Trying to do a 2010 build (so many choices)..and I'm not sure of the difference with repect to the sizes, and/or why one would choose one over another (apart from the design aesthetics). Can someone explain? No, I won't be racing if that's a consideration.

Also..are any of these wheels available anywhere for less than dealership prices...especially the JCW wheels?

Thanks in advance guys!

 

1.) no matter what size the wheel and tire, they all will have the same diameter, and rolling circumfrence. That means the the larger the wheel, the less sidewall the tire has. That maens the stiffer the sidewall has to be, and that means the ride comfort will suffer, but performance will probably go up...

I just picked up my '10 MCS. I ordered the sports package, (along with everything else), and it came with 17" wheels and tires. I then ordered another set of wheels and snow tires from Tirerack. I chose a 16" wheel and a more narrow tire for the snows. (narrower is better for snow tires)


There are about a million wheels that will fit. I suggest looking at www.tirerack.com and seeing.

Unless you are going to be tracking the car a lot, I wouldn't suggest anything larger than 17's.

 

Here you can buy OEM wheels at a discount
http://www.trademotion.com/partlocator/index.cfm?action=accessoryPart5&siteid=214217&cata logid=5277&categoryID=126740

The choice between 16, 17, and 18" wheels comes down to your preference for aesthetics, cost and ride comfort. Smaller wheels allow for more sidewall in your tires, so the ride should be more comfortable. On the flip side, larger wheels fill the wheel wells better and IMO look better, but they cost more and you sacrifice some comfort.

You can also go for wider wheels to give you a more aggressive stance and to put more rubber on the road for better grip.

In my opinion, the R56 needs at least 17" wheels to look right. 18" should be the maximum. An R53 should have 16" to 17".

 

If you're ordering, I would just avoid the run-flat option, personally. The hardest ride you'll ever feel. I went from 16" Bridge spokes and run flats to a 17" wheel and medium performance tires - the difference in comfort was noticeable immediately.

 

Can get used JCW wheels for cheap here and on Ebay.

 

The main reason for larger wheels is that short sidewall tires are in fashion. If you want to impress teenage girls, you may want large wheels.

There are some great aftermarket wheels available at much better prices than the OEM wheels. My choice would be to go with the cheapest wheels available from the factory, then get a set of aftermarket wheels in the size you want. If you live in an area where snow tires are useful, keep the 16" factory wheels, and put snow tires on them. Use the aftermarket wheels for summer tires.

Of the factory wheels, the 16" are 6.5" wide and come with 195/55-16 tires. The 17" are 7" wide and come with 205/45-17 tires. That means the tires with the 17" wheels have a tread that is 10 cm wider than the 16" wheels.

I'm not sure what size tires the 18" wheels come with. They may be 215/35-18.

The smaller wheel allows a taller tire sidewall. This will absorb some of the bumps in the road. The handling characteristics are a trade-off. The shorter sidewall of the large wheel can give quicker turn-in response, but larger wheels are heavier. The lighter the wheel the better the acceleration, braking, ride comfort, and possibly road grip on rough surface. Heavy wheels are bad. The factory wheels are very heavy. The 17" wheels weigh about 22.5 lbs. each. I have a set of 17x7 wheels that only weigh 16 lbs. My 16x7 wheels only weigh 14 lbs.

Many people, myself included, have bought wheels that are 16x7" and mounted either 205/55-16 or 205/50-16 tires on them. That gives you the comfort of the higher sidewall of the 16" wheel, but the wider tread width. However, neither of these tires exactly match the factory tire diameter. The 205/50-16 is close to the tires dia. that comes with factory 16" wheels, but still is a little smaller. It is 0.4" smaller than the dia. that comes with 17" wheels. The 205/55-16 is 0.4" larger than comes with 17" wheels. The 55 gives you a little more comfort, and your speedo will be a little more accurate (MINI speedos are optimistic). The 50 will give you a little bit lower effective gearing, so better acceleration and lower mpg.

Some people get 17x7.5 wheels and fit 215 or 225 width tires.

 

What if "he" is a she and wants to impresses teenage boys?

 

Just realise also the larger the wheel the more chance of bending it if you hit a hole.

 

I have 18" wheels, the ride is a little stiff but I think the car looks better with the big wheels.

 

Probably work even better.

 

I'd say this has a lot more to do with the quality of the wheel than the size.

 

Uh.. really??

I think it's just that bigger wheels are in fashion, and shorter sidewalls are a side effect.

I don't advise buying the larger Mini wheels. They're all VERY heavy, and if you also stick with runflats, that weight plus the runflats' extra weight and concrete-like sidewalls makes for a very uncomfortable, ill-handling ride. If you want bigger wheels, go aftermarket, and lose the runflats at the same time. If you're going stock, stick with the 16" S-winders - they're the lightest stock rim, and don't seem to be all that common.

 

Being old school I like a bit more sidewall and ride comfort, so the 16" is my ideal.

...now if I only could figure out how to shoehorn on a set of Torq Thrusts...

 

That's somewhat chicken and egg, but my memory is that the tire profile was the driving force. This trend began quite awhile ago, and the talk was about the tires.

 

Where you live is a factor on wheel selection, also.

Example: If you live in NYC area, I wouldn't go with 18" wheels. I have 15" on my non-s Clubman and 17s" on the 07 MCS Hatch and 07 MCS Vert. Construction, potholes, uneven pavement, crap on roads are killers on wheels and body kits for MINIs here.

I'm originally from South Carolina and I would do 18" wheels and Body Kit there. Just plain smoother roads.

 

Wow..thanks guys...everything you wanted to know but were afraid to ask! Maybe I don't need to do a build after all. Anyway I'll do some more thinking about what you guys said, and I know I'll have more questions later (don't go away!).

Btw..can the driving lamps also be had (and installed) aftermarket and cheaper as well?

 

If I had to do it over again, I would have built the cost of the driving lamps into my monthly payment. After a lot of thought and looking at lots of MINIs, it's ironic that inimini2007's PW has set up his driving lamps exactly the way I want to do mine. I considered aftermarket PIAA's for the MINI, but the more I looked at them, the more they looked like they belong on a 4-wheel drive... and there was not a significant price difference.

 

Prestige MINI in Matawah NJ is selling driving lights for $400 and I think it may be a complete package, but I'm not sure, Of course you have to install them yourself or pay someone to do it. So maybe you would rather pay MINI the $525 they are asking.