MINI R56 Cooper S - info on 16" wheels
Discussion
csd19 said:
if you click the link for the bigger version you can just make out the clearance on the front caliper.
Yeah it's quite tight - excuse the caliper appearance, this was before I painted them:
(although I'm sure my Ibiza Cupra TDI had less clearance on standard brakes and wheels)
mids said:
It's also got some cheap tyres fitted so I'll be changing those at the same time so would be interested in any suggestions there as well.
Rainsport 3's as mentioned above are great, but I went for Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125s on the basis of this tyre test http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article/2016-AutoBild... It happened to be 16" versions they tested too. No complaints and £55/corner fitted.a11y_m said:
Yeah it's quite tight - excuse the caliper appearance, this was before I painted them:
(although I'm sure my Ibiza Cupra TDI had less clearance on standard brakes and wheels)
My Leon Cupra had 312mm brakes under 16" alloys as standard, would be nice if they'd fit on the MCS!(although I'm sure my Ibiza Cupra TDI had less clearance on standard brakes and wheels)
mids said:
CoolHands said:
What size tyres are recommended for the 16"? (I presume they're 6.5J width?)
Yeah, 195/55 on the ones I have.I've just bought a set of refurbished X-Lites (inspired by GiveItSomeWellie's photos).
Just got to sort the tyres out now.
mids said:
Yeah, 195/55 on the ones I have.
I've just bought a set of refurbished X-Lites (inspired by GiveItSomeWellie's photos).
Just got to sort the tyres out now.
Nice one, you won't regret it I've just bought a set of refurbished X-Lites (inspired by GiveItSomeWellie's photos).
Just got to sort the tyres out now.
Mine came with 195/55/16 which is what they left the factory with, I had them changed for 205/50/16 (Bridgestone Potenza RE002, in case anyone was wondering). The look more purposeful and bring small handling benefits.
a11y_m said:
Didn't want to further hijack another thread with 16" wheel info. I'm posting this here after receiving a message asking about my 16s, should it prove useful for others too.
The majority of R56 MCS’s – in the UK at least – come with 17” wheels as part of the Chili pack which the majority of buyers spec. Combined with the RFTs I found the ride/handling lacking. Buying my MINI in November and living in Scotland, I soon changed to 17” winters with Bridgestone Blizzak RFTs and quickly found them to be, quite frankly, s***e. Good in snow but lacking grip in ‘normal’ – cold and wet – winter conditions and not confidence-inspiring in the least.
I decided both the summer and winter RFTs had to go, but one thing led to another and instead of swapping just the tyres I ended up buying 16” alloys and winter tyres. These were fitted in January and the scale of the improvements made downsizing my summer wheels too a no-brainer. Changing to 17” non-RFTs might’ve improved things sufficiently but I was happy with the appearance of 16” so figured why not go smaller. IMO the difference between 17” RFT and 16” non-RFT is night and day. More comfort on crappy road surfaces, more composure on bumpy A/B-roads, less tramlining, less crashing over broken surfaces/ridges, reduced torque steer, better steering feel.
Hard to say how much of my improvement is due to non-RFTs and how much from downsizing 17” to 16”. I suspect a bit of both but I’ve not tried 17” non-RFTs so hard to say definitively. But anyone unsure about ditching the RFTs – don’t hesitate, just do it!
16” wheels that fit
Not many OEM 16” wheels clear the brake calipers on a R56 MCS. I used a list I found here: http://www.mini2.com/forum/wheels-tyres-brakes/192...
• R94 Bridge Spoke
• R102 S-winder
• R103 Blaster
• R115 Rib-spoke
• R119 6-star Twin-spoke
• R120 Circular-spoke
• (plus R87 double-spoke 5.5” winter wheel)
Weight saving
After picking up a 17” with RFT part of my move to 16” was to reduce unsprung weight. With the general focus on ‘adding lightness’ you can’t go wrong. Yes, aftermarket wheels could’ve saved even more but I prefer OEM and was on a tight budget.
I’ve saved 4.8kg PER WHEEL:
17” with RFT = 21.3kg each
16” with non-RFT = 16.5kg each
Total weight saved: just under 20kg.
Original wheels: 17” R121 Conical spokes in black with 205/45 R17 Bridgestone/Dunlop RFTs
Original winters: 17" R97 Flame spokes with 205/45 R17 Bridgestone Blizzak RFTs
Current 16" summers: R115 Rib spokes with 205/55 R16 Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125s
Current 16" winters: R102 S-Winders with 205/55 R16 Conti WinterContact TS860s
Both 16” styles I’ve got now are the OEM wheel style on non-Chili packed Cooper S’s, so aren’t out of place on my car. The R102s appeared on 2007-11 cars and R115s on 2011-13 cars.
