Hello all,
I have a 2006 MINI Cooper S. As you know standard equipment is Run Flat Tires. I have weighed the pros/cons and well I would like to get rid of them. Any advice on how to locate a legitimate facility to have the flat indicator disconnected?[/font]

 

There is no true tire pressure sensor, it's actually a wheel speed monitor. It measures rotations as compared to other wheels, indicating a difference in pressure. If you were to switch to a soft-wall tire, the indicator may come on as a traction indicator, but if they are all still properly inflated there shouldn't be an issue.
Of course, I could just be entirely wrong.

 

i just placed an order for a 2007 S with runflats. What are the disadvantages that you found?

 

There are upsides, no need for a spare. The side walls are very stiff giving incredible handling, but a rough ride. However, my experience is the tires wear very quickly. I have 10K on the tires and I need new tires already, at $220+/tire plus mounting and the other incidental charges. Feels excessive to have to replace tires every year. You will probably have to take the vehicle to BMW/Mini dealers for any new tires/repairs (at least for the time being) because the tires aren't just sitting on shelves and the machinery for mounting the tires isn't typically available at the local tire dealer/garage, which could make replacement of a tire in a small town very difficult.

 

There are upsides, no need for a spare. The side walls are very stiff giving incredible handling, but a rough ride. However, my experience is the tires wear very quickly. I have 10K on the tires and I need new tires already, at $220+/tire plus mounting and the other incidental charges. Feels excessive to have to replace tires every year. You will probably have to take the vehicle to BMW/Mini dealers for any new tires/repairs (at least for the time being) because the tires aren't just sitting on shelves and the machinery for mounting the tires isn't typically available at the local tire dealer/garage, which could make replacement of a tire in a small town very difficult.

 

The other disadvantage of no spare is that you have to find someone to fix the problem. I was coming home from a rockclimbing trip on Memorial Day and had a flat between San Marcos and Luling in Texas (headed back to Houston). At 7 p.m., I pulled into Luling and was lucky enough to find a guy named Smiley who could patch my flat - just as soon as he finished with the tractor he was working on out in a field somewhere. Three hours later, he patched my flat. Thank you, Smiley, for working on Memorial Day! I got home after midnight. If I'd had a spare, I could have changed the tire and driven back to Houston without the wait.

If anyone knows of a way to switch to a set-up with a spare for the 2007 Cooper S hardtop, please let me know! I need to buy new tires, and I don't want to stay with runflats. My tires are nearly bald with only 30,000 miles on them!

 

Very pricey to replace (I tore up a sidewall hitting a pothole on the highway), some don't last as long as regular tires. On the other hand, I drove the car for two days before I realized anything was wrong - tire place told me I would have been stranded with any other tire.

 

We took the Run Flats off. We now have a great ride. I could not beleive the difference. We also purchesed a "kit" for the Mini that has a small 12 V compressor and a bottle of green slime tire fixer. The kit fits in the rear 1/4 on the passangers side. Did not take up any space...... a good thing!

 

Just to let everyone know, Continental has a deal for a free Navigation system with purchase over $440 from Sept 15 to Nov 2nd. I didn't know about it when I replaced my runflats, but tirerack.com sent me the form and an extra receit for it!

Here's the link to the info....http://www.conti-online.com/generato...ture%20II.html

Also, check out www.tirerack.com for decent deals on tires...

 

I am researching options to having run flats on my 09 Clubman S JCW Mini. In my post of November 30th I describe the wear, nosie and cupping I am experiencing. It is aggravating to have that kind of problem built into this car.

Can you tell me what brand tire you are using, and now that its been over two years since your post regarding this change, how are the new tires wearing and handling?

Any feedback would be appreciated.