Buy new ones or respray the rims

[skdmrk]

Just bought a mint condition, lady driven 2007 Cooper D. Very happy and very proud. [see attachment].

I had decided before buying the car to get some 17" black rims, which will make it a hell of a lot cooler. But after driving it with the original 16" with recommended tyre pressure, I think not. It would be too bumpy, or am I wrong here.

Anybody got some suggestions, respray and keep the comfort, or get the 17s. PS! I drive around on a lot of cobblestone.

Thanks in advance.

[Paul]

Either get some light 17" alloys and good non-runflats if you MUST go 17", otherwise, stick with what you have, or even better get some nice, light, 16" alloys.

Personally I'm not a big fan of the black wheel fashion, with the MINIs big black wheel arches it can sometimes look odd to me.

[Soopercooperinfo]

If you are thinking about repainting your wheels, here is a thread that may help.

[mini doller$]

I hed 15" standerd alloys on my one changed them to a bk 399 18" wheel an 35m tyres.
yer you feel evey bump in the road but it looks very cool biger the better in my eyes so go on put the bigger ones on!!!!!

[Paul]

Depends if you want a car because of how it looks, how it drives, or a compromise between both really I guess.

[mini doller$]

yer your right guess its just what ppl like!!

not a big fan of the black wheels my self but again it what ppl like!!

[IanDW]

I had a similar dilema. I ended up deciding to get my current 16" wheels refurbished and sprayed anthracite (dark grey with metallic flake).
I am well please with the results (attached). Total cost £180 GBP.

For any wheel refurb make sure they weld the rims (to fill kerbing) and preferably powder coat then lacquer.

Finally ditch the runflats if you want better ride. Those stiffened sidewalls on runflats dont absorb bumps well. Clearly the trade off is not having a spare and therefore relying on a can of tyre weld and a compressor......

[skdmrk]

Thanks for the feedback.

Are there runflats on as standard? The original tyres are on the car.

I think I'll og for the respray. IanDW could you please explain the powder coating opposed to lacquer. I am not going to do this myself, and do not know the Norwegian explanation for it.

Thanks

[IanDW]

OK I'll try and answer your questions:

1) I am not sure on your model and territory if runflats are standard. My guess is they are. You can tell for sure by checking if you have a spare tyre or tyre weld (if not you will have runflats). There is also a runflat marking or comment on the side of the tyre normally. Or get the tyre model and search on the web to check if its a runflat.

2) I attach a link to Wikipedia which explains powder coating and a link to the guy that did my wheels also.
Basically powder coating means they attach the wheel to ground (negative) and charge the paint powder positive (via a special gun). With application of heat the paint powder is attracted to the wheel and melts to form a coating.
Powder coating produces a thicker, harder and hence more resilient finish than the alternative which is spraying with wet paint (like they spray car bodies).
As wheels are close to the road they are prone to scratches, stone chips and kerbing hence stronger paint via powder coating is better than wet painting.
Lacquer is simply the clear coating which is applied after the coloured powder coat. This is used to seal and protect the base colour coat and also makes the finish nice and shiny. It is a bit like varnish.

If you have plastic centre covers (like I do on my wheels) they cant be powder coated as I guess you cant apply a charge to them as they dont conduct electricity. Hence my centre covers were sprayed with wet paint - they still match the main wheel well. This shouldnt be an issue as it is less likely you would scratch the wheel centre than the rim.

In UK as a guideline it is normally around GBP50 (about €60) per wheel to get this done including repairing any minor kerb damage. To do this they should TIG weld the damage as it is stronger (again look in Wikipedia for definition of TIG welding if not sure). Some places just use car body filler which is not good as it isnt as strong......

Hope this helps. Cheers.

Powder coating - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

J P Polishing Essex Alloy Wheel Refurbishment

[IanDW]

Another good link to show examples of finishes you can get and process used.

Alloy Wheel Refurbishment - Refurb - Refurbishing - West Midlands

[james76]

i would recomend a refurb but keep runflasts coz changing them makes the steering and handling feel vague
the suspension is set up for them so unless your gettin new suspension keep runflats

[skdmrk]

I'm all set, an will shop around for a respray. Those rims of yours IanDW looks smashing, so I'll try to get similar color. And I'll delay the tyre shopping till they are worn.

Thank you all, you've been a great help

[IanDW]

I dont agree with james76. My experience of ditching runflats for Toyo Proxes T1R in stock size was a major improvement. Same nimbleness and turn in. Much better overall grip - I found the OEM tyres pretty poor. Biggest improvement is the ride quality as non runflats can absorb bumps more working with the suspension. For me the standard setup is very firm and poor at bump absorption on UK roads (bumpy where I live).

Also non runflats are 25-30% cheaper.

Only downsides for me are the obvious ones (not having a spare, etc).

Cheers.

[scraggles]

Quote: Originally Posted by james76 (original)

i would recomend a refurb but keep runflasts coz changing them makes the steering and handling feel vague
the suspension is set up for them so unless your gettin new suspension keep runflats

My experience was exactly the opposite of this. Ditching the run flats removed the harsh ride, sharpened up the handling and improved comfort.

Like others have said, you'll be better going to a wheel refurb specialist than getting them resprayed.

[broady]

Black wheels everytime!! the major advantage is you dont have to clean them every other day like silver ones as the brake dust from the mini is always a nightmare!