16 or 17s?

[777CEM]

Hi, I have recently bought a MCS Clubman.
Although I am very happy with the car I have to get rid of the runflats!

I am looking at changing the alloys aswell for something I think looks better.

At the moment I have 17inch mini 5 spokes. (3runflats and 1 non!)

I was thinking of going to a set of 16s for a bit more comfort.
Has anyone done this already? Any problems?

Thanks Drew

[Caveman]

You shouldn't be driving around with mis-matched tires ... especially in the winter

No problem switching to 16" wheels as standard OEM fitment on the MCS Clubman is 16x6.5.

[The Nun]

Quote: Originally Posted by 777CEM (original)

Hi,
At the moment I have 17inch mini 5 spokes. (3runflats and 1 non!)

Whats it currently drive like with 3 run flats and one normal?
3 are hard and 1 is soft, in comparison?
I would have thought tyres on the same axle ought to be the same type?

[Tigercub]

I have 18inch wheels on my Mini they are run flats tho

[Zipy]

I had ordered 17's on my '07, R56, MC-S. When the original tires were due for repacement, around 20K miles, I started shopping around. I was suprised to find that for the price of the RFTs, I could buy two sets of non-RFTs. To make a long story shorter, I located and bought a nice set of 16" tires and wheels on ebay with about 1200 miles on them. They were RFTs. I ran them for a year, sold them on ebay, made about $100 profit and bought a new set of 18" RFTs Komhos for the original wheels. I do know that there's no room to store a spare on the MC-S; so if you go with non-RFTs, you'll need to carry a can of "fix-a-flat" and invest in a small plug in compressor to carry around.

[777CEM]

Hi,

It drives fine as the one non run flat is on the rear.
I have just enough room to fit a spacesaver in with it been a Clubman.

My plan is to buy a new set of wheels with tyres next payday and sell on the old alloys.
I just cant decide whether to go for the slightly smaller wheels or stick with the 17s. Its a long time since I have driven anything with so little grip and that tramlines so badly! (I know this is mostly the tyres!)

Price wise it makes no real difference.

Drew

[Caveman]

Quote: Originally Posted by 777CEM (original)

... the one non run flat is on the rear.

Absolutely the worst place to have mis-matched tires.

What should be considered when replacing tires

[777CEM]

Really? Why?

I always thought it was best to replace in pairs anyway, but I didnt do this mini dealer did! But I didnt notice till I'd had the car a week.

Also thought that best not to mix tread patterns on driven wheels.

[Caveman]

Losing grip in the rear could result in oversteer which is harder to recover from.

[777CEM]

But its much more fun!

Dont think I could get that far before the front broke free.

Have just ordered a full set of tyres for my wheels for now so at least I wont have to worry about the mismatch.

[marque]

Hi ya

You will find BMW advice you NOT to miss match tires and even brands or it will reduce the effectiveness of the stability control and your ABS to, and you may also find your insurance

basically i would say depending on what you want to do with your car depends on what you go for.
if you want handling and can put up with a bit of a rough ride 17" with non RF
if you are not to worried about handling and want a smoother ride 16" with non RF
if you are going to change the wheels read the FAQ here at mini2 lots of advice and picture in the wheel gallery. and also advise on tire sizes.

hope this helps