Hello all,

Looking for some advice.

Am currently looking for new tires for my '06 S JCW and am running the 205/45 R17 Pirelli Euphoria and am wondering:

For those of you who had the runflats and what to a non runflat tire which was it and how was the ride?

for those that switched to other tires other than OEM, did the ride change at all?

By ride, I mean, noise, comfortability, handling etc...

Was it worth the switch?

Thanks

 

?

 

I think the most important thing here is what you want to do with the car. Generally, going to non rft should give you a better ride and perhaps some handling improvement but it would depend on the type of tire you choose. Go to www.tirerack.com and look around at the different types of tires.

I typically use the extreme performance tires in the summer so it gives me better performance but the tires last about 10K miles.

 

I'm not sure if its wise but I've been looking at strictly All Season Performance Tires even though I store my car in the mid fall/winter until late spring.

The main reason is that I just don't want to be buying tires all the time or after such low kms.

I have been looking at the following:

Toyo Proxes 4
Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus
Goodyear Eagle F1 All-Season

Just want to hear some real feedback on these and others that have switched from runflat to non runflat a Mini.

 

Cannot really help you on all seasons. Hope someone else can chime in.

You could write to alex@tirerack.com. He is great resource.

 

Seeing how I don't drive in the winter, and the car gets stored in the fall, is it worth it for me to buy strictly Summer Tires?

If that is the case, what would be my average life of them if you're able to guess estimate?

Or will I be replacing them every year.

I put on about 10,000 - 12,000k a summer.

 

As you know, it all depends on how you drive.

I like extreme performance summer tires because they are just so much more fun to drive on. I would estimate that you could get 12K-15K out of a set of Dunlop Direzza Z1 Star Specs, perhaps a little more.

I would go with extreme performance summers if you store the car for winter. The drive is just so much better.

With 17" rims, I would go with 215/45 17.

 

Forgot to mention, the Dunlops have a rebate of $50 right now. The 215/45 17 is going for $121 ea at tirerack. I just checked their site. There is also discounttire.com as well.

The Z1 seems to be the best value for extreme summer tire out there right now.

 

So with the 215 does it affect gas mileage?

basically i would be getting one season out of then?

 

It all depends on how hard your pushing the gas with all of that new grip. Going to a 215/45 should not change much at all, but you will be happy you got rid of the run flats.

 

It might affect mileage a little. I did not notice any change on mine but it is hard to tell since you have changed the diameter a little (from about 24.3" to 24.6" about 0.3%). These measures are tire dependent.

Basically one to one and a quarter season.

If you are near the NE, I would let you take my car for a spin to see what you think of the differences.

 

Thanks for the offer. I live in Canada.

Okay thanks.

I guess I feel as if I want to get rid of the runflats but having a hard time deciding on which tire.

Also feel like not sure I'm up for buying new tires every season you know.

 

Then, you can go for the ones with a lot more treadwear, such as max performance. I cannot help you much there.

 

I'd look at the General Exclaim, at Tire Rack. Although it's listed as basically a summer tire, I know some who have used it in very light snow and cooler weather. It's certainly cheap enough and has an interesting tread design.

If you are looking at a cheap all season, I am running Kumho Ecsta ASX. They are V-rated and provide a world of difference in the ride compared to the runflats. They can go as a summer-type tire, especially where you live, in Canada.

My summer tires are Falken Azenis RT-615 and I cannot say enough good things about those...they really stick and even though they are very HP tires, I am getting decent wear from them...have about 5k on them and they are basically used to go to and from the track [as well as ON the track for HPDEs. The ride is good, too, and they have a very aggressive tread design...great in wet and dry, but never to be used in snow or temps below 50 degrees F.

 

So many decisions.

I do want a nice fun tire to drive with but at the same time not have to replace it every season.

I have been looking at the following:

Goodyear Eagle GT
Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus

But i'm still not sure.

Do i just get cheaper summer tires and then next season get new ones or do i spend a little more and get really good max all season performance tires and have them for 2-3 seasons.

 

You seem to have more money to spend that I. For MY money, the Kumho ASX is a great tire, and has a warranty of 30,000 miles. Some of the reviews I read said that they had more miles on them than that, but since I have occasionally tracked my car with them on, 30k sounds about right. My old set is 205-50-16, but the ones I am using right now are a tad bigger at 215-50-16. I have no rubbing issues and the ride seems smoother. The fuel economy depends on my mood and the speedo is actually about 1 mph faster with the 215s than with the 205s.

 

I just got rid of my run-flats. I'm sorry that I was so frugal and just HAD to wear out the OEM tires.... in retrospect, that was silly.

I bought some Bridgestone G019 GRIDs. My 205/45R17 ran $82/tire at my local Firestone dealer. Couldn't believe the price.

