18 replies to this topic

[robbo]

after browsing and reading alot on minis on forums etc it seems that most people believe that minis handle best on 10inch wheels, not 12's or 13's. 1 thought i keep having is that if a 10ich wheel with large tyre has the same circumference as a 12inch wheel with smaller profile tyre then why should they handle any difference?
can you get 12inch wheels with correct profile to match the circumference of a 10inch wheel with original sized profile?

sorry if this sounds silly, i just cant get my head around it, some one set me straight!

[minidaves]

10's feel good because of things like sidewall height, now u aint going to be able to get a few inches of height on a 13. the design of the mini is old school and lowprofile wheels do work when everything is tip top, problem is most peoples mini suspention is knackered

dave

[Don't Panic]

"lowprofile wheels do work when everything is tip top" - Cool so instead of considering changing my 13 x 7's maybe i should overhaul the suspension to get my mini handling like a racer?

Sorry for stealing thread but i've been thinking about this too, as i have 13 x 7 deepdish superlights on yoko's and they look great,

i would prefer 10s with fat tires (7.9" brakes) but as i have a zeemax kit i think i would be scraping it on the tarmac.

[kada1980]

The only reason touring cars have low profile wheels is so that they can fit the biggest brakes under them and stop quicker. They do aid in handling because of the low side wall height but the quicker braking more than out weights the positive of this.

Smaller size wheels also are at a advantage because they are lighter and reduce the weight on the end of the trailing arms, wishbone etc ((known as unsprung weight)old jags were good from this having inboard disks and brakes)

Smaller and lighter wheels also are easier to get spinning so the car will accelerate quicker. Its the same principles as getting a flywheel lightened, it takes less energy to get it moving.

Karl

[philster]

If you aren't running lots of power ten its tens all the way.

13's are good for straight line traction and braking. Mine has 5.5x13's fitted and handles quite well, the only critisism i have is that any channels or ruts in the road tend to grab hold of you, its even worse with 7x13's.

[MAGA7INE]

My 69 has run all the combinations, starting with 13's which, as stated above, followed every rut in the road and destroyed the ride compared to the original 10's. I had to use the reduced lock rack as well which made turning circles much worse. They did stick very well when hillclimbing though on smooth tarmac, but my car is a daily driver as well as a weekend race car.

I then swapped to 12's. 5x12 revolites. They were a big improvement in handling, braking and ride due to having less weight and offset and the A539's gripped better than the A008's on the 13's. The car was better in the wet as well.

Now I am changing back to 10's. I did the fiesta disc conversion to the car to get them on. My other 67 mini has 10's and this set up and it just sticks to the road better.The softer sidewalls mean the car doesn't launch itself into the air on the typically bad roads we have down here.

The first thing I did to my car was put top grade suspension set up on it with a quick rack, hilos, minispares uprated rubber bushes, monoshocks, adjustable tie bars, negative camber bottom arms and comp bump stops and a nice large diameter speedwell steering wheel. I would rate this set up as the biggest improvement you can make to a Mini, it went from being squidgy and a bit of a handful at speed to a go kart!

The classic look is the way to go anyway IMO but do what ever makes you happy

[Bungle]

my mini has 6x12 wheels and mrs bungles has 6x10 and i would say mrs bungles handles better

but mine does stop better (mine stops) :smartass:

[blacktulip]

i agree that 10" wheels are better for the road, ive owned all three set ups past and present, 10" wheels are smoother and comfy as they weigh less which means the suspension can cope better with what it was designed to aka....10" wheels. 12" wheels are good but a little more harsh although i wouldnt fault them at all, 13" look visually good for a sporty aspect and the grip is really good on dry summer days. i had the bridgestones and were excellent in the dry but 13" wheels in the wet is bad news if cornering to hard as i found out

[Sprocket]

can you get 12inch wheels with correct profile to match the circumference of a 10inch wheel with original sized profile?

The Yokohama A048R in the 12s are almost the same diameter and circumference of a 10, but is a low profile and will reduce ride comfort compared to the standard 12 or 10. Plus side is that it is the nearest thing to a road legal slick and looks fantastic I wish I had bought them now :nugget:

[Don't Panic]

Acctually a 10" wheel with a 165/70/10 tyre for example would have a diameter (including tyre) of 12.756 inches where a 12" wheel with a 165/55/12 (A048R) would have a diameter of about 14.1 inches. (I Think)

Edit: I Shouldn't attempt maths on soo little sleep, in fact i shouldn't attempt maths at all.

[Sprocket]

did you do maths at school??? :nugget: :fear:

[Sprocket]

10 inches in milimeters = 10x25.4= 254mm

165/70x10 tyre is 165mm width with a profile of 70% = 165x0.70 = 115.5mm profile

Overall diameter = (115.5x2)+254 = 485mm



12 inches = 12x25.4 = 304.8mm

165/55x12 tyre = 165x0.55 = 90.75

Overall diameter =(90.75x2)+304.8 = 486.3mm

And for the older people and the young ones stupid enough to still use old money

165/70x10 diameter in inches = 19.094"

165/55x12 diameter in inches = 19.146"


That ends todays maths revision :smartass:

Edited by Mini Sprocket, 26 January 2006 - 09:11 PM.

[Dan]

It's not only about side walls. 10's mean there's more air under your rims keeping you up which in effect is a big spring. That's what adds a good deal of the ride comfort associated with 10's. This discussion has been on here many times before and it's never been what you'd call solved. Usually we end up saying that handling and comfort are very personal things in a car and what one person wants is different to another. Personally I like 10's for looks, handling, ride, and everything but some people don't. There's no rules here. And 13's dont have more traction just by being 13's, the footprint of both 13's and 10's is similar as the bigger sidewalls of 10's mean they spread out further and get similar road conact as I understand it. But being lower profile they do suffer less sidewall deflection under acceleration and cornering so the car responds better to the traction.

And Don't Panic, you seem to have calculated that all tyres have a sidewall height of around 1.05". I'd do the maths again if I were you as even DTM cars don't go that low!

[Steve@RetroDash]

http://www.tyresave....k/tyresize.html

an easy way :smartass:

[Sprocket]

http://www.tyresave....k/tyresize.html

an easy way :smartass:

Far more satisfying to do the maths yourself :smartass:

Youth of today

No wonder the World is falling apart :nugget: