non-runflats, and IMHO, I really disliked them. The MINI 'floated' too much. They were squisky on turns.

On my last set of runflats, I had a repeated issue with nails and screws in my tires. (I dunno why! It just wasn't my luck!) If I hadn't had runflats, I would have had to pull over, but the spare on, and then dive no faster than 50MPH to the tire ship and have them patch it and put it on. Yes, I've had my runflats patched many times without issue.

Yeah, I love runflats, and will continue with them. Georgia roads don't have shoulders, and there's no way in hell I'm gonna pull off in the right lane on a road with a speed limit of 55 to get out and put a spare on.

Me.

 

This topic has been driving me nutz

I have an R56 on order and due by the middle of the month and plan on changing the rims as my crown spokes are going to be used for winter duty, so I'm left with max perf non-runflats like BFG KDW N/T's or the Falken 615's w/ my new rims or use the OE Dunlop RF's w/ my new rims. First off I'm not an autoX-er, BUT I do drive a spirited style because I've never met an off or on-ramp I didn't like or simple curve for that matter! I also have been a regular visitor of the Dragon since 03' and want a tire that can handle that road w/o a problem from a perf standpoint. Now, here's the stats on the Dunlop perf RF's:

-280 treadwear
-AA traction rating
-A temp rating

Those numbers tell me its a pretty good wearing perf tire and has the goods to make for a fun day of spirited driving. Are there better tires w/ better numbers, yes, but IMO those should fullfill my needs just fine. I took (3) R56's for a test drive in the past month or so and the last one was fitted w/17" RF's and yes its a stiff ride on crappy, bumpy roads but IMO on roads where its "not so bad" I didn't notice any problems at all. My question is this, on a road like the Cherahola Skyway and the Dragon, can this tire be thrown hard into a corner and come out swinging for more or are they "down for the count" and leave you wishing you had some BFG KDW N/T's or Falken 615's Please answer honestly, especially if you've got some knowledge of driving on the Dragon w/ the RF's and w/o the RF's and can make an educated comment, thanks!

BTW I'm not belittling anyone elses comments, its just I've spent MANY HOURS reading tire reviews in the past week especially and want to get this right and FWIW, I have a beater car thats going to cover my tire/wheel purchase, so price isn't as much as a concern for me, although I'm not rich by any stretch of the imagination, but would rather nail this right between the eyes with the correct purchase. Both sides have made valid points

 

I'm switching to non-runflats for 2 reasons - road noise and cost. I have a MCS ('03) and was debating for awhile; I don't want to carry a spare.
I went with 4 new all-season 215/45/17's for the price of one Goodyear RS-A EMT. I ordered the Continental kit from Tirerack.

I figure any damage to a run flat that you can still drive on (tread punctures) is something that fix-a-flat can cover anyway. If I damage a sidewall I'm out of luck with a run flat or fix-a-flat. Additonally, there are very few places that have runflats in my size, in Pittsburgh, in stock.

I'm not too concerned about handling/cornering, and need something that works in winter. My options opened up considerably with regular tires. Also, while the Goodyears are fine when new, at about 50% tread wear their noise increases substantially.

I thought about replacing all 4 with Contipro Contact RFT's (they're well reviewed by BMW owners who keep RFT's), but went with the cheaper option of non RFT's. We'll see what happens!

 

My 05 S's Dunlop 9000 RSC's only lasted about 18K, so I replaced them with BF Goodrich G-Force Sport Z-rated conventionals (205/50 ZR-16) and the difference (besides the initial MUCH lower cost per tire) is astonishing: better ride, better grip, less noise, more agility, better rain handling, and they just look bitchin. Never again with the runflats.

 

yes you can, and the light will still work. My light came on about 500 miles into my new non-RSC tires (see above.) I just pressed down on the button for a few seconds and the light went off, for good.

 

I have experiences on race tracks with and without RFs. Compared to the Michelin PS2s, the RFs suck. The front of the car was pushing unbelievably with the RFs. With the PS2s, the front is relatively stuck, although the LSD still causes understeer in the tight corners.

I have performance driving experience on RFs, PS2s, PS1s, Blizzaks, Arctic Alpins, Goodyear Eagle Gt3, and Pilot Sport Cups, although I didn't drive the snow tires on the race track, I did drive the Arctic Alpins on the Dragon. Except for the RFs and the PS2s, This experience was all on an M Coupe. I've had the RFs and the PS2s on my mini.

The RFs had worse dry and wet traction than anything except the Blizzaks. I felt that they were really bad. I felt embarrassed in front of my friends on the race track. I pulled off a new set of RFs and threw them away when I got "real" tires.

I don't know what non-RF tires people are feeling floaty on. Max perf tires like the PS2s are not as much like riding on steel hoops as the RFs, but they have very stiff sidewalls to prevent roll-over during spirited driving, and most people feel that they are very precise. As others have mentioned, PS2s were developed as OEM tires for the porsche gt3. (I think the gt3 has moved up to pilot sport cups, which are really track tires.)

my humble opinion

 

I love my run-flats and I highly recommend Discount Tire.

I have had 8 punctures within the last 2 years and the run-flats allow me time to get to Discount Tire to have it replaced. They don't stock my Perellis but all I have to do is give them a quick phone call, they get the new tire that day, change it out, charge me around $40 for a brand new tire (bought the warranty) and I am ready to go.

 

Basically every time you have a flat they will replace it (if you bought warranty replacement)? Since having a flat makes the tire 'non-repairable'. Amazing, they must be loosing their shirt on that deal, I can see a change in their policy coming.

 

I'm going to have to replace my OEM runflats in about 6 months, and will most likely go to non-runflats for performance and cost reasons.

Question--how good is the tire goop/air compressor set up, anyway? I'm going to assume that it's not a blowout, and not a side wall puncture.

I admit I AM nervous about not having a spare on my MCS, and am considering carrying a donut. I can recall several flats over the years, including one last year. And yes, I'm female, but able to change a tire when circumstances allow.