Has anyone tried this size on the second generation Mini.

I found a set of used 17inch lites and know it will make the car ride harder vs the standard 175/65-15 which came on the car. I was thinking a 50 vs 45 would make the ride a little smoother. My car is a 2011 Mini Clubman.

 

I've got 205/50/16's but I know lots of folks run the 17's with no problem. The 50 series will make for a softer ride then the 45's. I don't believe there is any clearance problem either.

 

I can't speak directly to this topic but I will point out that a 205/50/16 tire is a full inch shorter then a 205/50/17 tire. So fitting the 16 will in no way speak towards wether he can fit the 17.

This might be applicable: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...run-flats.html

 

And the 205/50/17 will be about 1.1" taller than the 175/65/15 that came on the car. I don't think the new wheel and tire width would be a problem, but the taller sized tire might rub at the bottom of the fender (not the lip) under full suspension compression, as when the car is heavily loaded, or over bumps. Apparently that sometimes happens with the 205/55/16 size, even though it's slightly smaller in diameter than the 205/50/17.

 

This is true after seeing it. I do recall the 205/45/17's. So, I take that back, the 50's may be a little too tall. You can contact TireRack and I'm sure they can tell you what will and won't fit via their expertise.

 

thks guys. I like the look of the 17 inch wheels on a Mini but I dread the hard ride. I really wanted a set of 16 inch cross spoke 90s. You see very few of them on Minis and even less for sale. I at least plan to go all season tires, which should make the ride a little softer than the summer high performance tires.