The ride is so much smoother and quieter than the rfts and they have great grip. The treadwear is in the 400s and the mileage warantee is 50K. I HIGHLY recommend this tire!

The other tire under my consideration was the Continental Extreme DWS, but with the great reviews it has gotten it was unavailable for 3 months and I needed tires now.

 

I guess it comes down to this.

Money is an issue but than it is not.

If i'm going to pay say for example, $2000 for tires, I want to make sure I'm getting a good value tire.

But at the same time, if I can pay $1000 and get just as good a tire, I will.

So it is, but than it isn't an issue.

In the end, I understand the runflat is heavier. Not as smooth a ride etc...I just want to replace my runflats, as I didn't drive the car once last year because I needed tire replacement and so I'm in the serious hunt for a set of tires to purchase in the next month or so, so I can enjoy my MINI.

I just want a solid tire that will perform well and not leave a sour taste in my mouth as the runflats did (wearing out to soon), for a good fair price.

Those Bridgestones look nice. I can't believe they're that cheap. They are H rated which is plenty for me and my MINI. Some of the others were W etc...but H seems to be fine.

With the Kumho ASX how is the road noise.

I do not want a loud tire that is for sure.

 

I'm comfortable with the Kumho ASX. I have an MCS with a CAI, pulley and MIlltek catback. The reason I say that is because I don't feel that noise is an issue with my car. Even when I am on the highway, it sounds [to me] like any other car. I guess it boils down to a matter of opinion...what is quiet to me may not be so to you and vice versa. I can say, thought, that even as my old set of ASX tires are on their last legs [ie, quickly nearing the treadwear bars], the noise factor isn't so bad that I'd like to pull over and just cut them from the car. They ARE noisier now, and the ride isn't as nice as it was when they were new 3 yrs. ago. Even so, at the price I paid, and since the pricing has not gone up all that much for the 205-50-16, I think I'll be sticking with them.

 

The Bridgestone's I have are "V" speed rated.

 

Considering you don't drive in the winter, you may want to consider an Ultra High Performance or Ultra High Performance All Season type tire (as Tire Rack categorizes them). While you are buying from 1010, you may want to consider reviewing TireRack's web site specifically the various tire tests that they do to get some impressions of the tires you are considering.

I would under no reason consider any Goodyear Eagle. They suck.

That said, the Michelin you mentioned are a good tire but anything Michelin is more expensive.

The Bridgestone Grid mentioned above is a good all season tire. The Bridgeston 760 is a more performance oriented tire. This is what I just got for my car: http://www.1010tires.com/tire.asp?ti...za+RE760+Sport

The Yokohama S Drive is another great tire with similar performance aspects as the Bridgestone 760 http://www.1010tires.com/tire.asp?ti...emodel=S.Drive


A small step down in brand name, check out...

The Falken Ziex 912 and Hankook have gotten some good reviews on tire tests also and are very reasonably priced:
http://www.1010tires.com/tire.asp?ti...el=Ziex+ZE-912
http://www.1010tires.com/tire.asp?tirebrand=Hankook&tiremodel=Ventus+V12+Ev o+(K110)

The General exclaim UHP has also gotten some great reviews but they have rather soft sidewalls and aren't as sporty as some of the others on this list.

In the end, you will be well served reading some of the reviews and tests on Tire Rack to help you decide. You will only get opinions on a user forum from people that probably have only tried one of the tires you are considering. Or haven't tried any of them are are telling you what they heard somewhere. Only some of these opinions will be helpful.

The right tire is worth the switch. The wrong tire can be disappointing.

 

I'm leaning towards the Bridgestone Potenza Grids.

They are only going to be an extra $30-40 or so, installed, balanced etc..I don't think I'm going to get any cheaper, unless I order online and then pay.

While going up to the 215 is tempting, I'm not sure I'm going to notice any major difference.

 

I just switched rims and tires 2 days ago (for the tires I went up a size; Falken 912's - 215/45/17) and the difference is "EXTREMELY" noticable from the old 205/45/17 OEM Dunlop runflats.

Honestly, it's like going from driving a go-cart to a Cadillac (keeping in mind that with such a short wheel base on the Mini, the ride is never going to be "soft"). As for going up a size, I like how the 215's fill in the wheel wells more, it gives it a better look......but that's just an appearance thing.

 

The one guy I spoke to today actually gave me a price on those same Falken tires you just got put on.

That nice and good a ride eh?

I wonder how they compare to the Grids?

 

i have 16 inch wheels on a 2010 MCS. I am going to ditch the run flats. What are the pros and cons of going to 205 50 16 versus 215 50 16? Thanks.