Wheel options....what do they weigh?

The Pedal Spoke (60 year spoke) wheel is 23.8 pounds

 

A true winter tire such a Nokian or Michelin x ice will absolutely wear out faster in summer, not only that but the tire itself will “dry” out. The wear rate is shockingly high on the soft to medium soft compounds.

The “all weather” tire or “cross climate” being sold here are a European winter tire. You can use it all year round without issue in mild climates or if you drive occasionally in areas with heavy winter. I’ve used them often in Europe when the cars I’ve used in Europe came equipped with them. Nokian, Vredstein and Michelin make excellent all weather tires. Yes they do count as a winter tire in Quebec and yes they will work but to a limit. They aren’t made for extreme conditions we see here. If you drive occasionally or don’t want the hassle of swapping then go for it. Just remember they aren’t a true winter tire.

Where I live(Montreal)I’ll always go for a true winter tire or “Nordic Tire” I’ve been a Nokian fan for years. The new SE will get a set of Hakka R5 EV. The current Mini has Hakka 9s

 

Our Crosstrek has Hakka 8 SUV (studless) while the Toyota and the (traded-in) smart have R3s. I was going to go with R3s again for the SE, but I haven’t yet found the R5 locally, and I don’t believe the R5 EV is available in our stock sizes (195/55-16 or 205/45-16) either. I do hope so, but I won’t hold out for them.

 

I doubt there's a R5 EV version for the MINI. You'd have to settle for the R5 and make a road trip to Ottawa Kal-Tire.

 

235/45-18 should fit, no?

 

Anything is possible but YMMV!

 

I can get Hakkas locally… lots of places can you just need to adhere to the buying agreement through the distributor. All stock comes directly into Canada via Nokian in Colchester VT.

I checked stock on Friday with my supplier and R5 are in stock in the warehouse. In 195-55-16. R5 EV sizing only starts at 18 inch and up. R3s are on closeout but stock is low. I didn’t bother looking at 17s because it’s easier to downsize to 16s and get steel wheels. 205-45-17 is a bizzaro size these days. I went with Hakka 9 studded on our F55 Cooper S and the studs are overkill. I ski a lot and wanted maximum grip on ski hill roads, freezing rain etc. Problem is we also live in the city where snow cleaning is good… the studs are loud AF. Which I quickly remembered why I hate studded tires… my wife says they sound like suction cups

We really only sell Nokian, Conti and Michelin tires anyways. Budget friendly will be General Altimax. No Chinesium or similar because we don’t want to hear the complaints afterwards. We have installed a metric **** ton on BMWs. Teslas etc

 

Oh, are the R3s being discontinued? I have to replace a pair due to a sidewall puncture, so maybe I'll have R5s on one end of my SE and R3s on the other?

Update: Sure enough, the R3s are listed as discontinued by Discount Tire.

 

I’m not a big fan of mixing tire models and compounds especially if they are a few years old. Based on what I see all R3s are on closeout at my supplier as the R5 is the new model. So it’s safe to assume old stock is being cleared out because r3 is discontinued. If the sales rep comes by I can ask him but sales reps only come by once a year. They’ll bring you a 4XL T-shirt and a pen then vanish

this is something I see often on Porsches that come to my shop for service (we are a euro garage) the front tires will be sometimes original from 2008 (example)and the rears will have been replaced 2-3 times….

 

I generally agree, but my winter tires are only two seasons old and have very little wear. In this case I also don't think there's going to be a major difference between R3s and R5s since they're the same family of tire. I'll see if I can get R3s but they weren't available last winter when I got the puncture. I have three good ones, I'd hate to replace all of them but will if necessary. My plan was to replace a pair and keep the one good one being replaced as a spare.

 

Lol my oddball size (195/40-16 on all four but staggered offsets) on the lowered fortwo caused the ESP to go haywire, needing ever so slightly smaller diameter on the rears to match the stock calibrations (145/70-15 front, 175/55-15 rear on staggered width wheels), so as my S.drive rears wore twice as quickly as the fronts, I’d have to rotate the slightly-used fronts to the rear wheels and slap the new tires on the front rims.

Question: are you in the West Island?

 

Yes we are in Kirkland…

 

I’ll pop by one of these days! I’m on the Pfds side of Antoine-Faucon

 

I won’t mention names here but we are next to dormez vous. St Charles and Hymus

 

Yup I guessed that!

 

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yes

 

Does anyone know if the 15" Heli spoke wheels would actually fit the SE? I am dying to know because I would love to try them for their light weight and slimmer width. Currently I have 16" Loop spoke wheels and while the front brakes have enough clearance I was surprised when I looked at the rears because they appear to have less than the 1/2" required for fitment. Perhaps the shape/contour of the Heli spoke wheel allows it to clear the caliper but i'm not going to spend the money just to find out. These would also make great winter wheels for you northerners. If these wheels fit a Clubman I would be surprised they wouldn't fit an SE.

 

The electric “hand” brake calipers on the SE are too big to allow 15s.

 

Grrr, thank you. I saw exactly what you mean when I removed my wheel and took a look. Whatta shame. BTW everyone, I’m looking for a set of silver Victory Spoke wheels if anyone knows of someone selling some in excellent condition. Looking to replace the black ones my car came with. Since my car is silver that is my preference, dunno why MINI didn’t offer that color as an option.


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Hmmm, maybe offer a trade with a local? I’d join a local or regional MINI/Mini club and check out their (ugh) Facebook presence, put out some feelers.