Well, I've put 7,500 miles on my MC since March 31, and I'm wondering about tire rotation. I don't see anything in the manual about it. Would this be a good time to do it? Am I overdue? Or should I wait until the 10,000 mile service? I have the regular 15 inch all season tires. Thanks for any advice.

 

I've been wondering about the same thing. We have about the same mileage; but on the 16" runflats.

I've read quite a bit of conflicting posts on the subject. I always thought rotation was a no-brainer every 7500 miles; but many people seem to disagree.

However, I'm going to go ahead and have it done. I'd like to get at least 20K out of the OEMs; and that's not going to happen w/out rotation.

 

Your both over due in my opinion. Just changed my tires, put 24,900 miles on my original run-flats - just one rotation, should have done it at 5,000 - not 11,000 miles. No need to let your front tires ware-out and still have two good tires on the rear.
Charles

 

I prefer to rotate them at 5k, keeping them very close in wear. Front drivers are sensitive to this.

Do NOT try brand new tires and worn rear tires in a heavy rain on front wheel drive, and do not listen to "MINI" about not rotating, it will lead you to dynamic trouble!

Yes, it may lead to more road noise, but rotate ASAP IMHO.

regards,
Red

 

I had 15" Continentals and had the dealer rotate them at the first service which came at 9500 miles. I was unable to detect any difference in the ride or feel nor did I notice any vibrations, but the fronts were worn way beyond 50% by the time of the switch(to much "spirited driving") and I was noticing wear bars on them around 15,000 miles. The rotation should have been done earlier, more like at 5,000 miles.

I ended up replacing them at 17000 miles, I might have been able to go 20,000 with them but did not want to push the point with winter coming on.

I "plused up" to 195 60 15s for the replacement tires and found a noticable improvement in handling and ride.

 

Hello. I was confused as well about tire rotation intervals. Soon realized the intent of Mini was another attempt at low maintenance. Ie: Don't rotate and one has to purchase two tires at a time. This is sound reasoning if one is happy with tire choice. I for one do not intend to replace the run flats with like tire. Therefore I have chosen to rotate mine to have even wear before changing to softer compound tire. Did my first rotation at 4500 with noticable wear. My two cents worth.

 

You know, I think you may be on to something. That is the only explanation that really makes sense (at least in a semi-twisted way). Perhaps it is more of a marketing decision than an engineering decision. Like a sticker on the engine block that say "abc Motors recomends xyz Motor oil", which has nothing to do with an engineers evaluation and everything to do with a advertising deal.

 

Do you all get your tires rotated at the dealer and how much does it cost?

I have the run flats... and this is my first experience with them so I'm clueless.

On previous cars I rotated every other oil change but that's not gonna happen with this car and I would get that entire service for like.... $30 or so.

 

I've found about every 5-6K miles is adequate on average for tire roation. Depending on the softness of the rubber/type of tire, it may be necessary even sooner.

 

Did it myself. Just made sure to torgue the bolts. Helps to have a son with all the jacks and impact wrenches I would guess it could be done for $20-30

 

I try to rotate my tires at 5 to 6 thousand. I got about 35000 miles out of my original runflats. Have about 12000 on my new ones, still look new. I dont know they cost to rotate, but it is very simple and can be done in less than a 1/2 hour.

Good luck, keep them rotating

Nik

 

Thanks for all the replies. I have this Friday off, I think I'll call the dealer and make an appointment.:smile:

 

When you call the dealer, get a quote for the rotation/balance. Dealers may vary, but I remember mine wanting something like 60 bucks.

 

Tires are rotated in a figure eight pattern. For example, for the first rotation, your front right goes to the rear left. Next rotation it goes to the front left. Next it goes to rear right, then finally back to where it came from. In planning your rotations it helps to have an idea of how many miles to expect from your tires. Some hard compounds are good for up to 60,000 miles. Softer ones will get as little as 12,000 miles. Of course these numbers vary by driving style too.

So, lets say you figure on 28,000 miles for your tires. This suggests a rotation at 7,000, 14,000 and 21,000. Hence at 28,000 miles each tire will have spent 7,000 miles at each corner. (Rotations should be planned at somewhere between 3,000 and 10,000 miles, with a minimum of three rotations for the life of your tires and sometimes as many as seven). As a result, the chances that all tires have worn at the same speed is very high. And THAT is what rotation is all about; wearing tires at a uniform rate. Hope this helps.

