A buddy loaned me his 13" wheels off his Mini while mine are out being balanced - again - and I'd like to hear opinions on the looks of the 13's....bear in mind that 12's were actually standard on this year car, and 13's were an option on later cars. A few pics of each.....
13's make the car look too big IMHO, and look at least one inch too big for the car.. The smaller wheels also look more retro, the short sidewall on the 13's look too "modern" for what is an otherwise classic looking car. Easy choice for my tastes (or lack thereof).
I actually like both sizes and both styles on that car. Sorry, no help. But in size terms I think 12s might be best.
Steve, 12's were OEM size for this car, but I don't have any of those handy! :biggrin5: I'll get it back together in the next few days and take some pics outside too....
I'm with Dave I like the gold ones. I voted 10's but what ever size the gold ones are is what I like. The Mini looks great by the way!
Your classic wearing 13s will look kind of like the "new" MINIS wearing 18s and above...pretty strange for small cars. :eek6: What's wrong with OEM, unless modding is your style? :confused5:
A side shot like the first photo would be helpful for me to make a choice. I think I might like the silver 13's but not quite sure due to the angle.
OEM wheels on this car when it was new were 12's......not 10's. The OEM wheels were silver too, not gold centers...... The point is these are available....but I did ask for opinions and I'm happy to get them. I'm only pointing out that not all Minis came with 10's, in fact just about anything made after about 1980 had 12's or the optional 13's.
I had 10s on my '59 Morris Mini Minor, but that was back in the day when I was just glad to have a car and had no idea that any mods could be put on it. Sure wish I still had it, but it was getting too expensive to maintain and college was looming.... On the bright side, having the original Classic propelled me to buy 3 Gen 1 "new" MINIs...an R50 and 2 R53s...all of which I still have and drive.
The 10's are a more classic look. The 13's more modern. So it depends on the look you're going for. If you go with the 13's I'd try to find something with a similar look to your 10's the gold color looks good on your car. May be even some of the classic BBS gold mesh 1 piece.
These two pictures below are perfect and those wheels look the best and completely go with your car. The Silver ones, Meh not so much. :nonod:
How do the different sizes drive? Is the handling better with one of them vs the other? Looks like you're in the position to test drive both setups and make a valid comparison. Drive it both ways and pick the one that handles best. Form follows function.
I should have it back on the road later this week, then I can answer the questions about how it drives.....
This. You could go as high as 12, but 13's are just too much. You totally lose the retro look with short sidewalls. But I really like the look you have. Change for the sake of change sometimes backfires.
I like the gold ones for size. However it is downright funny to see that car on a lift. So out of proportion.
That's my alignment lift at school, and yes - it looks like a child's toy on it - especially when the average pickup truck barely fits on there!
With classic Minis I feel smaller wheels are ALWAYS better (looks wise,anyway). Your pics confirm my bias IMHO.