Hi all, I've been searching for a set of OEM 17" wheels to replace the 16" ones that came on my R59. I found a set of 18" JCW R113 wheels locally but they have Pirelli P-Zero runflats on them. My 16s have Bridgestone runflats and the ride is already pretty rough so I assume with 18s it would be very uncomfortable. Anyone have experience running this size on a roadster with runflats? I have stock suspension with no plans to change it. Thanks

 

Just a suggestion, ditching the run flats will really make your ride comfort/feel better. If you do decide to go with the 18's I'd suggest getting rid of the run flats.

 

I have the OEM 17 inch Conti runflats on our R59 and found that they are nearly OK, but only at recommended inflation pressure. Otherwise they feel pretty dead. They will be replaced by a good quality 17 inch non run-flat when the time comes. I might go to a 215/45 17 tire. I still have quite a bit of time to research a new tire.

Don't think I'd go to an 18 inch tire, run-flat or not. An 18 inch tire size doesn't leave too much sidewall to protect the rim from a bad broken road surfaces. Plus a non run-flat tire in that size would probably be fairly stiff feeling, maybe nearly as stiff as a 17 inch run-flat. So I don't see much added comfort from an 18 inch, if comfort is the goal someone was aiming at.

 

I had the 17" runflats on the R58 and they are a bit hard, it depends on the manufacturer also, some runflats are very hard conti sport and other are softer Pir. P zero. Is not bad , but is a big change when you go to non runflats.

 

Thanks for the suggestions guys, I'm going to stick with 17s

 

Welcome. 17 run smother in general that 18" on a MINI but 18" fill the wheel wells more,

 

 

dump the run flats. best thing I ever did.

 

I have 205 /40 /18 Bridgestone Potenza runflats on mine and they're decent. A 40 section is never going to ride like a Rolls Royce, runflat or regular.

 

Yea, when you go that low in series , its will have a rougher ride, but most RF i had were much harder then any non runflat i had. The P zero in RF were about the softest.

 

I always consider typical road surfaces I'm going to be driving on when deciding on a tire. Some State's roads are better than others and make a big difference. If we had table smooth roads here in Maine, I wouldn't mind having 40 series 18 inch tire on my R59, but we hardly ever come close to that standard. Right now we're going through the Springtime road break up that can tear up secondary roads. This is the type of road surface condition that can destroy a nice low profile wheel/tire combination very easily. I've driven on 16 ad 17 inch 45 series tires very carefully without damage... the key words there are "very carefully".

My son went with an 18 inch 40 series tire on his Focus and experienced wheel damage, more than one time. I have several friends that have also toasted some really nice wheels during the Spring break up season. It doesn't take much when the rim is only about 2 inches from the road and you hit an sharp pothole edge.

As far as comfort, again depends on road surface. Florida seems to have fairly smooth flat roads that are pretty comfortable even on a 35 series RF tire. Here in Maine, 50-55 series tire is probably best for avoiding damage and maintaining a somewhat comfortable ride. We took the Mini out for a ride last weekend, and had to do some dodging around to miss some mean broken pavement in a couple of places. Just have to stay alert to deformities and missing bits of road.

 

Yes, the lower the profile the more one should be engaged with its driving, which means know when to slow down to go over bad pavement, or when and how to avoid pot holes or other road obstacle. It's a constant attention requirement. You can't drive a 40 profile on a MINI like you do with an d SUV with soft suspension and large tires.

Florida can be night and day. If you do mostly highway and coastal driving you're in pretty good shape. But if you live there many areas are in bad shape and because they use a lot of concrete there when it breaks up it's unforgiving.

Here in western PA I'd say the roads are very consistent . . . consistently poor that is. I'd give it a 4 out of 10. I probably can count smooth roads with one hand. But it's not horrible either and outside winter times. In the last 2 to 3 years they've actually improve the roads a lot compared to the previous 10. Still bad roads but better patched. Some how I get the feel they got more state funding.

45 profile is typically where I'm happy in regards to unnecessary tire abuse...

 

Running runflats at this profile actually helps, I think. The rigid sidewalls are probably saving my rims daily!