 

This was true for my original tires (runflats), but now my Toyos are directional, so I can only rotate front to back. Just a heads up, just pay attention to what type you have.

Nik

 

Some tires are directional (Yoko AVS ES-100, for example) and should be rotated front to back only.

 

D'OH! Beaten to the punch.

 

Everyone has different driving styles... someone getting 30000 miles on run-flats on a MINI must not be driving as hard in corners all the time as those who only get 15000. You should also keep and eye on tire wear and rotate when needed, not just by mileage.

I had my front directionals unmounted and remounted for cross rotating to the rear.

 

Only by a couple of minutes.... Still a silver



Never thought of that.... Kinda takes the DIY out of the mix though. I might do that if I were going thru tires faster. But I have about 12000 miles on my directional Toyo's and they look like new. Second rotation due soon, maybe this weekend.

Nik

 

Ditto! :smile: Yeah, I rotate mine as well. I've got another thousand miles to go. It's a good thing too, as I just had hernia surgery and I'm not supposed to lift more than 20 pounds. So I should be able to rotate them in a month.

 

[QUOTE=Jenn B]Do you all get your tires rotated at the dealer and how much does it cost?

I have the run flats... and this is my first experience with them so I'm clueless.
___________________

1. Some do and some do it themselves. The majority of owners recommend rotation between 5k and 10k miles (BMW doesn't mention rotation in their manuals). Dealer's services can cost fro $95-$155/hr, based on input to one of my threads.

2. Rotate your runflats. Check to see if they are directional tires. My Dunlop runflats has a sign on the tires that say "Mount This Side Out." According to Alex of Tire Rack, you can, in the absence of a directional arrow on the tire, rotate them either front-to-back or criss-cross. In my case, I rotated them front to back, although it was later that I discovered I could do the criss-cross method for my Dunlops.

3. If you do the rotation yourself, or have a friend who can help you, make sure you have a torque wrench to give the wheel nuts the correct torque.

 

I got about 19,000 miles from my front run flats. My rears still had atleast 75% life left, but I decided to ditch all 4 and get Yoko's AVS-ES100. I like them very much. I'm rotating them myself every 3,000 miles. Did my first rotations 1 month after the new tires, and I'm about 750 miles from my next rotation.

Rotating is easy and highly recommended. It ensures you know how to change your tire should you get a flat. I discovered that the spare in my MC was flat due to a defect in the valve extension. Wouldn't have been good to have gotten a flat and realized my spare was also flat!

Also rotating yourself ensures that you can remove the wheel lugs should you need to change your own tires. Most places use an air tool that torques the lugs way beyond the 80 or 85 pounds that's recommended. Can't remember the exact number right now, and you'll have a tough time removing the lugs when you need to.

Finally the last benefit for me was being able to give a thorough wheel cleaning, removing all the old brake dust!!

 

OK, this is going to sound like a REALLY STUPID question...but how are you DIY-ers all doing the tire rotation? I mean the actual logisics? Am I right in saying that without another jack or jack stands you can't do it?
It was easier in my VW...I had a full-size matching alloy spare, so I did a 5 wheel rotation....plus you only needed ONE jack. I guess I need jack stands.

 

Not stupid at all. Since you need to rotate front to back, you just need to jack up 1 side at a time. My Cooper comes with a jack, so I used that plus 1 extra 2 ton hydraulic jack I bought from Pep Boys. I didn't use the jack stands that I have.

 

For the DIYers out there, I recommend that you purchase the following to help with tire rotation:


1) a "breaker" bar - for those difficult lugs put on too tight or "frozen" by salt during the winter.
2) a 150 ft/lb torque wrench - to be able to accurately re-torque your lugs to 85 - 90 lbs.
3) a floor jack, makes the job so much quicker and gives even the most primative garage/shed that race car - pit stop atmosphere.
4) a good boom box. Nothing helps drudge work like good tunes.


For motivation, watch a few of those Miller High Life adds that feature automotive maintenance prior to attempting your own rotation.

I rotate every 4,000 - 5,000 miles. After 20,000 plus miles on my original runflats they seem to have about half of their tread still left.