As this is my first Mini, driving on non-rf's is something yet to be experienced. What I am no stranger to is changing a flat friggin tire. There was a time when my low pressure indicator signaled a problem, and sure enough I managed to pick up a screw, squarely centered in the tread groove. At the time I was working full time and attending classes full time, so for the following week a regular stop at the air pump was necessary. After that, an appointment to the local Goodyear remedied the problem in about 20-30 minutes,(plus 50 bucks ) and my worries were over.

In carrying that screw around, I developed a newfound appreciation for the run-flats that are always frowned upon, in general, by other Mini owners. The time spent driving on the damaged tire did not depreciate the tire further and dare I say that it seemed like the tire was never having a problem maintaining its pressure. The same patched-up piece of rubber is still allowing me to take turns aggressively, maintain excellent (and I do mean excellent ) highway speeds and still stop on a dime.

Give up my run-flats? You'd have to pay me! Besides, where the heck am I gonna put a spare?! On my Panzer seats?! Forget about it.

 

You'll have to forgive my silly question. Since stock size is 205, what effects will having a wider tire have on my MINI's rim, wheel clearance and speedometer (I assume that gives me a slightly taller tire?).

 

215/45 is a little less than a centimeter taller than 205/45, and the tire is 10mm wider - 5mm to the inside, and 5mm to the outside of the rim. On cars with no lowering to moderate (about 1") lowering, this doesn't create clearance issues. Some cars with more lowering may have slight rubbing, depending on camber and other setup factors.

In my case, the speedo read a couple percent high with the stock size tires. The 215/45 tires "trued this up" quite nicely. Net impact on speedo is that you'll actually be going about 1-2% faster than you used to, at the same speedo reading.

One nice side effect of the 215/45 size is aesthetic - while subtle, that extra ~1cm of diameter visually fills the wheel wells better and the extra 1cm width makes the stance look more aggressive from front and rear.

 

BF Goodrich G-Force Sport conventionals. I run 205/50/ZR16s, and I love them-- fairly quiet, sticky, and durable. About $85/ea.

As far as preparing for flats: go AAA.

 

Any opinions on the BFGoodrich g-Force T/A KDW-2?

Seems like a good tire, but "noisy". I wonder how noisy they are. Does anyone have any experience?

 

Darn noisy. Seriously noisy. At least on the cars I've heard them on. I haven't owned them... and I'm glad I haven't, based on what I heard...

 

Any thoughts on the Dunlop SP Sport Maxx?

Price seems reasonable enough to take a shot at. Can't be any noisier than my current Dunlop SP 9000 Runflats...

 

Bridgestone Re-01Rs are magnificent... if the Re-11s are way better, I can't wait to try them out!

But to the poster who drove around highway speeds with a damaged tire.... why couldn't you just slime the tire and fill it up with an air compressor... no spare needed. Besides, if you get a flat with your run flat tires, they're only good for fifty miles... only good if you're driving in the middle of absolute nowhere.

Ride is 5x better with the RE-01s... and if you thought you could corner with the stock tires... whew!

 

We are about to order a Clubman S. Since we live in Maine, with its sometimes tough roads and iffy weather. Our inclination is to not get the runflats.

Since we are concerned about comfort, both ride and noise, the thought has been to go with 16” wheels. So far, the tire of choice is the Bridgestone RE60 AS Pole Position with one question. Will this tire work in the 205/55R16 size. The slight increase in diameter does not bother us.

Major considerations: Comfort, ability to handle rough roads, good road holding. We will not be racing, just enjoying spirited driving!

Is there enough clearance for 205/55R16?
Are spacers needed?
Does anyone have an argument against?
Other recommendations are welcome!

Thank you

 

The new RE-11s are available at tire rack now. ~$180 for 215/45/17 size

holy crap! The RE-01s are on closeout sale ~50% off! I'm tempted to get a set even though my new mini wont be here for a couple months.

 

Dunlop Star Spec's are a good choice but the new RE-11's might just be a better tire. And then here comes the new Yokohama AD08's ! So many choice's, so little money...

 

Don't forget about Kumho's new XS and NEW sizes like a 215/45 16!! As good a tire as the R-11 but costs about $30 less each!! Plus the R-11 doesn't have the desireable 215/45 16 size. This size is just a smidge 10mm shorter and this helps with the Cooper non-S Mini gearing!

 

Dunlop z1 star spec's are a great choice if you want the most grip from a street tire.

Hankook Ventus R-S2 is also a good option with better tread wear.

Agreed that Kumho XS looks like a great new option, but its not warm enough for us in Indiana to test it, yet this season.

Alex

 

It's too cold here as well, I have them on now to, shave them by road before my next event in Phoenix AZ, forecast is calling for a high of 81 sunny with 15% humidity, so I will have some raw numbers by the 16th. But I was daring enough (on a freeway cloverleaf on-ramp) to push them to .89 lat Gs in 44deg weather with no hint of a squeel!! So far I love them, much much better cornering and response than the rt-615!

 

I pushed the XS a little more this past Sunday on some local switchbacks and I was amazed!!! The outside temp was around 50deg. and the tires were warm not to ideal temps but around 96deg. These new XS's were holding very well at 1.15 lat G's with no hint of a squeel. I didn't have the nerve to push them harder than that on public roads! Needles to say the grip is there, as for steering responsiveness it's lacking there a little compared to the 615 but that just might be because the 615 is 205 wide and the XS is 215 but I'm not sure on that since the XS has a shorter sidewall. Autox is on the 15th will know more then.

 

What were the dimensions on the Falkens? What suspension mods do you have?

 

The tire sizes are as folows rt-615 205/50 15, XS 215/45/16.
While the XS is 10mm wider, actual width difference is more like 4mm.

My mods well...I have installed H-Sport lowering springs, Koni Yellows, F & R STBs, Helix Camber plates set at -2 deg, H-sport lower control arms set at -1.5 deg camber, Alta 22mm ARSB, Konig Feather 16" wheels.

Again I believe alot of this has to do with the 215/45 16 size, which is wider with a shorter sidewall but 14mm taller. I just wasn't expecting that much of a difference

 

Thoughts on the following to replace Kumho Ecsta SPTs in 215/45R17?

Bridgestone Potenza RE760 Sports
Sumitomo HTR Z III
Goodyear F1 Asymmetric


Spirited daily driver in the land of 10,000 pothole-filled roads.

 

I went from the spt to the dunop z1's....and felt like a golden god

 

The RE01-R are super quiet and soft if you can hunt them down. A great street and race (ST Class) tire, IMHO. It will be interesting to see if the RE11-R kept the same ride traits as the RE01-R. A touch expensive, yet worth the expense.

The Dunlop Z1* is super sticky in the warm, but are rough and loud. Great response and feedback. Cheap...

Yokohama AD07s are rough, but not quite at loud as the Z1*s. Great response and feedback. Pretty spendy.

The Toyo R1R is a super grippy and soft tire, although they are ungodly loud. Horrible response and feel with no sidewall support. Cheap and not worth it.

Just a few tires I've had experience with street driving and racing.

Rob

 

I forgot to add the Michelin Pilot Exalto PE2. I think I'm down to that and the Goodyears.