I bought my BRG Cooper in March the very first week and drove it approx 2500 miles on the 15" 8 hole stock wheels with Continental touring tires. I then bought a set of the 17" S-Spoke with Pirelli eufori@ run flats. The cars looks awsome with the bigger wheels but it seemed to make the car feel heavier and slower. I now have 9000 miles and I just put the 15" wheels back on for the rainy season as the Pirellis felt slippery in the rain. I think I prefer the 15" wheels. The car is much lighter and faster. Steering is lighter, ride a little smoother on the highway but tires start squeeling sooner on the curves. The car feels like it has been let free. The biggest difference is the gas milage. I was averaging 25.5 a tank with the 17" and have jumped up to 29.8 on the 15". Other than they look way cool, what is the benefit of larger wheels? Any thoughts?

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Mr. Bridger

BRG Cooper

 

The larger wheels are good for track racing, not really great for street driving, however I have the 17s on my MCS, but I am a racer at heart so I don't mind the harder ride. As for your tires squeling, the 17s have a lower profile and since they are runflats they are very rigid on their sidewalls. I have been driving in the rain all week with my my car, the Pirellis have stuck like glue!! And yes the larger wheel are most definatly heavier, plus the runflats ad weight as well.

 

I opted for the 7-holes and I'm quite pleased with them.

Basically, the big problem with bigger wheels (17's, etc.) is that you've got much more unsprung (and rotating) weight to accelerate, decelerate, and change directions as you're driving the car. So, though you've got a larger contact patch and stiffer sidewalls for traction and transitional response, you've got more unsprung weight, which is a bad thing.

Also, wider tires tend to 'float' more in inclement conditions--rain, snow, etc. The thinner 15-inch Contis I have did really well in the light snow we had last week, so I'm doubly satisfied.

 

Damon,
There is a good read in the Jan. 2003 issue of Sport Compact Car about the MCS. The said in the article that the MCS with 17" felt slow, so they were able to get a MCS with 16" tires which they said drove much faster. They went on to say that the 17" rims were really "stupid" because of the weight, and it would be better to get 15" performance tires and rims and just carry a cell phone (no run flats). They claimed you would save 100 lbs. with the 15" set-up in place of 17" rims with the runflats. It's a good read. There is a great photo on the downloads page of a MCS also at: http://www.sportcompactcarweb.com/

 

The R85 17” S-lites and run-flats are 50 lbs per corner. My current set-up is the MINI R84 v-spokes with 205/50 R16 Yokohama AVS ES100 tires. Those have a measured (by me) weight of 37 lbs per corner. That’s a savings of 52 lbs.

I would be shocked if you could really get another 48 lbs off of that by going to 15” or lighter 16” (for a total of 25 lbs per corner). It just doesn’t seem to fall within the realm of possibility. One more thing about going to 15”, the sidewalls will be higher. Thus you will get more rollover of the sidewall in corners.

If all you care about is straight line, then you might be able to get a lighter 15” set-up, than 16” or 17”. However your cornering will suffer. Also, if all you cared about was straight line, you are probably in the wrong car. The MINI isn’t a stoplight racing queen.

In my opinion your best bet is getting a light set of 16” or 17” wheels and running regular tires. You could certainly save a little more weight than I have, but then again I like the fact that my MINI still has a stock look to it.

In the end, it’s all about what your goals are.

 

I agree with most comments regarding unsprung weight, however as far as tracking or float in inclement weather, I have not experienced any adverse effects in snow or rain with my MCS. I would think you would have to have tires wider than 205's to see any significant tracking problems or concerns.

 

Thanks DaveInDenver, I also have the 16" V spokes and I plan to switch next spring from the all season runflats to 205/50 R16 performance regular tires. I am looking into Yokohama's like you have, Kumho's, BF Goodrich KD's (little too $$$), and others. How do you like your Yokohama's? I live in California and I am not too concerned for a wet handling characteristics.

 

I like the Yokohama AVS ES100 205/50 R16 tires a lot. I know 2minis likes his 17" AVS ES100 tires as well. They seem to be holding up nicely and the ride comfort and cornering are impoved over the Dunlop run-flats I had before.

 

>>I like the Yokohama AVS ES100 205/50 R16 tires a lot. I know 2minis likes his 17" AVS ES100 tires as well. They seem to be holding up nicely and the ride comfort and cornering are impoved over the Dunlop run-flats I had before.

The Yokos rock...

 

Are the Pirelli eufori@ all season? On the MINI site they list two different Goodyaer Run Flat, All Season and Perfomance. I would assume that the performance are not good for bad weather. Also which MINIs come with Pirellis and which come with Goodyear run flats. I got Pirellis because the dealer was out of Goodyear. Those of you who are on Goodyear may have better stability in the rain. When I hit some water accelerating I could feel the front wheels getting slippery. The Pirellis have nice big flat areas of rubber so I can see how they would be prone to hydroplaning. Any thoughts?

_________________
Mr. Bridger

BRG Cooper

 

I have the Perreli high perfomance runflats (17s), I can varify that you get great traction in bad weather with them.

 

Read the Jan.03 issue of Sport Compact Car magazine. The MCS they tested had 17s and one of the improvements they said they'd make on the car is put 15s on it. If your car feels heavier with 17s, it's because it is substantially heavier. Do some research on unsprung weight and rotating mass and you'll see why the 15s feel better.

 

If you want 17's that don't slow you down try OZ Racing Wheels, or Volk's. They both make 17's that are light weight. Which will give you the best of both worlds. 17's for great handling, and light weight for no loss of power.

By the way, the rule of thumb is for every 1 lb you add to each tire/wheel you add the equivalent of 10 lbs to the car. For a car that relies on light weight to be quik, those lbs can add up fast! :???:

 

so what's the weight savings (if any) in going from the R85s to the BBS R90s? I really like the way the R90s look and if it were a lighter wheel, then that would help ease the pain of the cost of those suckers.