I am in the process of purchasing a 2011 MCS and I am undecided if I will stay with the standard 16" wheels or upgrade to the 17" option. I have no plans for track days, etc. and want a comfortable ride (after ridding myself of the RF). I very much like the look of the 17" conical spoke wheels on the car but don't want a bone shaking ride. I live in New England and the roads are not the best after last winter. Please pour in the opinions! Thanks.

 

i think the 17's look sharp as well! but im not sure how harsh the ride will be because i have the 16s right now... although i am looking to upgrade to 17s very soon

 

This was one of the biggest debates I had when I ordered mine. As you can see below, I ended up sticking with the 16s. But I was truly torn. The 16s ended up looking better than I thought they would. I think the difference between the 15s on the MC and the 16s on the MCS is a lot greater than the 16s vs. 17s.

 

Take the standard 16", that's what I did. 16" will ride better, and if you want 17" they are better (lighter) options available in the aftermarket.

 

you can always upgrade to aftermarket wheels, 17 or even 18 later and they are MUCH cheaper than the factory MINI wheels, you can even get them mount/balanced and shipped to you for the price of what you'd pay for just the wheels from the dealer

 

If you go with a 16", you will be able to put a higher profile tire on, which will help with the ride harshness.

 

another thing to consider - larger sized wheels are more prone to damage. i had my car for all of 4 days and ate a pothole on the entrance ramp of the freeway here. $450 later, i have new front right wheel and am gonna try to file a claim with the city. if i were living in RI, i'd stick with 16's. take the money you save and get a set of 17's for the summer. the price i paid for one web spoke wheel would have nearly paid for 3 rota rb's. and btw, the ride is a bit harsher on 17s. i think part of it is that my car is 2.5 weeks old and is just settling into itself. so the ride is getting better, but you still feel every bump/crack in the road.

 

I just recently purchased a 2008 MCS that had the 16" S Winders on it. I didn't care for them so I purchased a set of 17" S Lites with tires that had 75 miles on them from a fellow forum member. I got the package deal for what it would cost to buy four new tires!! I really like the look of those wheels on the Mini. I actually don't notice any harsher ride on the 17" versus the 16".

 

Also a New Englander. I currently have and am selling an 07 MCS that had 17's, and getting a 11 MCS with 16's. Doing it because of ride quality and because I do not track the car. The 17's look nice, but there certainly is a tradeoff in comfort.

 

What tires did you use for the 17"? Are they non RFTs?

My experience is that tires can make a big different in tire quality, perhaps even on par with 16" to 17" change.

 

I would go with the 17's and skip the sports suspension. Also if you get the all-season tires, they are a little more tolerable, but they are still run-flats.

 

Thanks Gentlemen. I think I am going to go for the 16" wheel/tire set. Come November, I will mount them with Blizzacks for the RI winter, and and that will give me from now to next March to locate a set of 17" wheels in the NAM Marketplace and give them a try with some non RF tires next Spring.

 

rimtnbiker, i am doing the same thing with my '11. ordered the 16" (and they don't look bad). I'll run those through this summer and switch to blizzaks on the O.E. 16's in October, then buy some 17" Breytons that I really like next March. Then, I'll have rims/tires for all seasons! This also gives me some time to "recover" financially from the car purchase.

 

The tires are Contintental run-flats that were OEM on the car they were taken off of.

 

don't forget to include TPMSs when budgeting for new wheels. they run about $200 for a set of 4.

 

My '09 MCS came with 17" wheels and run flats. I thought the ride was tight, but harsh, especially on less-than-perfect roads.
So, at the advice of several folks here, I bought a set of 16" wheels and non-run-flat tires.
The difference in ride is dramatic. The taller sidewall of the 16" Potenzas, without the run-flat inner support really helps.
Plus, I actually like the look of the 16's versus the 17's, but that's personal preference.

 

John, what size did you buy? 195x55x16 or 205x60x16

 

I checked out the available tires and opted for Bridgestone Potenza RE760 195/55R-16.
It's definitely a 'summer tire,' which here in Los Angeles, is fine.
I thought the wider rubber on the Rota RB wheels might have looked kind of un-stock. I bought the Rota RBs because they look so much like original Minilites!