Run flat tires

[Anita]

I have a 2005 Mini Cooper S. I am told, by the dealership service dept, that my run flat tires, are the cause of a grinding noise and that to eliminate the noise I have to drive on over-inflated tires! The car has apprx. 40,000 miles. they also told me that it would not be a good idea to drive in snow with the tires over-inflated. Well, we live in the Chicago-land area so what are we to do? The service dept has also told us that the tread is in very good condition but that "the tire wall must be breaking down". Should we have to replace all 4 tires at $400 each to resolve the noise? Is there possibly recourse with the tire manufaturer?

Is anyone else having or had this problem? Any suggestions, short of calling the Mini 800# to issue a formal complaint or getting rid of the car?

Thanks,

Anita

[P&M]

Since the car is 3 years old I suppose that could happen. You might consider buying standard tires for the car. You can save a bundle of money and some folks say the ride is much better than run flats. As well they are a lot less money. You can carry several cans of tire repair sealant and you can be good to go. There are also spare tire kits that you can get for that car.

You could also go to an independant tire shop and get a second opinion.

Regards,

Pat

[ScottinBend]

Tires will not cause a "grinding" noise. You might be experiencing some additional road noise caused by the tires wearing down, but this would not be solved by "over inflating" them. Unless you are running to low a pressure now. You should be running around 34-36 psi in all tires.

Most tires manufacturers will tell you that the life span of a street tire is 7 years. It could be longer but the rubber itself starts to age and go bad. If possible, try and find a fellow MINI owner or get the dealership to swap tires and wheels and check if the noise goes away.