I know 16’s aren’t to everyone’s tastes – the piss-taking from my mates confirms that. But at the end of the day I bought my MINI for enjoyment and in my experience it’s more fun to drive on the 16’s. It’s my car so there
Just found this thread and perfect timing.The majority of R56 MCS’s – in the UK at least – come with 17” wheels as part of the Chili pack which the majority of buyers spec. Combined with the RFTs I found the ride/handling lacking. Buying my MINI in November and living in Scotland, I soon changed to 17” winters with Bridgestone Blizzak RFTs and quickly found them to be, quite frankly, s***e. Good in snow but lacking grip in ‘normal’ – cold and wet – winter conditions and not confidence-inspiring in the least.
I decided both the summer and winter RFTs had to go, but one thing led to another and instead of swapping just the tyres I ended up buying 16” alloys and winter tyres. These were fitted in January and the scale of the improvements made downsizing my summer wheels too a no-brainer. Changing to 17” non-RFTs might’ve improved things sufficiently but I was happy with the appearance of 16” so figured why not go smaller. IMO the difference between 17” RFT and 16” non-RFT is night and day. More comfort on crappy road surfaces, more composure on bumpy A/B-roads, less tramlining, less crashing over broken surfaces/ridges, reduced torque steer, better steering feel.
Hard to say how much of my improvement is due to non-RFTs and how much from downsizing 17” to 16”. I suspect a bit of both but I’ve not tried 17” non-RFTs so hard to say definitively. But anyone unsure about ditching the RFTs – don’t hesitate, just do it!
16” wheels that fit
Not many OEM 16” wheels clear the brake calipers on a R56 MCS. I used a list I found here: http://www.mini2.com/forum/wheels-tyres-brakes/192...
• R94 Bridge Spoke
• R102 S-winder
• R103 Blaster
• R115 Rib-spoke
• R119 6-star Twin-spoke
• R120 Circular-spoke
• (plus R87 double-spoke 5.5” winter wheel)
Weight saving
After picking up a 17” with RFT part of my move to 16” was to reduce unsprung weight. With the general focus on ‘adding lightness’ you can’t go wrong. Yes, aftermarket wheels could’ve saved even more but I prefer OEM and was on a tight budget.
I’ve saved 4.8kg PER WHEEL:
17” with RFT = 21.3kg each
16” with non-RFT = 16.5kg each
Total weight saved: just under 20kg.
Original wheels: 17” R121 Conical spokes in black with 205/45 R17 Bridgestone/Dunlop RFTs
Original winters: 17" R97 Flame spokes with 205/45 R17 Bridgestone Blizzak RFTs
Current 16" summers: R115 Rib spokes with 205/55 R16 Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125s
Current 16" winters: R102 S-Winders with 205/55 R16 Conti WinterContact TS860s
Both 16” styles I’ve got now are the OEM wheel style on non-Chili packed Cooper S’s, so aren’t out of place on my car. The R102s appeared on 2007-11 cars and R115s on 2011-13 cars.
I know 16’s aren’t to everyone’s tastes – the piss-taking from my mates confirms that. But at the end of the day I bought my MINI for enjoyment and in my experience it’s more fun to drive on the 16’s. It’s my car so there
My wife has a R56 jcw clubman with R113 diamond cut 18". They look fantastic but I've always found the ride very crashy and put me off driving it. It has Falkens (not runflats) but still seemed really harsh. Anyway as Falkens are fairly worn thought we should get s/h 17" wheels and set winter 205 45 r17. Got set 17" Crowns for £70 and fitted Vredstein quatrac. WOW. What a difference. Much more comfortable and feel safer driving faster now that it does not bounce around the road.
Clearly it has been over tyred on the 18". Now thinking what the best option is for summer.
Have the works big calipers so guessing 17 is smallest that will fit rather than 16? Or do 16 fit over these brakes.
Also in west of Scotland where it is mostly wet so all weather tyres might be best option.
Suggestions welcome.
)
twokcc said:
FSD's fitted yesterday and now have a suspension !!
Only done 80 miles on roads that I am not familiar with so will post more details once shocks have had chance to bed in and I've driven on local roads so that I have a more valid comparison
How've the FSDs been over the last month???Only done 80 miles on roads that I am not familiar with so will post more details once shocks have had chance to bed in and I've driven on local roads so that I have a more valid comparison
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