Got a question for you all.

I was told by the MINI dealership today that tire rotation is not included in the general maintenance plan for MINI. So, if you want to rotate them you will have to pay for them separately.

My understanding is that rotating tires are part of good maintenance. Specially, when you have a front wheel drive car, where the front wheels are supposed to lose the trades faster than the rear tires.

Is it true?

 

I rotate my tires about every 3000 miles; I've stopped suckling at Mother Mini's teat for routine things --- it's not worth the hassle of their service departments.
You can find a tire shop that you trust or buy yourself a torque wrench and do it yourself.
Read this for related information.

 

+1.

 

Since I have run flats are the tires only to be rotated in one direction?

 

Front to back; back to front. If you jack high enough from the front block, the rear wheel goes up too. I use a jackstand in back to be safe -- loosent the lug bolts before jacking, good torque wrench, etc.
The tires last longer and you can replace them as a set.

 

+1, and clean the inside of the wheels at that time.

 

Routine rotation front-to-back is seen as a big no-no by safety authorities as the better pair should ALWAYS be on the rear for maximum stability in emergency situations, FWD, RWD, AWD or whatever!

This also spreads replacement costs on FWD cars as you only buy a pair at a time, when the fronts are worn-out. (The part-warn rears then go to the front, of course!)

 

Please provide a link to these "safety authorities" that view tire rotation as a "big no-no" and " the better pair should ALWAYS be on the rear". They must be on crack.

 

Sorry tag, but I'm not doing your research for you. (And to suggest anyone you don't agree with "must be on crack" is hardly helpful.)

But try this: http://tinyurl.com/3cq8qs

 

First link from your search:

http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/.../brochure.html


I would think that the NHTSA is a reputable safety authority.

 

And don't forget to balance 'em when you rotate them boys. Costco/Discount, they all do it free, pretty basic stuff nowdays.

 

In the 11/06 R56 manual (available as a .pdf, page 93) MINI recommends tire rotation.

In the later printed version that came with my R56, they specifically recommend against it.

 

Your tires should be evenly worn on your new car, or, you have not been rotating and kept them properly inflated. Skip rotating them too long and the front tires get badly worn on the shoulders. That is because the fronts do all the turning, provide all the force to "go", and tote 60% of the load.
The rear set just follow along toting 40% of the weight.
I am afraid that you have been mis-informed. Your best tires should be on the front. You never rotate an unidirectional tire to the opposite side of the vehicle (exception: the tire can be remounted for the proper direction), and you should buy in full sets to ensure your tires are equally matched.

Little research, please remember that we have unidirectional tires.

http://www.goodyeartires.com/faqs/Rotation.html

http://www.procarcare.com/icarumba/r...dia_tires3.asp



weight distribution
http://autos.yahoo.com/mini_cooper_c...e-specs/?p=ext

 

It would seem not.

Try these then if you think they are always right and everyone else is wrong:

http://www.sctriallaw.com/other-misc...-the-back.html
http://www.pneus-online.co.uk/faq-technique.html#2
http://www.celtictyres.co.uk/front-rear.php
http://www.goodyeartires.com/faqs/Technical.html#6
http://www6.autonet.ca/Maintenance/T...09/511272.html
http://www.justtyres.com/i-news/index.php?p=51
http://www.dunloptires.com/care/faqs.html#frontRear
http://www.popularmechanics.com/auto...o/4243992.html

 

Well you've posted many links that suggest it is better to put the newer tires on back. There are probably as many links that suggest otherwise. However, you haven't supported your claim of "Routine rotation front-to-back is seen as a big no-no by safety authorities".

 

I made no comment about about replacing tires front or back only rotation as shown by the text I quoted. Also some of the links you provided include advice about how to rotate ones tires.

I think you should to read up on the NHTSA to understand why it is a reputable safety authority. It is the governmental body for the US's car and traffic safety.

http://www.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/Cfc_title49/index.html

 

I'm so sorry; I just thought:"Routine rotation front-to-back isn't recommended by most authorities" would be too formal and stuffy.

 

Rotating tires in X pattern can be a bit dangerous I would not recommend it even if you have uni-directional tires. I had some bad experiences with it. With steel belted radial tires, the steel belts are stretched on way on normal driving. When you rotate in a X pattern, you are changing the stretch pattern in the opposite direction. On some tires, this causes the belts to shred and come apart and tires have a really bad blowout.

Tires should always be rotated front to rear to front keeping the rotation pattern the same.

Tire rotation is good, rule of thumb, when the tires are getting worn, keep the tires with most thread on the drive axle. In the case of MINI, in the front. A blow out in the rear is easy to control at any speed, blowout in the front is harder. Also most of your braking force is in the front.

 

Don't know how to rotate your tires? Don't wanna waste money getting it done by someone else? If you're in the PHX area, give me a shout (send an IM) and I'll do it for you (and teach you how to do it) free of charge.

 

Not true. Whether they are run-flat or not, performance tires are typically unidirectional and all-seasons are generally not. So check your tire sidewall information before you do anything.

 

Perhaps they have some lessons to learn too, judging by international road accident statistics:

http://www.factbook.net/EGRF_Regional_analyses_HMCs.htm

 

In other words you cannot prove your claim.

 

I'm sure every governmental agency responsible for car and traffic safety can learn others. It doesn't lesson the fact that it is a reputable agency for traffic safety. If you want to continue discussing I suggest creating a new thread as this conversation has taken us off topic of tire rotation.

 

With anti-lock brakes and DSC I would think you would want the tires with the most traction located where the highest forces will be. (The front for us.) That would retain the highest level of control and safty, wouldn't it? I'm not sure if even bald rear tires on ice would be an issue with modern electronics.

 

If that makes you feel better; I can't be bothered to argue with you.