Mini Tires

Initial Review, 29,000 Miles on Tires
January 29, 2013

Smooth. Sticky. Predictable. Precise. Long-wearing.
Quiet. A bit expensive. I'm just off the wear bars. Recently put a thicker rear sway bar and front negative camber plates on the MINI. Wow! Gotta get back into Solo2, run these "shoes" bald and go get another set!

Initial Review, 500 Miles on Tires
January 22, 2013

I've only had these tires a couple weeks so I can't comment on treadwear or wet/snow performance. But I can say that the difference in ride quality is phenomenal (they replaced run flats). A MINI Cooper suspension is stiff by design; but with run flat tires, on 17" rims, in sport mode…if you hit a nickel lying in the road, you’ll spill your coffee. With the Continental Extreme DWS tires I can hit all the loose change I want. Plus, the run flats were very loud whereas the Continental’s are so quiet that I can now hear my wife telling me to slow down. I’m very happy with these tires.

Initial Review, 10,000 Miles on Tires
January 21, 2013

My review of these tires is different than it would have been when I first purchased them. Some reviewers mention the wandering nature of these tires. I have never had a tire that took so long to break in. After 1,000 miles the tires started to perform like I had expected. I'll admit that they were a bit unnerving in the beginning. I could not keep the car moving in a straight line. I was constantly correcting. After 10,000 miles I am very happy with the tires. I run 40# psi to get more sidewall stability. That helps in the corners.

Initial Review, 5,000 Miles on Tires
January 21, 2013

I have had the Continental ExtremeWinterContact winter tires on my Honda Odyssey for a couple of years with very good experience and results. That was my primary motivation for getting the same tires for my 2010 Honda Insight. At first, I was apprehensive about the potential impact on my fuel mileage on the Insight with winter tires. After driving around for 5000 miles, I am surprised to find only a 3-5 mpg decrease with these tires versus the factory Dunlop SP31 (LRR) all-season tires. This is a phenomenal feat as the weather and road conditions have been much harsher on fuel mileage alone (ie. more time to warm up the engine and tires).

The handling of this set of WinterExtremeContact winter tires is not much different than the set on my minivan even though the size is narrower and smaller (195/60-15 versus 225/60-16). Given the different vehicle dynamics between a mini-van with a compact hybrid, the tires still convey the sense of assurance in traction and handling. Overall, I would highly recommend the Continental WinterExtremeContact winter tires for any hybrid owner (as well as mini-van owner).

Initial Review, 65,000 Miles on Tires
January 14, 2013

I am very happy with this tire. The previous set were Goodyear Eagle RS-A. The RS-A has better handling, but lousy wear and became very noisy by 20K miles. Also, with the RS-A, you feel every crack in the road. The GT has a slightly softer feel, but a much smoother ride.

Initial Review, 5,100 Miles on Tires
January 04, 2013

These tires were standard equipment on my 2012 Toyota Tacoma Access Cab 4X4. I was skeptical when I received a 4X4 vehicle with a passenger tire on it. I decided to give them a chance and drove them for 5,000 miles. Their performance in the rain was disappointing to say the least. You end up spinning out at level intersections and on a slight hill it was even worse. In sand or gravel, I didn't feel confident that the truck was going to stay where I wanted it. After a dusting of snow here in Ithaca, New York, I felt like I was driving a Mini Cooper instead of a 4X4. I called the tire store and ordered a new set of General Grabber AT2s on the truck. The garage managed to get them on an hour before we got 10 inches of snow. The truck handles great and I have no qualms taking it out in the snow. No more slipping on wet pavement and sand and stopping on inclines is no problem. For the highway or someplace flat with no snow, the Dunlops would be fine, but if you live in a hilly, snowy area, you should find a better tire.

Initial Review, 200 Miles on Tires
December 29, 2012

I have only had these tires for about a week. So this review is really just an initial opinion, and a quick comparison to my OEM tires.

My OEM Dunlop RFT tires were pretty worn. They had 45k miles. Since buying the Mini Cooper S brand new in '09, I had not liked the tires. Rough ride. Noisy. Unforgiving and fairly slick in wet or snowy conditions. I knew within 5 miles that switching to this non-RFT Goodyear F1 was a smart move. The ride is far smoother and quieter. The traction has been excellent in both rain and a bit of snow/slush. I really can't say enough about the change in ride comfort. I used to feel every crack in the road like it was a crater. The RFTs were so stiff. The F1s just glide over the road imperfections by comparison. I will gladly rely on Fix-a-Flat and my Roadside Assistance for for the great improvement in comfort and handling.

Initial Review, 48,000 Miles on Tires
December 23, 2012

I was getting the Mini's annual check-up, oil change, etc., when the Mini dealer asked me if I'd like to go ahead and replace 4 tires. His exact words were, "It's time for your third set of tires." The car at the time had about 39k on it, and it was my first set - the garage manager was stunned. He didn't believe me asking again if I had every changed the tires - no. This is the first set and they have life left in them. I bought my own torque wrench and socket and rotate them myself about every 5k or so. Frankly it makes it easier to clean the wheels. Driving for us is average around town with about 4 or 5 1,500 mile highway trips tossed in. We don't drive agressively and don't do curvey roads more than usual. ONE NOTE: One of the tires has suffered three flats, all puncture wounds, all debris from road including one object that was literally 1/4" square. All three times I was able to have tired repaired with no issues. here's the kicker - all three punctures were within 5 inches of each other on the SAME tire over about 15 months' time. I wish my luck were that good on the lottery.

