Hello everyone,

So I'm a bit of a car n00b I guess you could say. I've had my '04 Cooper S (R53) since last July and I absolutely love it. When I got it it still had the stock dunlop sport9000 DSST tires on it. In the fall I got those replaced with Nokian WR's (since it was coming up on winter and figured I would get a good all-season for the winter). The plan was come spring, I would invest in a new set of summer tires and rims to match so I can easily and quickly swap between winter/summer driving. And now it's spring and I've been looking around. I have a few questions.

First off, I don't want to spend a boat load of money. I've been looking at tirerack.com for the last few days checking out what my options are. I think I've decided on rims (the ASA AR1's). Now I need to figure out some rubber.

My biggest problem is I don't know whether to get runflats or not. My Nokians aren't runflats which is nice from a comfort point of view....not nearly as rough of a ride but they don't handle anywhere near as well as the stock runflats did (especially in cornering). I found these Kumho Ecsta SPT XRP's on tirerack that are a great price. Does anyone have any experience with them? The reviews seems pretty good.

Basically what I'm looking for is great handling for a decent price. Any suggestions?

Do I understand this correctly? The wheel offset (on a rim) is the distance from the wheel hub to the center line of the wheel. So the smaller the number the more they will stick out the side? I think I read somewhere the stock S-lite wheels (I think that's what mine are) have an offset of 48mm? Those ASA AR1's have an offset of 42mm. Will that be okay?

And there isn't an active TPMS in my car right? From what I've read it's done by the ABS system or something? If it detects a change in the RPM of a wheel it figures out that the pressure is low or something? I don't need to worry about sensors in the tires correct?

Looking for any suggestions/comments. Thanks everybody!!

 

einstein,

been there, done that and have the empty advil bottles to prove it.

don't know if I can answer all your questions but....

runflat or not-consensus I came up with from NAM was that non runflats seem to be the replacement of choice. What made me go with the crowd was a factoid that 85% of blowouts are caused by low tire pressure. With TPMS sensors I feel covered (With a active AAA membership, Mini Roadside Kit and a Cell Phone). I figure I'm saving about $400 on tires. Thats about 4 yrs of AAA service.

I chose to go with the Nitto NeoGen's because they topped the charts on Consumer Reports for a UHP All Season. It seemed every other rating I read had a agenda of the dealer involved. I was tossing that and Bridgestones. I asked here and all Mini owners that run them responded favorably. Found em' at Tires Easy at $97/ea.

That said everybody has a opinion. I shied away from Bridgestone because they are Firestones and they had that deal with Ford SUV's a couple years back. Based in fact for the tires they run on a Mini? Can't say. Sure there will be plenty of guys extolling the virtues of Bridgestone too.

My *understanding* is there is a TPMS sensor attached to the valve stem that you need to check to make sure your wheels will accept. Most do.

Good luck

 

04's do not have TPMS; einstein is correct that it's done by rotation speed.

I went with General Exclaim UHP in 215/45x17 on my 04 MCS for summer wear; the price is right, and after a year I'm still happy with them.

 

42mm offset is very common for our Mini's so you will have no issues there. Non runflats are the way to go, which brand depends on the way you drive, your road/weather conditions and budget etc. I'm using Falken FK-452 summers and I'm happy with them for the price, good choice on the all seasons btw! Good luck.

 

jsharra

Didn't catch the 'R53' part

Thanks for clearing that up

Motor on

 

There wouldn't be TPMS sensors on a 2004 MCS. They were only used when mandated by the government in Sept. 2007 (or was it 2008?). My April 2007 R56 MCS has the rotation based system (no sensors in the wheels). If you have rubber valve stems, you don't have sensors.

However, none of the systems in MINIs are very sensitive, and can't be relied upon to insure optimum tire pressure. They require somewhere around a 30% pressure loss to activate. Best to regularly check air pressure manually.

I'm very happy with my Rota Slipstream 16x7 wheels with 205/55-16 tires on them. That is the same tread width as the tires that come on factory 17" wheels. Cost is $169 ea. They are light-weight (13.9 lbs) and well made. They are also available in 17x17.5, but I already have a set of 17" wheels. A 16x7 wheel is lighter and the extra sidewall gives a more comfortable ride.



I switched to runflats early-on, and carry a Continental Tire ContiComfortKit from TireRack.com. I hear there are cheaper versions available, but you want to be sure to get one with Slime or other water-soluble sealant. I also carry a Dynaplug.

For the price of the SPT XRPs, you could probably get a better handling tire non-runflat, or one with equivalent handling for less $$. TireRack.com doesn't seem to have any tests of the XRPs, but from the reviews, it sounds like they only have mediocre handling characteristics for a summer tire. I'm running Michelin Pilot Exalto PE2 205/45-17 on my 17x7 wheels, and they handle quite well. There are a few other summer tires that might out handle them, but I have no personal experience with them. I went for Pirelli P-Zero Nero M+S (all season tires) on the 16" wheels because they were supposed to have a good have a good balance between noise and handling. However, I miss the handling of the PE2.

 

Thanks for the replies guys. Much appreciated.

So I think I'm going to take your advice and ditch the runflats. I already have some goo stuff that I got for my winter tires. So I can just keep that in the car.

I checked out those General Exclaim UHP's and they look pretty awesome. you can't beat the price ($90) and it looks like everybody loves them.

The Michelin Pilot Exalto PE2's look great as well, but they're currently backordered.....

I'm also leaning toward these Kazera KZ-J's over the ASA AR1's I mentioned before. The one thing I noticed is that tirerack says the Kazera's need new lugbolts (which will be included) whereas the ASA's didn't....that's no big deal right? They will ship the correct lug bolts? Is it just because they need to be longer or something?

 

Okay so after thinking about it a bunch, and doing tons of reading, I think I'm going to go with the 17x7 ASA AR1's paired with some 205/45R17 Yokohama S.Drives.

Thanks for the comments guys!!

 

I just mounted a set of 215 wide S.Drives on my car over the weekend, and I can say you wont be disappointed