Hi,

I have just restored a 1968 Mini Deluxe it has nice fresh paint and now it needs some new wheels to complete the car. It has Innocenti Flares and drum brakes all round on Hydro.

What is the pros and cons of 10" & 12" the will be a daily driver.

Thanks
Brad

This one comes up regularly and people are still divided on it .
12's
Pro's-
Fit bigger brakes
Look good

Con's-
Heavier than 10's
Don't handle as well but better than 13's

10's
Pro's-
Look "right"
Lighter than 12's
Handle better
Better range of tyres availible

Con's
Look old
Won't fit over 8.4" brakes


Anyone else want to quote and add their thoughts ?

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I think that about sums it up !!

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Nup, I think you've pretty much nailed it there...

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Simon

The adventures of an owner builder in the Tallarook Ranges

"Looks Good" and "Looks Old" is subjective.

Personally I prefer the look of 60's-70's Minis on 10" rims and 80's-90's on 12's or 13's.

Otherwise okay!

Cheers,

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Brett Nicholson
Greendale (near Ballan) VIC.
1971 Morris Mini Moke
1966 Austin Mini
1965 Morris Mini Traveller
1973 LR Series 3 88
2007 LR Freelander 2

Yeah , it's a bit hard to put personal preference in without bogging down too much . Part of the charm and roadholding of mini's were the original 10" wheels but people are used to seeing modern cars (even similar sized ones) with bigger wheels , mind you in the mini's day people were used to cars with bigger wheels again .

Just remember though with the weight comment , the heavier something is , the more power it takes to start it turning or stop it from turning , it's not just the extra weight to carry around . Some (most ???) 12" wheels are very heavy compared to 10" whels .

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can I suggest you have a look atthe tyre thread that's currently running too

it seems that decent 12" tyres are a little difficult to come by at the moment, that would tend to swing me toward 10" wheels if disc brakes aren't an issue

my 2c worth - 10" look better on roundies - 12" are cool on clubman though

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'62 Morris 850 (Marion)
'65 Mini Delux - sleeper 1275/S discs (Ms Plum)
'69 Vanden Plas Princess 1300
'71 Wolseley 1300
'74 Austin 1300 Countryman
'94 XJ6 Sport 3.2
'04 Rover 75 CDTi

It depends on what you like and what you want to do in the future.

If you like 12" rims and want to upgrade to disc brakes later on (8.4" disc brake conversions are cheaper), get 12's, but be prepared to pay more for tyres that are shocking (not much choice).

Much more of a range in tyres (and cheaper) in a 10". However, if you want to upgrade to discs later on, you will have to fork out more for a set of 7.5" Cooper discs.

If I was in your situation, i'd get 10's. I'd happily pay more for the smaller discs to run better tyres!

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i would suggest putting that into an FAQ or article, but people will keep asking...

just in case the laws of physics have changed, i guess...

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go the 10's!

I have an additional spanner to throw in. On the LS GR runs 12 inch Minotors or minitor-like copies which are 12x6 I think. Anyway he runs tyres that have a very low profile, the $200 per tyre variety . When I measured them against my 10' A008's they are about half or 1 inch bigger diameter than my 10 inchers. He can fit 8.4's under these wheels.

So my point is, if you look long and hard and have the cash, you can have 12 inch that handles very close to 10 inch wheels

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Lillee - 1969 Morris Mini K

Might be a good one to add to Nicks tyres idea . Could do with some more pro's and cons though I think otherwise someone will say "but you forgot the 12's are better for ....."

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Yep I can certainly add the stuff from this thread to it. Any other stuff that gets asked regularly that should be included as well?

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"In two years time your car will be like a lady's clothes, out of date, my car will still be in fashion when I am dead" - Sir Alec speaking to Pininfarina

Thanks for all your help guys, I'm going to go with the 10"s to keep it original.

Will post a photo when finished.

Cheers,
Brad