I only have 5.5k miles on my MS3, so I am nowhere near ready for new tires yet. But my last 2 sets of tires on my MINI Cooper S were Yokohama S Drives. I had previously used Falken Azeni, Yokohama Parada Spec II, and Kumho Ecsta MX, all with good performance results. Problem was, I didn't get 20k miles out of ANY of them. The S-Drives cost maybe $5-10 per tire more than the others, but performed well in daily semi-aggressive driving, and got me 25k+ miles. Plus, they were far quieter on the highway than the others.
You can get stickier tires, you can get cheaper tires, and to each his own. But I found the S Drives to be a very good balance of price, performance, & wear without sacrificing in any one category.