Best oem wheel for handling & perfornance

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Jan 22, 2006 | 03:48 PM

#26

Stevie B

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From: San Antonio

Quote:

Originally Posted by XAlfa

Light enough for you, perhaps.

23lbs in 17x8.

Unless you earn your living with it, it's light enough for you too.

By the way, it's a 17x7 and weighs 20.7 lbs.

Not the lightest aftermarket wheel, but great bang for the buck and available in an offset (ET44) that most aftermarket aren't. Everything out there for the MINI is a compromise, and this one's much less of a compromise than the vast majority.

Jan 22, 2006 | 05:28 PM

#27

XAlfa

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From: Berkeley, CA

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stevie B

Unless you earn your living with it, it's light enough for you too.

By the way, it's a 17x7 and weighs 20.7 lbs.

All true. Even if I were making a living with my car, these would probably be fine. But why go aftermarket if you're not dropping weight? Sounds like that wheel is within a pound of the R99 and R91.

Off topic: How do you like your FSDs?

Jan 22, 2006 | 06:36 PM

#28

Bilbo-Baggins

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From: Middle Earth

Quote:

Originally Posted by paul's s

Well,

I'm spec'n out my '06 cooper s and wondering whether to get the 16" x-lites or the 17" web spokes with the sport package.

I recently read a Motor Trend article which tested a very lightly spec'd cooper s's with 16" s-lites, which got very good performance numbers like 0-60 in 6.4 seconds. What is the deal? Are the 16" wheel option the best for performance and handling, or should I go with the 17" wheels which seem to be heavy wheels? Which factory wheels do you guys/gals like? Does it boil down to 16" x-lites for performance and 17" for bling?

I noticed this also. I have never seen such a low 0-60 time when a 17" wheel was mounted.

My guess is it was the 16" wheels, some optimistic timing and ideal conditions. Maybe even an exceptional driver.

But, really. The light weight of the 16" does improve the acceleration, deceleration, and compliance over the bumps. The lighter the wheels and tire the better the better the preformance. Concentrating the weight closer to the axle by using a 13" or 14" wheel is better than an equally light 17" or 18" wheel. But I guess we can't fit that small a wheel around our brakes so the 15" and 16" are the way to go.

Jan 23, 2006 | 11:22 AM

#29

Stevie B

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From: San Antonio

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bilbo-Baggins

The tires weigh as much if not more than the wheels in many cases. So the wheel weight is less of a factor. Of course, lighter the better as long as quality is there to. In all out performance, the lower sidewall tires will give better lateral/mechanical grip, all else equal. Many who opt for the 15" wheels do so to lower the gear ratios too. Ultimately, there's much to be considered in these decisions. I like my 16x6.5 R84s, but I like the 17x7 R99s better due to wheel quality and tire choices. There are better tire options available in 17" than 16" IMHO.

Cheers!

Jan 23, 2006 | 11:26 AM

#30

MSFITOY

OVERDRIVE

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From: Greensboro, NC

Quote:

Originally Posted by paul's s

Guarenteed to keep you on track

Jan 23, 2006 | 11:29 AM

#31

Stevie B

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From: San Antonio

Quote:

Originally Posted by XAlfa

Off topic, I like them very much. The car dives far less when tossed into corners and over bumps it feels just like a BMW 3 series w/sport package. Taut, but no where near as harsh as stock. Hands down the best shock option for real world MINI S motorists. I left my stock springs in and I'm glad I did. The MINI S does not need to be lowered. Why hassle with camber adjustments and such? I bought my MINI to drive, not stare at while parked. Also, I installed 19mm H&R rear sway bar. Makes for a perfectly balanced packaged. My 2-way bar is set to the stiffer setting and it corners incredible. can't wait to put my R99s on this Spring and really put it to the test.

Jan 23, 2006 | 11:41 AM

#32

XAlfa

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From: Berkeley, CA

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stevie B

The tires weigh as much if not more than the wheels in many cases. So the wheel weight is less of a factor.

Yes. And the tire is the outermost piece of the rotating mass.

Jan 23, 2006 | 11:50 AM

#33

Squirlz

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From: Okemos, Michigan

One thing I can tell you is all the competitive MINIs is Showroom Stock C racing are running the x-lites and those guys have to look for every advantage no matter how miniscule including ( I suspect) which paint color is the lightest!

Jan 23, 2006 | 12:42 PM

#34

Stevie B

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From: San Antonio

Quote:

Originally Posted by Squirlz

Yeah, but... The world of motoring doesn't begin and end with autox. What works in that situation, can't necessarily be applied in other situations. Real road racing on real road courses would take you down a different path, such as very low profile tires on larger diameter wheels (and slicks). Since I don't frequent either, neither is necessarily important to me. What is important is a quality wheel that gives me the tire options that enable me to drive my MINI S in the real world, in wet/dry, and in 4 seasons. And because my real world includes winter, there's not one wheel/tire option for my range of driving. Wish there was. I have both X-lites and 17x7 R99s. Even though my X-lites are considerably lighter, I don't find the summer tire options suitable more so than what's available in size 205/45/17. The good news is we're all free to figure out what's best for our own needs.

Jan 23, 2006 | 12:44 PM

#35

Squirlz

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From: Okemos, Michigan

I AM talking about SCCA road racing, not autocross.

