RF Tyres Question??
Discussion
Wife's got a 12th old Countryman Cooper S (Sports Pack) & it came fitted with RF tyres which i've hated from day 1 as makes the ride very crashy. For some reason i'd not been monitoring the tyres as i probably would on my own car so hadn't realised the difference in wear rate between fronts & rears.
After 15k miles the front are close to the wear limit But the rears have plenty left on them (should have swapped them round ages ago but don't really notice).
Question is, should i swap them over now & therefore given the need for 1 pair needing replacing have regular tyres on the back & when the RF's on the front need replacing put regular tyres on the front & then given wear rates all will be back to pretty much back to normal, or put new regular tyres on the front now to improve the handling & ride quality immediately & then when the rear RF's finally give up just replace with regular rubber then?
Any pitfalls of running non RF's on the front or rear with corresponding regular rubber?
Thanks in advance.
After 15k miles the front are close to the wear limit But the rears have plenty left on them (should have swapped them round ages ago but don't really notice).
Question is, should i swap them over now & therefore given the need for 1 pair needing replacing have regular tyres on the back & when the RF's on the front need replacing put regular tyres on the front & then given wear rates all will be back to pretty much back to normal, or put new regular tyres on the front now to improve the handling & ride quality immediately & then when the rear RF's finally give up just replace with regular rubber then?
Any pitfalls of running non RF's on the front or rear with corresponding regular rubber?
Thanks in advance.
Never never never mix rft and non rft.
If you are happy to lose the convenience (my wife likes the get you home comfort of rfts) then change them all for a suitable non rft and buy a foam and air pack.
You should tell your insurance company as well.
I think you need stiffer sidewall trees and there aren't straight matches so others may be able to advise better than me.
I have had way more punctures with rfts than I ever had with real tyres. I hate them.
If you are happy to lose the convenience (my wife likes the get you home comfort of rfts) then change them all for a suitable non rft and buy a foam and air pack.
You should tell your insurance company as well.
I think you need stiffer sidewall trees and there aren't straight matches so others may be able to advise better than me.
I have had way more punctures with rfts than I ever had with real tyres. I hate them.
That's annoying as wouldn't have thought mixing RF with non would be an issue. I wasn't meaning on the same axle so fronts would be a pair as would rears.
I find the RF's dangerous on the Mini as when hitting a pothole or uneven road surface the steering wheel can quite easily be grabbed from your hands which isn't a great idea.
If i follow this tack then the car will always be running the horrific RF's & i don't like that idea, as i don't like the idea of binning 2 near new tyres as the car's running on 18's so would be at least £300+ wasted.
If i do have to replace the fronts with RF's though, is their a particular one that's worth looking for as really don't want to fit the Continental ContiSportContact (catchy name).
I find the RF's dangerous on the Mini as when hitting a pothole or uneven road surface the steering wheel can quite easily be grabbed from your hands which isn't a great idea.
If i follow this tack then the car will always be running the horrific RF's & i don't like that idea, as i don't like the idea of binning 2 near new tyres as the car's running on 18's so would be at least £300+ wasted.
If i do have to replace the fronts with RF's though, is their a particular one that's worth looking for as really don't want to fit the Continental ContiSportContact (catchy name).
Even on different axles, I would say it's a no-no.
4 real tyres shouldn't be much more expensive than 2 rfts and will justify the expense in ride and control.
I wouldn't want the insurance hassle either if anything happened as they have completely,different characteristics.
It's bite the bullet time IMHO.
4 real tyres shouldn't be much more expensive than 2 rfts and will justify the expense in ride and control.
I wouldn't want the insurance hassle either if anything happened as they have completely,different characteristics.
It's bite the bullet time IMHO.
DavidLScott said:
Even on different axles, I would say it's a no-no.
4 real tyres shouldn't be much more expensive than 2 rfts and will justify the expense in ride and control.
I wouldn't want the insurance hassle either if anything happened as they have completely,different characteristics.
It's bite the bullet time IMHO.
Thanks. A tyre hunting i shall go then. No matter what they'll be a s4 real tyres shouldn't be much more expensive than 2 rfts and will justify the expense in ride and control.
I wouldn't want the insurance hassle either if anything happened as they have completely,different characteristics.
It's bite the bullet time IMHO.
t load cheaper than my runner so i guess not a huge issue.I will completely go against the grain here and I am simply sharing my experiences ot recommending anything!
I have had an R53 Cooper S and currently own a R55 Clubman S. The R53 we only had for a year and was on run flats. The ride was a little jarring but I loved the handling and feel.
