I got a sizable bolt in one of my tires and figured i would just replace all of my flinstone tires with some NON RFT. Ordered them from Discount Tire and i received them, problem is NOBODY will touch my car without putting new RFT's on due to liability especially MINI. I call BS on it because i did this before with my old mini. The small tire shops are the worst, if i say i have RFT's and want them taken off and replaced with non RFT's they basically hang up.

Im stuck, what do i do? do I need to remove my wheels from the car and bring the 4 of them in and say these are my track rims? im pretty fed up with this how do you guys get them replaced?

 

I've heard of some tire places refusing to change run flat with non-run flats, but not all of them in an area.

Try calling Discount Tire and tell them about your problem, they may have a list of shops that will change your tires for you.

Or, you could get some new wheels and have the tires mounted on them, bring them home and change out the wheels and tires.

Run flats are expensive enough that standard tires and new wheels will cost about the same as just new run flats.

Dave

 

Thanks Dave! I did call DT and used their list, What happened and who got sued that nobody will touch RFT's without replacing them with RFT's, ive even told some of the shops that ill write up my own release form for them so i wont do anything if anything were to happen. Its really annoying. 3 mini dealerships AND BMW will not touch it with a 10ft pole. Im actually trying to sell my mini and rather not have to buy new rims since mine are the upgraded MINI rims but if i cant find a shop it will be what ill have to do...

UGH why does BMW insist on putting these stupid RFT's on all their cars

 

I just signed a simple waiver at the tire store when I switched from RFT to non-RFT.

 

I'd try calling up Alex at Tirerack and get the list of local installers that they use from him. That way you can call them prior to ordering to check if they will install and set it up to have the tires delivered to their shop and have them give you a call when they're in. Hopefully that'll take some of the worries out from the installer if they aren't ordering the tires.

 

+1 on tirerack. Always managed to find a good tire shop there.

You can look their recommended installers on line if you wish. Tirerack.com under installations.

 

Borrow someone's donut spare and show the tire shop that you are prepared in case of a flat. How can they object? Not all MINIs are equipped with run-flats; some carry a donut.

 

That's my plan, except for the borrowing part. I plan to have a plug kit, a slime kit, and a spare (for long trips) in the car after I ditch the run flats.

 

Best bet is to find a custom wheel and tire shop in your area and call to ask if they can handle your runflat to non runflat change. Most can do it.

If you still cannot find a shop then contact your nearest Sportscar Club of America group and ask if they know of a shop in your area that can do the change.

Tirerack.com can listings of shops in your area that does installations and that is another good source to call.

Runflat to nonrunflat is easy and a no brainer, you are not forced to keep the runflats if you do not want them. The Dealership will only replace your tires with runflats due to keeping with OEM parts/standards except for the base Coopers that come with non runflats but they will only use OEM nonrunflats.

Signing a waiver of liability is also an option if the shop wants/requires it.

 

isn't Jersey the place where you can't pump your own gas either?

 

That be true, Captain. Coincidence or government conspiracy?

 

I don't get the liability issue. I understand the issue of patching a RFT, as they don't know if you've run it flat for 50 miles. But if you want to be on the side of the road with a flat (or be equipped to repair it), that's on you, no?
If you have a second car, just bring in the wheels with that - or one or two at a time...

 

I have only been driving my new 2013 mini for three weeks. Is the difference between run-flats and non, that big of a difference in both handling and smoothness of ride?

In other words, will I sacrifice handling for smoothness of ride if I were to switch?

 

happened to me and i told them i had a spare at home and they did the job.

 

I think the ride varies with the brand of run-flats, I have Continental runflats and they don't feel or sound any different than any other non run-flat equipped car I've driven.

They are heavier, that is bad for handling, but they have stiffer sidewalls and that is good for handling.

They are much more expensive than regular tires, so when I wear my runflats out, I'll replace them with standard tires.

Dave

 

Thanks for the info. I'm hoping others will chime in as well.

This is my first experience with run-flats. I like the handling, but the ride is rough. I just don't know if that is mini rough or run-flat rough.

 

little of both - mini is a pretty tightly sprung car even with the base suspension.

 

I just switched from the OEM Bridgestone runflats to Jumbo Ecsta 4x non-runflats a couple months ago. The Kumhos are significantly quieter and the ride is much smoother. There is a slight handling tradeoff with the softer sidewalls but you can compensate for that by adding a couple more pounds of air pressure. I love the new tires for my daily driving and occasional club run.

 

Stay away from the big corporate owned shops...no walmarts, sams, bj's....the local guys can do them. Since the rims can be hard to not scratch when unmounting runflats, some places might shy away from them too....but using a standard machine with plastic coated "spoons", and some lube, and going slow, most places should be fine.
i channged mine out when i did my winter summer/rim swap....so the townfair-tire place did it with the internet price match on the rims i brought in loose to avoid this issue.

 

PS
Most folks ditch runflats, and never look back, both due to $$ and ride.
Just get a 12v pump, a plug kit, and maybe slime, then a AAA membership for the worst case....

 

Discount Tire changed out my RFs for S.Drives...

 

Thanks all for the info.

 

This is what I did on my R-53.

I took all my wheels off the car, then went to a major tire shop and told them to remove all the tires from the wheels; I said I was having the wheels re-finished. So I took the old tires home with me.

Then I went to Discount Tire with just the Wheels and told them to mount 4 ( name brand ) tires. Of course I selected non run flats. Told them it was going on a Mini with a spare.

Took the wheels home and mounted them on my Mini R-53 ! No Problems .............

I go to Discount Tires and they rotate & rebalance my tires just like any other customers !

 

I ran into the same issue when I was looking to buy my last set of tires. Big corporate places don't like to mess with RFTs in general, especially when you are going non-RFT. I had a local Costoco tell me they would do it if I got a letter form the local MINI dealer explaining what what I want was ok. Part of my problem is that I was going from 205/45-17 to 215/45-17 and it was "non-OEM spec...might not fit"

 

I got mine done at Discount Tire with no issues at all.