Jan 23, 2006 | 02:17 PM

#36

Stevie B

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From: San Antonio

Quote:

Originally Posted by Squirlz

I AM talking about SCCA road racing, not autocross.

Good...I didn't know. Guess I'm conditioned to all the MINI+autox references as if that's the defiitive measuring stick. In that case (road racing), definitely lower profile for less sidewall flex at high lateral forces. Consider DTM the premier roadracing, and they use large wheels and low profile tires. F1 only uses 13" wheels due to tradition.

Jan 25, 2006 | 06:28 AM

#37

findude

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From: Northern Virginia (near DC)

How does the distribution of the weight affect tire and wheel choice? A 15 inch wheel is likely to weigh less than a 17 inch wheel, but it will require more tire (taller sidewall) and those tires will weigh more. Now more of the weight is farther from the center. Obviously the best way to find the right wheel/tire combination for your car is to do it empirically, just trying out different combinations. Since this is expensive and logistically complicated, are there generalizations about the tradeoffs from a physics point of view that could inform the decision making?

Feb 5, 2006 | 09:34 PM

#38

MCLeonard

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From: Arroyo Del Valle

I picked up a set of the R83 Daytonas used and got rid of the S-Leads. I also switched to the BFG g-Force Sports from the runflats. The difference in performance was remarkable. All kinds of bad traits went away. The Mini gets off the line without having rev it and slip the clutch, it accelerates faster and pulls smoothly from lower rpm, it turns easier, rides smoother and quiter and corners harder and tracks better. In short it now drives like I thought it would in the first place. I don't know what Mini was thinking putting wheels and tires designed for a locomotive in the "Sports" package.

Feb 5, 2006 | 11:40 PM

#39

XAlfa

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From: Berkeley, CA

Quote:

Originally Posted by MCLeonard

I don't know what Mini was thinking putting wheels and tires designed for a locomotive in the "Sports" package.

I do. Margin.

Apr 3, 2006 | 04:52 PM

#40

teddragon

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Stevie B

Here's what to consider and in what order

1) size of the wheel (important for your affect-based goals [you may plan to add a big brake kit or prefer low profile tires]; also gives you different tire options (tire grip quality will do more for lap times than lighter wheels))
2) quality of the wheel (they're not all the same...for example, R99 is made by BBS)
3) offset of the wheel (not a big deal when speaking of OEM)
4) weight of the wheel (too many people split hairs here...BMW owners dream of wheels that weigh sub 25 pounds. Why do MINI owners think that 20 pounds is heavy???? Also, where the weight is in the wheel is of equal importance)
5) "bling"

All things considered, I think the best 17" OEM wheel is the R99 Double Spoke followed closely by the R91 Bullet, and for 16" the R84 X-Lite. For aftermarket bang for the buck (17"), check out the BBS RD (ET 38) or RZ (ET 37), or OZ Superturismo GT in ET44 (available direct for OZ but not Tire Rack...less expensive too). Quality all day long, light enough, offset within reason, and great looking.

We have an '06 MC HB/B, Anthracite, Chrome, Bling, with stock R94 16" wheels, stock Dunlop 3000 RF's, Sports Pkg, Premium Pkg, ..... looking to change to 17" R99 polished wheel with Goodyear F1 G3 non-RF's and adding a winter tire package 16" R83 with Dunlop Wintersport 3D tires next fall. We have a spare tire. The RF's feel stiff and hard, we believe going to the Goodyear F1 G3 will give us a smoother ride with more grip to the road.
Comments???

Apr 4, 2006 | 04:20 AM

#41

Coop d'etat

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From: Wisconsin

I'll just add this. I did most of my mods over the "winter" in which I had 15" steelies, with 210 snowsports on the MCS (weighed at 35#'s wheel/tire). I did 16%, Unichip, and Alta intake. I just put my S-lites back on with run flats (45#'s wheel/tire) and it was a noticable loss in everything.

The car feels sluggish in all gears compared to before, and I've lost almost 2mpg off my average!!! Needless to say I am ordering new wheels ASAP!!

Apr 4, 2006 | 05:43 AM

#42

hopper

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Joined: Apr 2006

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From: Philadelphia

New member/new owner...

Thanks to all who have posted! I just purchased a used '05 MCS with x-lites. I'll pick my new baby up this weekend and no doubt run whatever tires it has on it for a while (only 13k miles.)

Coop, I noticed that you track your mileage and have done the 16% pully and Unichip mods. Can you tell me how the mods effected your mpg's?

Thanks in advance and thanks to all for helping to bring a newbie up to speed!

hopper

Quote:

Originally Posted by Coop d'etat

Apr 4, 2006 | 12:05 PM

#43

Coop d'etat

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From: Wisconsin

I actually gained about 1.2-1.7 (depending on how I drive for the week) average mpg after the 16% and the intake. I then gained about another 1.5-2 mpg when I installed the Unichip. I was sitting at 27.3 as my average mpg with my winter tires on. I put the s-lites on last Sunday, and I am down to 24.5 +/- as my average. I do reset my mpg calculator for every tank. I don't know about tire swapping, but most of the people I've talked to with a pulley, and engine mgmt. usually get better mileage over stock.