Tire Recommendations--Your Favs?
 

Hi, all,
Well, I'm taking the much-needed plunge back into the world of non-runflat tires! Can't wait.

But I need your help. After much reading of descriptions and reviews on TireRack.com, and talks with my tire shop, have narrowed it down to three, but other ideas are welcome:

1. Yokohama AVID ENVigors (high performance all-season (my size for all tires is 195/55/R16)
2. Bridgestone Ecopia EP422 (Grand Touring All-Season) LRR for gas mileage
3. Hankook Ventus V4 ES H105 (Ultra-high performance all season)

I live in Phoenix, so I need tires that can handle heat and snow (mountains).

The reviews of the Hankook on TireRack were not too hot, but I'll see what your comments are.

I appreciate your wise opinions and experiences!!

Thank you, Paula

I was in the same boat as you last week. I was stuck between the ENvigors you mentioned and the Continental ExtremeContact DWS model. The Yokos are heavy and are "ok" in the snow, but the Contis are awesome all around. I had a set put on Monday and are waiting for them to break in to really see how they go.

Good Luck!
-Johnny

BTW, here is a thread on the DWS and what others considered as well.
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...-thoughts.html

Hi, Johny,
Unfortunately, the Conti's you speak of don't come in my size. But I'll check out the other thread too. Thanks!

No problem! If you went down to a 195/50/16, then you could get the Contis, but I know of the issues that could possible cause. I refuse to go under a 40 on my cars. I kept the 45 when I went to a 215/45/17.

Plus, that size is back ordered anyhow on TireRack. I had to hunt down my Contis. Haha.

I'm running with Hankook Ventus V12's and I love it! Awesome grip in dry and wet weather! (Not for snow though) On top of that, it's not too expensive! Got a set from discount tire for less than $500 installed! :thumbsup:

Also, if you were not going for something super, uber sporty, these would be awesome, too. I know someone who has these and is able to keep up with everyone on the runs we do.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....del=Altimax+HP

You also cannot beat the price!

But still, if I were you, I would go with the Yokos. :thumbsup:

That's too bad because they're great tires. I've had them for about a year and have been extremely pleased.

Go to a 205/50/16 and you'll have a lot more choices. The fit will be fine.

Tires
 

I just wanted to let you know that I went with the Envigors, I has changed the ride of my Clubman S all for the good.
I love the ride, and the traction in all conditions. :thumbsup:
I have just moved to Georgia from Chicago area and they do very well in the snow and ice, as long as you drive like a person with common sense.
The quietness of the ride is great !! :nod:
I don't go to the track with my Clubman S so I can't tell you about the ragged edge of the handling, But if you are looking for an all around very well tire the Envigor is it.
By the way I have the exact same size tire as you, and went with the same size for the Envigors so I would not have to worry about tire rubbing on ANYTHING. :grin:

Any reason why no one is considering or mentioning Nokians? Is it price? Ride comfort?

If anyone replaced their stock runflats 195/55/16 with NokianWR or WRG2 Runflats I would like to know if happy with them.

I had non-runflat Nokian WRs as snow tires for a few years. They were great!

See, I knew she couldn't have broken up the Beatles . . .
 

Thanks for all your responses!
gepperso: Thanks for the first-hand account of them.

nics.sd: I looked at the Hankooks, but the Yokos kept calling. :)

Squirlz: Yeah, I thought about changing the size, but I did that with another sports car years ago and the tires were great, but they slightly hit the wheel well on tight U-turns. Had to take them back. Don't really have time to find out (two trips, etc.)

Laardilla21: Aren't Altimax General tires? My tire guy wouldn't even discuss those. lol

Any other favs?

Haha. It was just a suggestion.

I would go bigger if you can. I went with a 215 on mine and have not had any rub issues, so I cannot see a 205 rubbing on your car. There are just way more options in a 205.

But again, if you stick with the 195, get the ENvigors. :thumbsup:

That won't happen unless you got wheels with the wrong offset. Trust me.

We have Ecopias on our Prius. They are simply not the right character of tire for the Cooper. Of the three you list I would only consider the Envigor.

I went to the Hankooks about 4 mos ago and am very happy. Good tire for the price. Immediate upgrade in ride quality and much less road noise. Too early to tell how good the wear is, and they handle well, do not notice the "roll" effect one guy had reported. Naturally they will not be as stiff in the corners as the RFs, but I have not noticed enough difference to bother me.

I have a set of Falken 512's with 26,000 miles on them - they were my first set of summer tires and I loved the performance, but after 10,000 miles they became very noisy. Although there's a life left in them, I'm getting Bridgestone Potenza RE760 Sports tomorrow. :nod: I won't buy another set of Falkens though the price was right at the time.

The RE760 is an ultra high performance summer tire and with a treadware rating of 340 so they'll last longer than stock run-flats and the Falkens.

Just thought I'd share what I researched this winter and the Bridgestones come highly recommended from some other MINI owners, too.

Thanks for the input! I was temporarily lured into thinking of the Ecopias due to the PR from Bridgestone, touting them as "made for high-MPG vehicles like the Prius and the MINI Cooper." Hmmm. Saving gas is tempting.