The R55 we have had for four years now. I have swapped tyres on a few occasions. Firstly it had non RFT up front and RFT at the rear. I was not completely happy with ride or handling so swapped the rears for non RFT. To me this killed the handling, it was not as crisp and it felt a little dead. Eventually the fronts have worn and I have swapped them for some RFTs again. There is a definite increase in the delicacy of the handling, the ride comfort has got worse, but that was not what I was looking for in the car anyway.
Through the various set-ups, I have had no scary handling or stopping moments. I have driven through some horrendous weather recently, commuting daily with some emergency stops (country roads) and not felt out of control at any moment due to the tyres. (Admittedly, I do drive more sedately than I used too
)
Most the tyre manufacturer do not recommend mixing, so take my practical 40,000 miles driving with a pinch of salt.
Insurance have never been bothered and I have discussed it with each insurer I have had (currently Tesco). Their general opinion is it is the same as using Linglong tyres (which are not recommended by the manufacturer), but if they pass the MOT then all is good. (Some insurers may not take this attitude I accept!)
I have had an R53 Cooper S and currently own a R55 Clubman S. The R53 we only had for a year and was on run flats. The ride was a little jarring but I loved the handling and feel.
The R55 we have had for four years now. I have swapped tyres on a few occasions. Firstly it had non RFT up front and RFT at the rear. I was not completely happy with ride or handling so swapped the rears for non RFT. To me this killed the handling, it was not as crisp and it felt a little dead. Eventually the fronts have worn and I have swapped them for some RFTs again. There is a definite increase in the delicacy of the handling, the ride comfort has got worse, but that was not what I was looking for in the car anyway.
Through the various set-ups, I have had no scary handling or stopping moments. I have driven through some horrendous weather recently, commuting daily with some emergency stops (country roads) and not felt out of control at any moment due to the tyres. (Admittedly, I do drive more sedately than I used too
)Most the tyre manufacturer do not recommend mixing, so take my practical 40,000 miles driving with a pinch of salt.
Insurance have never been bothered and I have discussed it with each insurer I have had (currently Tesco). Their general opinion is it is the same as using Linglong tyres (which are not recommended by the manufacturer), but if they pass the MOT then all is good. (Some insurers may not take this attitude I accept!)
It doesn't matter at all if you ditch an axle pair in favour of non rft's. I would advise against a single tyre, but otherwise really do not worry. Plenty of drivers have winter tyres on one axle and summer on the other, so if all are summer and just rft vs non it isn't going to be an issue. You say the fronts are 'near' the limit, so if the rears suffer such little wear I'd simply rotate them now and get some use from the good rears fitted to the front, then renew all four and ebay the front if still useable, remembering others don't like paying for new rft tyres. Or do as you suggest, fit the rft's to the front and non to the rear. The worst effect you'll have is the rft light coming on slightly more frequently, due to the slightly reduced circumference of non rft tyres considering the 'squish' they display over rft types, therefore the rotation count will possibly be different over a number of miles.
I have taken non rft off my R53S and it is markedly less harsh on 17's, but went up a width with the same profile too, brilliant! Corrected most of the speedo error, made the car quitter and more comfortable, stickier tyres used compromise wet driving, but make it a different vehicle dry, and highlight the inadequacy of the standard brake diameter now, so that needs addressing. Not that it gets driven in a silly way, it's a fast road standard looking car that's all. The tyres play a significant role, no going back for me.
Just my2p
I have taken non rft off my R53S and it is markedly less harsh on 17's, but went up a width with the same profile too, brilliant! Corrected most of the speedo error, made the car quitter and more comfortable, stickier tyres used compromise wet driving, but make it a different vehicle dry, and highlight the inadequacy of the standard brake diameter now, so that needs addressing. Not that it gets driven in a silly way, it's a fast road standard looking car that's all. The tyres play a significant role, no going back for me.
Just my2p
Thanks for the advice/replies.
As i missed the best time to rotate the rears & fronts (annoyed at myself about that) & given the wear rate is probably 75% front & 25% rear i'm going to take the easy option & replace the worn out fronts with the same OEM run flats. Not too bad at £145 each fitted for the 18" Conti's & only about £20 a tyre cheaper for the equivalent quality non RF's, so i'll run with these again, rotate in say 7k miles & get non RF's all round next time they need changing.
As i missed the best time to rotate the rears & fronts (annoyed at myself about that) & given the wear rate is probably 75% front & 25% rear i'm going to take the easy option & replace the worn out fronts with the same OEM run flats. Not too bad at £145 each fitted for the 18" Conti's & only about £20 a tyre cheaper for the equivalent quality non RF's, so i'll run with these again, rotate in say 7k miles & get non RF's all round next time they need changing.
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