Im interested to find out what opinions peaple have about the difference between 10inch and 12 inch rims,is there a performance difference and ability to fit disk brakes.

10 inch for manovability..

12inch for ok brakes

13inch for big ass brakes... & looks...

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Baracade
Relationships! The only time you get to sleep with the enemy!
1972 US Export Moke in Bundaberg QLD

It is easier to find disc brakes for 12 and 13 inch rims as these can be from Metros, Hondas, Camiras... there maybe others there is a thread in Mini Mods if you are interested you'll know the one it is about 13 pages long.
10 inch wheels need Cooper S disc brakes therefore the disc brakes are very expensive like over $1000 minimum other attempts for fitting honda disc brakes to 10 inch wheels by turning them down to 7.9" didn't work as it wears a step in the pad...

As far as handling goes I have heard thast 10 inch wheels give better handling but I think this is probably a subjective thing (open to interpretation and opinions)

My personal preferance is for 10" wheels, they are unique, they are meant to be there, I don't really like huge wheels, they don't involve body mods, and getting good tyres for 12 inch wheels can be difficult, IMO if you ave a mini it belongs on 10 inchers

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Roads need more corners
A Deluxe(CG13DE), 2 Clubbies(998 and 1275) and 2 Morris 1100Ss

My mini has 12's and I've had one with 10's, the 12's allow 8.4" disc brakes and in theory the tyres last longer.

And give you more contact with the road

The 10" wheels look cuter and "generally" give better track performance, but I prefered 12s for on the road

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Too many cars, and too little time.

I recently replaced my 10" Jellybeans with 12" charcoal Performance. I feel that the 12" fill up the arches better, and don't look small anymore, but also don't feel too big. My 12" wheels with 60 tyres are only slightly bigger than my old 10"s with 70s, in terms of overall diameter. The 10"s technically give better torque, but the 12" allow for the bigger brakes.

One of the main reasons I got 12" wheels was becasue it was the same price to get 4 12" rims, 4 tyres and 8.4" disc setup as just the 7.5" disc setup. New rims, new tyres, biggger brakes (better stopping) for the same price.

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Jonathan
http://photobucket.com/albums/y64/FatMaserati/

10" are better for handling because there is so much more sidewall to assist the rubber cone in springing the car. something like an F1 that has really hard suspension, but high profile tyres do half the work. It makes tuning by air pressures so much more effective as well. value on the road is a bit softer ride becasue the tyres can absorb more of the bumps by having a higher sidewall.

michael

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the world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page
66 Mini Minor sponsored by http://www.lifeonthehedge.com.au/ The Dog Harness Specialists
It was a pleasure ausmini. I'll miss all you misfits and reprobates

Try the 10s and set the suspension up properly and you'll really feel the total road holding.
As for brakes, look around for a setup that may suit the 10s. I spent some R&D and did my own.

I really believe the whole handling makes the wheels feel right or not. So dont stop with wheels.

OK this one is always going to be only "what you like" and nothing more but you did ask for opinions so....

10" are better

10" for sure.

Can't stand 12s.

On a fully blown modded car 13s are acceptable.
But ONLY then!

10's have a wider range of tyres, and more racing tyres especially,
10 inch minilites look great too for that classic look.

12's are the best wheels, the factory changed to them in the 70's
there is a limited range of tyres, but good ones are not hard to find.

13's probably look the best, but put a lot of extra strain on the suspension, screw with the geometry, give huge bumpsteer and totally destroy the handling.
and you need to fit a different steering rack and or cut the guards so they dont rub.

easy to find tyres.. though most of them will be unsuitable as they are designed for much larger cars.

What would be the weight of typical 10's, 12's and 13's tyre and wheels? If they all weighed the same (which they dont) wouldnt bigger be better? Low profile tyres from what I have read improve handling at the expense of ride quality, so bigger low profile tyres should be better.

I personally think 13's look great but if they stuff up the handling like everyone says I might get 12's as I would think they would be the same weight as equivalent 10's with the added handling of lower profile tyers.

I have 12's on my car, because I have 9 1/4 inch discs and I don't really have a choice. I'm not a purist and personally think 12's look better anyways.

Just my opinion and everyone is entitled to theirs.

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Bob Slattery
Duffman Says A Lot of Things - OH YEAH!!

for any car where you can easily change the spring rates, damper rates, ride height, camber angles, castor angles, and toe angles to suit the tyres i would agree with that statement wholeheartedly. the problem with the mini is you are very limited when it comes to adjusting the spring rates. if you have a rubber cone, you can make it harder by getting a different compound or even material - not available really. you can make it softer by drilling holes in it. both of these effect the damping rates significantly because there is a lot of damping in the rubber on the rebound due to hysteresis. with a hydro setup you can play with the fluid pressure, but you are limited by the capability of 40 year old bags to hold it, let alone if you can obtain special tuning ones that have different valves to change the damping rates.

so by sticking with the 10 inch wheels and higher sidewalls to get the same overall rolling diameter as the 12 inch wheels with lower sidewalls, you have the opportunity to more effectively tune the spring rate using tyre pressures.

michael

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the world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page
66 Mini Minor sponsored by http://www.lifeonthehedge.com.au/ The Dog Harness Specialists
It was a pleasure ausmini. I'll miss all you misfits and reprobates

just out of interest how big are an f1 cars wheels, they dont look that big?

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Potato