Hey, so I've never picked out rims for a car. I do not know how you choose them... I like some and found them not at a bad price ( ) I am not sure on the whole measurements... I have stock 17" 8 spokes. 205 tyre. I do not know how to read 17x7"/4x100mm correctly.. Any help? no hurry just curious on how to read and buy the right size rims.

 

Where do you live?

In the US we did not see the MCS until 2003.

You want to find wheels that are 4x100 bolt pattern, offset can vary. The larger the number for offset the less it pokes outward from under the wheel arch. Stock offset for 17x7" MINI wheel is 48.

The Motegi wheel you sited, FF7 $117 each, is heavy at 23.5 lbs, 17x7 with offset 42mm which is fine, will stick out 6mm more than stock wheel you have now which is OK. You can reuse the same tire from your current wheel or change tire size to 215/45-17 for a more comfortable ride.

An alternative Motegi Racing wheel that is almost the same price and much lighter (comes in matte black or hypersilver finish) is-
This is $125 each, 15.2 lbs, offset 40mm, this will fit your MINI ok
or
This is $116 each, 15.2 lbs. 17x7", offset 40mm

For any Motegi wheel you will also need centering rings to put on the MINI wheel hub and fits inside the wheel hub for a snug fit-

Why lighter wheels are better- less energy/power is needed to move a lighter wheel and tire, this helps with responsive handling, braking shorter, and accelerating faster. If you are going a constant speed then it doesn't matter.

Your MINI stock wheels are very heavy at about 23-25 lbs each. The alloy material is not very strong so it is cast a little thicker for strength and that results in a heavy wheel. Not all MINI wheels are as heavy.

Which tires do you have now? Are they needing to be replaced? Do you have winter weather? What are you going to do with the Stock 17x7" wheels?

 

My car is a 2002, insurance branding and vin all say so. I Live in Seattle. Planning on having two sets; Trackday (...bro)/ Summer and rain. So planning on keeping the old 8 spokes with continental extreme contacts (good for about 2 more years).
So one thing I am wondering is how do you know that I can run 205 or 215 tyres?

 

I know because I drive a 2003 Cooper S hardtop and used both stock and lowered suspension and had 17x7" stock and aftermarket wheels with 205/45-17 and 215/45-17 tires mounted. I have also owned and used 8 sets of wheels for my MCS over the last 11 years.

If you are using stock suspension even JCW you will be fine with either 205/45-17 or 215/45-17 tires.

Which tires were you thinking of? What is your budget?

Are you set on the Motegi FF7 wheel or did you care for the SP10 I mentioned? You can buy wheels and tires from Tirerack.com (call and ask for Alex at extention 4294) which come mounted and balanced and with a set of centering rings to fit your MINI. Tirerack does not list the FF7 but has other models including the SP10 which is a good budget track wheel.

For track tires you want grippy tires like-
Streetable R compound tire : Toyo R888
Extreme Summer tire: like BFG Rival or Dunlop Direzza II Star Spec
Max Summer tire: like Michelin Pilot super sport or Bridgestone S-04

 

Yeah as of right now, I am so undecided on rims, but I do like both the Michelin PSS and Bridgestone S-04's. Not sure the difference between extreme and max summer.... sounds like some jazzed up stuff but meh. Not going overboard on tyres or rims. Nothing is going to be bought for quite a while, it is getting to winter time and well frankly who wants the fun of teasing rims and tyres in their room or garage all winter long xD. And for budget, Not crazy... I am 19 and all xD

 

OK on the timing. You should be fine but if you are going to track your MINI going with lighter rims within budget is a big plus you won't regret. Looks comes second when tracking with a limited budget in mind.

Extreme Summer tires have a softer rubber and sometimes even more than one rubber compound for the outer treads with larger blocks at the edge for more grip. Essentially the entire tire design and materials are meant for more performance specifically on a track even though they are street tires with treadwear from 140 to 200. These days 200 is what most companies are using or are going to be using.

Max Summer tires are a compromise with street use, some comfort, good traction and handling in dry OR wet, and a little longer treadlife about treadwear 300. They can be used on the track but they will wear a bit faster and won't like heat build up.

To make the most use of any tire when used on the track you need suspension mods that allow you to handling high speed cornering along with an aggressive alignment for track duty. This means adding negative front camber. Stock alignment only allows for -0.5 degrees in the front for your MCS year, adding adjustable front camber plates will give you about -2.0 degrees which is much better. This adds to the cost of suspension upgrades but leads to better tread wear on your expensive tires.

You'd be wise to upgrade brake pads and brake fluid (something that allows for higher boiling point). Standard pads are for street use, performance pads dust a little more but give you better stopping. If your pads and rotors are very worn you would need to replace the rotors when changing pads.

People that run Extreme Summer tires on the street are wasting the soft rubber since you never really need to do hard braking and fast cornering. But it can be fun to drive along canyon roads. Max Summer tires will work fine for street use, wear better and be safer if it rains. Some are comfortable and quiet but they can cost more like Michelin Pilot Super Sport. The Bridgestone S-04 are good on dry and wet handling but give up some comfort at a lower price point.

 

I plan to get coilovers (pretty sure my shocks are going bad anyways), so in addition to coilovers (http://www.outmotoring.com/mini-coop...coilovers.html) I am going to get rims and tyres, the rims are undecided, the tyres I like the pilot SS from Michelin then mix those with the coilovers and an alta adjustable sway bar. One thing I am wondering is they "recommend" that you use 205's. What happens if you use 215's??