Hello all. So it's finally warming up here, and I'm finding it's time to get going on getting some summer tires along with new wheels for my Mini. I've got an '04 hardtop, stock wheels being 175/65R15, which is really limiting what's available, even with sizing up. So, I was hoping to get some recommendations on both a good set of summer tires, and a set of wheels to go with. Other than really wanting something that's good both in wet and dry roads, I can't really think of any other demands, and not sure what other information might be needed to get a better recommendation, so any questions, please ask. Also, would like to set an absolute budget of $1000, but may be flexible if something looks realllly nice.

Thanks!

 

If you have a base cooper with OEM 15" wheels and you don't mind the wheel design itself, then there is little reason to consider anything but changing tires either to an Ultra High Performance Summer/All Season tire if you want better performance or to a Grand Touring All Season tire if you want more comfort, lower noise and more treadlife.

Using OEM 15" wheels allows for the following tire sizes:
175/65-15
185/60-15
195/60-15 Good selection of Grand Touring All Season tires- emphasis on comfort
205/55-15 Some UHP Summer or All Season tires- see below

In UHP Summer tires-
Dunlop Direzza DZ 102
205/55-15 $82 each, 460 treadwear
Yokohama S.Drive
205/55-15 $96 each, 300 treadwear, good handling dry or wet
Tirerack test results for UHP tires-
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...y.jsp?ttid=192

In UHP All Season tires- you get a blend of good handling and performance with longer treadlife and a little more comfort-
Kumho Ecsta 4X
205/55-15 $82 each, 420 treadwear, very good handling dry or wet, well priced
Tirerack test result-
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...y.jsp?ttid=151

Grand Touring All Season tires-
A new tire that has better handling and worth a look is-
Michelin Premier A/S
185/65-15 $123 each, 640 treadwear, Good blend of handling and ride comfort
Tirerack test result-
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...y.jsp?ttid=188

Otherwise in Grand Touring AS tires these come in 195/60-15:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/survey...wws=N&showcm=N

The top rated UHP tire, BFG g-Force Sport Comp 2 does come in-
195/55-15 which while a little small for tire diameter at 23.4" which is 1/2" lower ride height from the road and 1/2" more wheel gap for OEM suspension. Load rating is fine for street use, Some tire shops will question the non OEM size but I have used it before and it works.

Tirerack customer ratings for UHP tires-
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/survey...y.jsp?type=UHP

Changing to 16" wheels is another option but only if you want to change the look and go with wider than OEM wheels like 16x7" and a slightly taller tire for more comfort like 205/55-16 which gives a good selection of tires. As wheels get larger in diameter and wider than OEM sometimes weight goes up, heavy wheels don't work as well for the Base Cooper due to limitations on engine power. Wider tires like 205/55-16 also give more rolling resistance and lower mpg slightly.

Your budget will go further with replacing only tires. If it were my base cooper I would be looking at the Michelin Premier A/S which is available at Costco.

I do my street driving in my 03 MCS on OEM 15" wheels and Bridgestone Ecopia 422 Grand Touring AS tires. They don't handle well but offer good ride comfort, lower noise and longer treadlife. Otherwise my MCS is setup for racing which I don't need to adjust if I ride on Ecopias. When it is time for racing then I put on light 16x7" wheels and BFG Rival Extreme Summer tires 215/45-16.

 

Interesting. The S.drives were the only lead I had before asking. Any reason to go one way or the other between them and the Dunlops?

I don't mind my OEM 15" wheels, but I've got a set of winter tires already mounted on them, so my plan was to get a second set of wheels to keep summers on, to avoid having to remount twice a year.

 

Good plan.

Now pickup a set of 16" OEM wheels off someone on this board. A set can be had for $200-300, may a tad more if it comes with tires. Which you may choose to throw away and only use as protection for shipping.

There is a wide selection of excellent 205/55-16 tires out there. Start by search reviews and test on tirerack.com


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dupe

 

Ok, so you have different options for another set of wheels and some summer tires.

If you want a better selection of higher performance tires then you can go as large as 17x7" rims and 215/45-17 tires or 205/45-17. Both have very good tire selection including the Michelin Pilot Super Sport. You pay more but get great handling and ride comfort with a much more sporty look and yes, it will work fine with a base cooper.

205/55-16 is the next best tire size for a wide range of tires to choose from. A popular tire for street use with good handling in wet or dry is the Continental ExtremeContact DWS as was mentioned. Comes in 205/55-16 and 17" sizes.

The advantage of 205/55-16 is the taller softer riding sidewall compared to 17" tire sizes which have stiffer 45 series sidewalls, good for responsive handling but not good for poor roads.

Did you mention you have bad roads? If so, then yes, 16" sizes are a better choice.

 

After all this, I ended up sticking with my stock wheels (since they're so light at 12 lbs) and got a set of 195/60/15 Yokohama YK580s.

 

Wow, all this talk of summer tires, and you buy cheap all-season Yoko's ?

 

Those should work fine for you. They are new and fall into the UHP/High Performance All Season tire class, roughly similar to Yokohama AVID ENVigor (H or V speed rated). 560-580 treadwear.

Let us know how you like them.