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Alright to mix tyre ratings front and rear?

6K views 10 replies 4 participants last post by  locksbury 
#1 ·
Hello

I have been scouring the interwebs and this forum, but thought my more specific questions made it worth starting a new thread... :hmph:

At the moment I'm running Avon ZZ3s (88W XL rated) on my 2008 R56 Cooper S. Now the fronts need changing and I was thinking of putting the still good Avons on the front and buying a new pair from a different manufacturer for the rear.

So, my main questions are:

a) Is it alright to mix different tyre ratings front and rear? Say Conti SC3s with 84V on the front and Avon ZZ3s with 88W XL on the rear and move to all to the same type when the Avons have worn out? :puzzled:

b) OR am I asking for trouble with the different ratings/treads and should I just cough up get a new set of four and sell/recycle the still good Avons? :frown:

Also, whilst I'm looking through the myriad of suggested tyres that work well with the Cooper, I've narrowed down my search to Conti SC3s, Kuhmo KU39s and the Vreds. Does anyone have long term experience with these tyres and steer me in the right direction (no pun intended)? ;)

See you round

locksbury
 
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#2 ·
The amount of 'mixing' you are talking about isn't much.

On the tyre speed rating, either V-rated tyres (good for 149mph) or W-rated tyres (good for 168mph) are OK for your theoretically 142mph Cooper S - it's not a JCW, right? The W tyre is much 'faster' than needed but that doesn't make them behave differently.

The 84 or 88XL are the load ratings and either is enough for a Mini. Some folk say the 88XLs are a little firmer but I reckon any difference is marginal.

So the mixed tyres ore OK - but..... you really ought to put the good new tyres on the back so that there is no chance the car will want to spin if you need to do an emergency brake in the wet.

The upside or the downside is that this puts the old Avons on the front, so:
- the upside is that they will wear out faster on the front and so you'll be onto four equal tyres sooner;
- the downside is that they will wear out faster on the front and so you'll have to buy the other two tyres sooner.
 
#6 ·
Mixing tires "can unbalance the vehicle's handling in poor weather or when pushed to the limit in an emergency".
Yes, but that is up there with "Never drive your vehicle outside a garage as it may be struck by lightning".

Sensible mixing of tyres isn't a problem - it's doing it with no thought that is the problem. Hence the comment about putting the good (deeper tread) tyres on the rear.

Locksbury, I'm a huge fan of Contis and have them on my car - their particular benefit is in wet weather where they really perform brilliantly even when driven really hard. I very much doubt anyone can tell the difference between SportContact3s and SportContact5s, outside of a test track, and the SportContact3s have the (minor) advantage that they are an approved tyre for Minis.
 
#5 ·
Thanks Caveman, you confirmed what was niggling in the back of my mind... :puzzled:

So, it seems it to boils down to:

a) Get a new pair of Avons and wear the whole set out with more regular rotations and then get a new set from another manufacturer later on.

OR

b) Get a full new set of tyres and sell the part used Avons.

If I went with option B, I'm torn between:

Continental Conti Sport Contact 3 - 205 45 R17 84V

Continental Conti Sport Contact 5 - 205 45 R17 88V XL FR TL

Kumho KU39 Ecsta Le Sport Kumho KU 39 - 205 45 R17 88Y XL TL

Vredestein ULTRAC CENTO - 205 45 ZR17 88Y XL

Any one have experience of the above tyres?
 
#7 ·
As above, if you mix decent brands you're ok as long as you put them on the same axle. Mixing cheap tyres and good ones is a no-no.

I'm a huge fan of Kuhmo KU39s after using them in 225/45-18 size on an RX-8 and 225/45-17 on my current Alfa 159 2.4 Ddddiesel. They grip really well in the dry or wet and for the money I feel you can't go wrong. I'll be putting more on the Alfa again soon.

Not had the Mini long enough to need new tyres, but I'd certainly look at Kumhos again.
 
#10 ·
My Contis are at about 4mm after about 10,000 miles of use (can't be exact as I use winters too), so won't do much more than 15,000 in total - but then this is on a SD which tests the traction of even 205/45-17s. On a previous Cooper, Contis did well over 25,000 miles.
 
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