It's now time to buy again and my wife said, "Why wouldn't you buy these tires?" I guess that settles it. I'm very pleased.

Initial Review, 4,000 Miles on Tires
December 16, 2012

After over 15 years of exclusively 4WD vehicles we finally added a FWD family sedan. As we bought the car in the fall, I used Tire Rack's database to check the winter-worthiness of our OEM tires. The red and yellow winter ratings made me decide that we needed a second set of wheels with Winter tires mounted, just like I used to do with my sports cars in the 80's (Conti Contacts back then). I am absolutely amazed that winter tire technology has advanced this far! I would say our FWD car with the Michelin X-Ice XI2's equal the snow traction of our 4WD with All Season/Highway tires (Yokohama Geolander HT/S) and EXCEEDS our 4WD in lateral roadholding AND braking, which I guess is what they're designed for. I'm so impressed that I will even consider outfitting my 4WD vehicles with Winter tires from now on. Except for ground clearance in very deep snow, you almost don't need an SUV anymore for on road winter driving. I'm equally amazed at how compliant the tires are on dry roads and how quiet they are on the highway. Last year about this time when I had these tires and wheels mounted for the first time, I was astounded how they were immediately more comfortable and grippier than the stock tires in the cold. I did minus 1 rim size and two sizes down in width, 215/55-17 to 205/65-16. The sales pitch is that winter tires give you an advantage in every condition below 45 degrees F, which seemed like a bold claim. After 1 winter, I'm convinced. Just mounted them yesterday for winter #2. Nice job Michelin and GREAT job Tire Rack for assembling the data, surveys and tests that convinced me. The way I figure it, if these tires save me even one accident, they pay for themselves. Toward the end of last winter a woman in a mini van spun out in front of me on a four lane divided 40mph road. She instantly was a spinning top across both lanes of the curve. I just came to a quick controlled stop on the curve and put my flashers on to alert other drivers. All Paid for.

Initial Review, 1,000 Miles on Tires
December 05, 2012

I put these on my MINI Cooper S. I love these tires. They are very quiet with an excellent ride. The price is amazing! I highly recommend them.

Initial Review, 12,000 Miles on Tires
November 09, 2012

Great traction on dry surfaces. I have to back way off when conditions are wet. Don't even think about driving these in the smallest amount of snow/ice -- duh, they are high performance SUMMER tires. :-)

The price was decent and I knew I'd be needing another set pretty quickly as the tire wear isn't that great. I was right in thinking that I'd be trading tire longevity for price and summer traction.

Initial Review, 7,000 Miles on Tires
November 06, 2012

I have to agree with most of the other users in here, and say this time is not very good.
It came as a OEM tire on my dodge, and im going to replace it as soon at it gets to 6/32nds.
Wet weather traction is HORRIBLE, i dont use them in the winter but i imagine they just get worse the colder it gets. They are rock hard, and its not even cold winter tire season yet.
As for the summer, these tires are actually pretty good. They are quiet, smooth, and handle as good as i need it in a mini-van.
If i get 30K miles out of them ill be happy.

Initial Review, 50,000 Miles on Tires
November 05, 2012

I don't know how many miles I've gotten out of them as I always wear the fronts out before the rears. (No, I didn't get 50,000 miles.) I could do some calculations and include the extra pair, but in general, the fronts will wear out around 8 to 9000 miles. But then my convertible Mini is a full JCW car with 220 hp and I drive it hard so I really don't care about tire mileage.

They are fantastic tires, though, and perform remarkably in dry and wet. Car and Driver did a tire summer high performance tire test a while back and these Hankooks took 2nd place to the Dunlop Direzzo's (not available in my size). These Hankooks actually bettered/equaled the popular Michelin PS2's. Read what Car and Driver had to say here: http://www.caranddriver.com/comparisons/hankook-ventus-v12-evo-page-10

They're really great tires and for the price, they're awesome!

Initial Review, 3,709 Miles on Tires
October 29, 2012

We had a mile winter so no deep snow rating. Traction on ice and plowed roads is exceptional. Handling is a little soft compared to all season tires but the compromise is well worth it for the added winter performance.

Initial Review, 100 Miles on Tires
October 14, 2012

Kudos to Tire Rack! Great price, superb email updates on incredibly fast delivery of only 2 days from time or order to my drop ship choice that charged exactly what TR said they would. What a difference compared to the Bridgestone RE050 runflats that came off the car. Very quiet ride. Super smooth tires. I couldn't be more pleased!

Initial Review, 5,000 Miles on Tires
September 30, 2012

Pleased with tire - haven't pushed them to the limit of traction yet - grip keeps coming. A little noisy and 'lumpy' when cold. Good wet traction as well, no scary moments. Limited miles but seem to be holding up. A nice match with the Mini.

Initial Review, 5,000 Miles on Tires
September 23, 2012

Bought this set for track use and very happy with them. Super responsive and monster grip, definitely improved my times. Would buy again