Hi everyone! I have a 2012 Countryman S ALL4 with stock 17" Continental ContiProContact SSR (runflat) tires with about 9900 miles. I have seen various opinions online on whether or not to rotate the tires, and am trying to find out a definitive (as close as possible) answer about whether I should rotate them or not.

Thanks!

 

rotation is about equalizing wear across a set of tires

get a tire tread depth measuring tool and measure yours, i measure at several points around each tire, measuring each groove across the tire
(be aware of the built in wear bar and do not measure at that exact point)

if the wear of the fronts and rears is the same (i doubt this), leave them alone, otherwise rotate them

i check my tires about every 1,000 miles, measuring tread depth, looking for nails/screws embedded in the tire and any other tire damage

at about 5,000 miles, i noticed the outside edge of the front tires were begining to show some feathering wear, so i rotated the tires

i do a front to back rotation on my cms all4, but there is also a "cross" rotation pattern you could use

the benefit of one over the other has/will be argued forever ... i do the front to back because i can do it with 1 jack and 1 lift per side, jacking at the front jack point will lift both front and rear tires clear of the garage floor

scott

 

That depends on your tires too. Some tires can only be mounted on one side of the car, like my RE-11s

 

Check them often, but the general rule of thumb is to rotate every 5K~6K miles.

 

this question comes up often and out of curiosity I did some research and checked the on-line versions of owner's manuals for hardtops in years 2002, 4, 6, 7 and 9.

In 2002:
Swapping wheels among the axles
Depending on individual operating condi-
tions, different wear patterns appear on
the front and rear axles. In the interests of
safety and optimized handling characteris-
tics, a change between the axles is not
recommended.

In 4 and 6 nothing is said along this line pro or con. The section does not appear at all.

In 2007 we find:
Swapping wheels among the axles
The manufacturer of your MINI recommends
that you swap the front wheels with the rear
wheels and vice-versa at intervals of 3,000 to
4,000 miles/5,000 to 7,000 km. This will counter
the varying rates of tire wear at the front and
rear axles, which will have a positive effect on
the handling characteristics of your MINI. The
direction in which the tires rotate should be kept
the same

And in 2009 MINI reverts back to the wording found in 2002 - "don't do it"

What's this mean? I dunno .... and I don't think they do either!

My persn'l theory back in 2002 was that if they told you to rotate every X miles, they would be obliged to provide that service since "all service is covered for 3 years" . . . resulting in don't do it...

Most 'car guys' and tire stores are gonna say do it to get the most wear out of your tires. But on the flip side let's look at a Ferrari Italia, or a 'vette. They have different size tires front and rear and they are directional. You sure don't rotate those! But I guess if you can afford to drive these cars you don't worry about buying tires!

For fun - Here's what the owner's manual for my 79 says:

Radial-ply Radial-ply tyres are fitted as standard equipment and all replacements must be
tyres of the same make and type.
The positional changing of wheels is not recommended; they should be retained
on the axle and in the position in which they were balanced.

85 Rover Mini says same thing . .

 

determine whether you have directional or non-directional tires. directional tires can only be rotated front to back. non-directional can be cross rotated.
call the dealer who handles your tire and ask him.

 

For a MINI it's probably better to rotate tires from 3000-5000 miles depending on how hard you drive and how much wear is showing. People that are easy on tires, don't load up their car or carry less people and drive mostly highway miles can rotate less often or 5000 miles.

Rotate front to rear on the same side of the car is generally OK. Don't forget the spare tire if you have one.

Rotating tires is all about getting more even tire wear. When new each tire on a MINI is the same as the other.

If you forget to rotate you will start to wear out the fronts first, once that happens you can try to rotate but you won't be as successful. Usually you keep the two worn tires on the same axle if you do rotate. If you replace the worn tires put the new tires on the rear axle.

Nevermind the owner's manual.

 

I rotate my tires every Oil Change, so basically every 6mo. regardless of mileage.

 

This is a great resource: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete....jsp?techid=43

Shows you patterns you can follow depending on your situation - spare included in rotation or not, directional tires or not, etc...

 

Thanks everyone!

 

Would rear tires with noticeably less tread but still above the wear markers still be safe? I got busy and put off my last rotation and the wear definitely is evident on the front tires more than the rear before I swapped them to the rear yesterday. I have 5500 miles on these tires and this will be my last rotation. I use tires properly . Autocross will do that to them....

 

no

if you have tires with 1 pair with more tread than the other pair, you put the tires with the most tread on the back

if the rear axle loses traction before the front, you will lose control and crash

you can research this yourself on tirerack and most tire company web sites

scott

 

I generally would agree but there has to be some amount of tread difference that makes no difference in traction. A tire that is worn an little and broken in will have more traction than a brand new full tread tire, right?

 

you said "rear tires with noticeably less tread", so i gave you the industry standard answer and my personal opinion ... it is your car, do what you like
'
scott