But I figure I'll be saving gas anyway as the Yokos are lighter than the run-flats I have now. Plus, they will wear MUCH better.

Thank you!

Post some pics when you get them installed!

Also, are you staying with a 195?

I have the Envigors and I like them. I live in Wa st where it rains a lot. I wouldn't recommend for snow though. For snow tires I'd go with the Nokians.

Finally home with my new tires and bushings!
 

Yes, I did! I did everything in one day today--spent the WHOLE day on the car as it turned out . . . Went to Network Alignment in the morning to check out the bushing/control arm issue and they said they could do it no problem, but they've have to order the parts from BMW. So, I went to Big O and got the tires put on while they got the parts. That only took about 45 minutes--the difference is AMAZING. Much quieter, smoother, and the thought of saving so much money (half the price of Conti run-flats at the dealer) with better wear made me giddy riding down the road.

I got back to the alignment place at 1:00 and I just got back from the place only a half an hour ago. It took them about 4.5 hours to replace the bushings and do the alignment, then another 1.5 hours of adjustments. (I had no ride home, so I stayed there. I now smell like their lobby. lol)

They had left a small piece hanging from the bushing replacement (sounded worse than it was, but I could hear it) and there was a whooshing sound under the dash. Turned out to be a loose rubber grommet (?) that moved when they dropped the part to put the bushings on. Oy vey. But they apologized and now the car is fine.

All in all, I saved $600 on the tires by getting non-runflats, and I saved $450 on the bushings and alignment by having Network do it instead of the dealer. Wow.

Tomorrow, I will bathe my baby car and take some tire pics for all!

Paula

See my sig for some great Michelins......

:thumbsup:

Nokian WRG2's are amazing. I've run them on several vehicles. I run dedicated winters and summers on the Mini, as Vermont is just too tough for a single "all-season" tire to handle... More info here:

http://http://www.nokiantires.com/ty...me=Nokian+WRG2

:thumbsup:

I have the Michelin Pilot Exalto's, 205/45/17.
Great tire
Smooth, quiet.
Excellant performance.
All season.
In FL that means heat, rain.

Also worth considering in this case although the OP has already installed the Avids.

For others looking in 16"

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....emeContact+DWS

Comes in 205/50-16 ($117 each) or 205/55-16 ($101 each)
540 treadwear and good in all seasons up to some snow.

You do not need 195/55-16 which is a runflat size.

Just ordered the Hancook Ventus v12s for Cyndi...

Apparently, I am driving around on front tires that have chords starting to show... :eek2:

No mention of the Goodyear Eagle GT yet, but it's available for $96 in 205/50/16 and has a 50,000 mile life and a good deal of performance at the same time. Also an all weather suitable for light snow.

I ordered a set on 16" Konig Feathers. The 17" wheels are making my butt hurt on our LA streets.

The best tires I have ever had on my MINI was the Goodyear F1.
Great handling year round, and long lasting.
Hated the run flats so added non run flats and carried a patch kit and pump.

careful -- too many chords and you might wind up with a crescendo!

I had the F1s on my Acura TL and loved them. They don't seem to come up as fitting my 03 S though... 205/45/R17 doesn't seem to be available. Can you get away with 215/45/R17 on the standard S-lites???

Were they major or minor " cords "? :-)

I am not sure. That would be a good question for the Goodyear dealer. I doubt it though.

I have been to many tire dealers and they will read the book. If it is not the standard size, their answer is it will not fit.

215/45 17 easily fit without rubbing on my r56. They also fit on my friends R53 that is not lowered. We are both using et38 mm.

s-lites are 17x7 and 215/45 17 should fit on those as well.

Well there you go. Now he has to convince the tire dealer to install them.

Go to tirerack.com and look at the installation tab. These guys will install your tires on your rims. Just do not ask them if they fit. They will say no b/c it is not in the book, but they will install them for you.

If you are lookingto see if the tire width is Ok for the rim width, look at tirerack.com as well under the spec tab for each tire. Most of the time that info is there.

I use them all the time as a reference. If you need to have a confirmation about something, call Alex at the tirerack number extension 294.

thanks for your help. I would definitely rather get the F1s, since I know they are money in the rain and do pretty well in the snow vs. having to buy the hancooks for summer and then another tire for winter... I know the F1s big knock is that they get louder as they wear down, but that's not my top priority...

I have not had the opportunity to run the f1 so cannot really comment on how well they do. But I do have the conti EC DWS and they are pretty good for an all season.

The F1s are exceptional in wet weather, which is my biggest concern. It's the only tire I have driven on that I can honestly say I never hydroplaned in.

Cyndi came with Continental ContiProContact SSRs and they were terrible from day one. Part of that is no doubt because of the runflats, and part of it is because they were balding. But I have had the F1s and know that I like them, so that's why I am inclined to go with them over the Contis...

I may try the F1 at another time when I have a need.

FYI, the Dunlop z1 star spec are also great wet tires. I use them primarily as my track wet tires and there is great stopping power in the wet and decent in turn wet grip They are also quite close in dry grip to an average racing comp tire. They are very well known within the racing and autox circles. Not too sure I have come across the F1 yet but will definitely look around for it.