I'll say it again...the first mod on any MINI where the driver is looking to improve ride quality should be losing the run flats!

 

wise counsel everyone... my mechanic brother just promised me a beating if I used plugger... he said bite the bullet, get some roadside assistance... and that he charges holiday rates ALL the time to family...

 

And just to confirm, the rim doesn't need to be changed, correct? While the owners manual alludes to the run flat rims being "special" I have never seen anything to support that line. Not like the metric rims of the Mustangs in the 80's that actually were a special diameter and needed special tires.

 

My stock factory wheels are working just fine. I even jumped the size up a bit and everything is wearing normally.

 

Cool. Thanks

 

I'd suggest Perelli P7's. Awesome ride! Grip and very quiet. Same has a set of 205/55/16 on sale for 483 out then do or with rhwarr

 

I am switching to Continental Extreme Contact DWS 205 55 R16's from www.discounttiredirect.com I bought a Mini 'donut spare from Way Motor Works.
I heard that BMW was pressured to put Runflats on the Mini. I am sure it is costing them sales.

 

Pirelli Cinturono P7 tires are awesome. No more run flats equal quiet ride, and what seems like a brand new car

 

PS _ 205/55/16. Sam's sale $483 w/free road hazard, balancing for life

 

I got the Conti DWS at Mavis and the Way Motorworks spare too. I may leave the spare home except for long trips but I would rather have it. None of the sticky crap in a can for me.

 

Glad to hear everyone is as happy with the change out as I am !!

 

Just purchased the mini spare from Outmotoring, $139.95.

 

Pelican, let us all know how you like those Continentals. I put Nexen's on 225/50/17's I was talked out of the Continentals by the Salesman. So far I have no issues with the Nexens's. I had never heard of them till that day. I have an old BMW 325is that I run Yokohama's on, soft, sticky and excellent on corners but not very good wear life, which I knew when I bought them. I only run the car maybe 3k a year

 

Got rid of the runflats a week ago. Picked up a Viair P87 and a plug kit.

 

Installed 205 55 ZR16 Continental Extremecontact DWS 's yesterday. WOW!!!
The ride is great and I still have great steering feedback...maybe better than from the Bridgestone Turanza runflats they replaced. Not super quiet but way quieter than the runflats. They are almost the same size as the 195 55 R16 Bridgetones they replaced;just a tad higher and wider. My best upgrade yet.
I bought a mini compact spare just in case.

 

That's great, glad to hear your as happy as the rest of us bud

 

While we're on the topic of these tires, I ditched the crummy runflats about three years ago. The car hasn't even accumulated 25,000 miles since the last set and my mechanic is telling me that the tires are unevenly worn on the inner edges. Is this common with MINIs or is the camber out of alignment? I've owned three cars in the past and never had to deal with tire problems like this. Is Sumitomo a bad brand? That was the ONLY size the tire shops in my city had. I will NOT buy Goodyear. They're horrible. If I find BF Goodrich, Michelin or Falken, which would you recommend for the longest lifespan? I don't race my car and am an average driver.

 

I like Continentals and Bridgestones. Maybe you need to check the alignment,or perhaps you are running low air pressure. Inner edge wear might indicate toe out,but dont quote me !!

 

Minis will wear out tires faster than some cars. Front wheel drive,low profile and smaller diameter rims mean the tires get hot and then wear faster. 17inch rims might wear slower.
Extremecontact DWS are made of a more durable material than the DW which is essentially a summer/dry road tire with exceptional stickiness !! The DWS are a winter summer mix and will wear better than the DW. They also do very well in wet and light snowy conditions. For the money I think they are a great choice.

 

I've always been a Goodyear fan having used them on many vehicles over the course of 40 years. However, I've also been a fan of Goodrich and had good luck with several other brands. I've had BAD luck with Michelins, but you need to actually do a search for real reactions to tires. In other words, opinions posted here are only based on Mini owners. If you go to sites like tirerack.com or mavis.com there are many others with other vehicles that offer opinions. It was there I opted for the Conti's because the tires had extremely great reviews.

As for the argument posted about "smaller" rims, I come from an era when 13" was the standard compact car rim size, 14" for full sized vehicles, and 15" was typically on trucks. THOSE are smaller rims to me!! FRont wheel drive vehicles are typically harder on the fronts but if you rotate the tires periodically the wear should be evenly distributed. And while 25K may seem like the lower end of the spectrum, I would probably attribute that more to the compound of the particular tire, not to the Goodyear brand. That's another topic to study up on. All tires are NOT created equally even within a given brand. Some are designed for stickiness and other to run 50-60K miles. The longer lasting tires generally also ride like rocks and may not do well in rain.

 

I have recently purchased an '05 "S". The car came with run flat originally. Now has regular tires. The door panel has 38psi for the tires.


I have not seen any threads on a different pressure.


Should I still use the recommended pressure of 38psi?

 

I kept one of my RF's and mounted it on an extra rim. It now lives behind me on top of the seat folded down. I might have to invest in a bag soon though, the plastic wrap definitely does not make the most pleasant sound with the top down...

Also got conti extremecontact DWS's. Cannot describe how much I love these tires! The guy at the shop even got really excited about them when I told him I've been waiting forever to be able to get them. the ride is so much quieter, smoother, and the grip is absolutely insane. I look forward to the rain now!