Hey guys, im a relatively inactive member of this forum as the mini is my wife's car. I'm no stranger to forums or to working on cars just not active on the mini forums. First off thank you for the great site that you guys have! I tried to do some searching but i'm not too familiar with all the chassis codes of the different minis to really know what im searching for...

So basically heres my situation:
My wife has a 2011 Mini Cooper hardtop that came stock with the 5 star spooler design 5.5 x 15" wheel and from day one she wanted bigger wheels. So i did some researching and I was under the impression that most stock mini wheels should fit other minis without any fitment issues...

So for her birthday in December i got here a set of 16" R84 V Spoke (x-lite) 6.5 x 16" wheels which came standard on the 2002-2008 Mini Cooper S hard top..

They went on fine same lug pattern and all seemed well.. She told me that she has noticed a sound from the rear so i took off one of the rear wheels and i can see where it is rubbing on the sway bar.

I wanted to reach out to you guys to see what our options may be? could it just be a matter of getting some S suspension components to avoid the rubbing? are wheel spacers an option with the style of lug nuts these cars have? should i just suck it up and get a smaller tire? the current tire is a 195/55/16.. the tires still have plenty of tread left so i hate to waste them and spend money on tires for wheels that only cost me $400..

Any thoughts would be well appreciated..

 

This is very odd. The suspension part are all the same between the various options. That is, for example, the sway bar, except for its diameter, is the same for all of the MINIs. And the wheels are all pretty much interchangeable. The tire size is the correct size for a MINI, in fact if you look at the autocross forum, you will see much larger tires than that on MINIs without this problem. Personally, I have run my 16" wheels from my S on my wife's MINI in place of the 15" wheels that are on that car. So my guess is that the sway bar has slipped to one side. Not sure how, though. If that is the case, then it should just need to be pulled to the other side of the car. But you might also want to check that all of the swaybar bushings are in place.

 

I was thinking that as well. The rubbi g sound seems to be consistent on both sides. I'm going to pull the other wheel off and see if its rubbing on both sides.

It's still under warranty so I've considered taking it to the dealer but I'm afraid there just going to say "we'll you put bigger wheels on..."

So I am correct in thinking that all mini wheels should be interchangeable?

 

I just did a check, there is sign of rubbing on the sway bar on the other side as well.. Not as extreme but there is a spot where you can tell its been rubbing. So this eliminates the sway bar shifting to one side.. I also pushed and pulled of the sway to see if it was lose and maybe sliding back and forth but its def not moving.

Another thought could the wheels have been torqued down too much pushing it further inward towards the sway? This is a long shot especially since I was able to break the bolts free with no significant struggle.

 

Wheel spacers are an option for you. Is it the tire or the wheel rubbing on the sway bar?

 

It's rubbed off some of the paint on the sway bar but it's still smooth, if it was wheel rubbing i would think it would have been eaten up more (metal on metal). So my guess is tire

 

Very odd as you are running the oem/stock size tires. It has to be something with the sway bar. Did the original sway bar perhaps get replaced with an aftermarket sway bar? Maybe verify that for a possible explanation.

 

We're the first owners of the car. Bought it in January 2011 and no replacement parts have been put on.

 

Have you thought the rims might be bent? I have a 2011 non S Clubman and which came with the standard 15 inch wheels and I put the 17 Inch Mini lites on it and had no rubbing problems. I have since gone to 16 inch Rota Wheels.

The reason for getting rid of the 17s was the negative effect it had on the performance/power of the car. My gas mileage dropped 3 MPG and it felt like I was carrying extra weight. The car even down shifted more on hills with the larger tires and my wife even mention the lack of power. The 17 inch Mini lites weight 29 lbs a piece with the tires vs, 19 total weight for the factory 15 inch wheels.

Back to your problem. Move the front wheels to the back Also, you could check the wheels by jacking the car up on stands and turning the wheels to see if the rims wobble and are bent.

Good Luck.

 

Alright, i got the car up on four jackstands so that i could release the ebrake and spin the wheels and look for the rubbing.. on jackstands there is plenty plenty of clearance on the sway bar and looking at where the paint is rubbed off it travels further on the sway bar then where the tire could possibly come in contact with. I lowered the car and was able to reach my hand between the spokes and feel between the tire and sway bar and theres still clearance...

The beginning of this hunt for the cause of the rubbing sound was due to my wife having a flat and needing a tire replaced... I took the wheel off to see about getting it plugged, which it cannot be. When i took the wheel off i noticed the bare spot on the sway bar and though that must be the rubbing sounds but after this investigation i am confident the paint being rubbed off the sway bar must just have been from the factory... i didnt want to spend money on replacing a tire if im having rubbing issues.. now im wondering if its brakes dragging or something just the sound of the tires (they were getting low on tread not bad but low)

So next step im going to get 2 tires replaced and go forth and just hope the rubbing sound stops, if not i'll look into possibly the brakes dragging...

Thanks for you help anyone that may have any other ideas please feel fee to chime in

 

so now im getting 4 new tires because wife.

Since im replacing all 4 i thought i'd take the opportunity to change the tire size, maybe something lower profile.. anyone running 205/45/16?

 

Using stock 16" rims, 205/45-16 is not a good choice for street use.
Tire diameter is very small at 23.3" which is 1" less than OEM. This would increase wheel gap, lower overall ground clearance, and create some error for odometer and speedometer.

In general the advantage of a stock 16" wheel would be to use tire sizes like-
195/55-16
205/50-16
205/55-16
All of which offer a comfortable street ride vs any 45 series tire- and this is your wife that will drive it???

The top two choices for a daily driver would be-
195/55-16 (includes runflats for safety)
205/50-16 Offers good selection of tires in summer or All Season with less weight than wide sizes.

 

Thanks for that input. After some research I ended up going with 205/50/16. Great price and good ride so far.. Also the "rubbing sound" has gone away. Must have been the road noise of the old tires I guess

 

As for the rubbing sound.

It cannot be suspension parts or the swaybar if you have stock wheels and stock suspension.

Your inspection from under the car should have shown that.