[CoolCarStuff]

Guys

I dont know if I am alone here, but I am really surprised at the ride height of the 56 compaired to the outgoing model...

I have been behind three new S's and they all look like they are ready to go crop dusting - they sit so high, you can read the numberplate of the car infront underneath it!! (joke...but nearly...)

Have they changed the rear valance or is it really that high? I am being serious here! The wheel arch clearance looks much higher so I guess its for real!

Or - am I missing something - new owners are opting for S's with the supermarket super springy suspension having said bye bye to anything slighly sporty on the options list!?!



DJ

[kevkbuk]

The sport suspension option does not lower the ride height. The setup/stiffness of the suspension dictates handling characteristics more than ride height IMHO. It's not an off roader or anything!

H&R already do lowering springs though...

[rec]

none of the optional suspension kits change the ride height.

Check here: http://www.mini2.com/forum/2nd-gen-w...g-springs.html
I'm going to ask about warranty issues relating to the springs on Saturday at my local dealer when they're swapping my windscreen wipers over to ones that actually do something.

[Ryephile]

-->CoolCarStuff: I agree with you 100%, the R56 has an unsightly ride height, especially compared to the MY2002 MINI's. Every model year MINI has gotten higher and higher, making the car look less and less sporting. It's supposed to be a hot-hatch, not an SUV! I don't give two squirts about some dolt jaywalker wanting to run across the street in front of me, I'm sick of "small cars" that aren't actually small anymore.

Also, I've noted the underside of the R56 no longer has the air deflectors that the prior generation did, meaning you can see more air under the car, making it look even taller than it is. Add that to a bulged up bonnet, higher waistline, and bigger wheelarches, and the new MINI doesn't look too mini anymore.

[rec]

*sigh*

[Dainewb]

I agree entirely with the above posts, I have ordered a new S, but am disspointed that they have messed up the looks of the car over previous models, particularly due to the ridiculous ride height!

Is this how they improved the ride?

[rec]

nooo, this is how they made the car conform to EU Legislation...

as people keep saying over and over again !

[KenL]

I haven't noticed the car being obviously higher than the old model.

The ride quality in my 2002 ONE with standard supsension and 15" tyres was terrible around town. The new version with SS and 17" tyres is way better. On standard suspension & 16" tyres it really is nice and smooth.

I want a MINI that is easier to live with day to day, if it takes the car to be an inch or so higher I will take it. The handling from all the reviews I have read is still excellent, so looks like a step forward to me.

["Reedy"]

I was behind an MCS yesterday...followed it for some time so got to get a look at the rear end.

It does look like it sits higher than previous models, but i think its a lot to do with how the body work has been shaped. It seems to give that allusion that its sitting high.

[rec]

sorry, small pic, but mine is the 2nd one in from the left. all others are unlowered R53's.

[Dainewb]

Quote: Originally Posted by rec (original)

nooo, this is how they made the car conform to EU Legislation...

as people keep saying over and over again !

excessively high looking ride height is not part of the EU legislation! Crush space between the bonnet and engine is.

[Olly.]

Quote: Originally Posted by "Reedy" (original)

I was behind an MCS yesterday...followed it for some time so got to get a look at the rear end.

It does look like it sits higher than previous models, but i think its a lot to do with how the body work has been shaped. It seems to give that allusion that its sitting high.

Spot on Reedy the new car actually has a lower ride height than the old, but because of the way the cars waistline has had to rise for the pedestrian regulations the bumpers sit higher up on the car.

The cure is the JCW Aero Kit which makes it look a lot less like its on stilts. Unfortunately its quite an expensive cure though

[Dainewb]

Quote: Originally Posted by "Reedy" (original)

I was behind an MCS yesterday...followed it for some time so got to get a look at the rear end.

It does look like it sits higher than previous models, but i think its a lot to do with how the body work has been shaped. It seems to give that allusion that its sitting high.

I think you are right here. Just reading an article about the EU legislation for pedestrian safety, the main point being

'In order to prevent fatal head-strikes on the hood, automakers are forced to create some crush space between the hood and the engine block'

It does not say, you have to excessively increase the ride height! From memory previous posts have suggested that the rest of the car was adjusted around the larger bonnet.

I don't however accept that it was a given that the ride height (or perception of it) had to be increased due to the regulations. There must have been other design options

MotoringFile » Archive » 2007 MINI Pedestrian Protection Analysis

[KenL]

Who said the ride height has been "excessively increased"?

[KenL]

Quote: Originally Posted by rec (original)

sorry, small pic, but mine is the 2nd one in from the left. all others are unlowered R53's.

I'd like a higher res' pic, but I fail to see an appreciable difference!

[kezman50]

Paul our administrator posted some very good comparison shots of the R56 and 53. Certainly it is apparent that not only is the waste line higher on the 56 and of course, all the corresponding panels, bumpers etc to keep the proportions but it does also stand taller ie. the roof line is higher on the 56. This I'll admit may or may not have anything to actually do with the ride height, but is an indication that things have got higher!!

[rec]

1st Gen:
Overall Length: 3626mm
Overall Width: 1925mm (across mirrors) 1688mm (across body shell)
Overall Height: 1413mm

2nd Gen:
Overall Length: 3699mm
Overall Width: 1912mm (across mirrors) 1683mm (across body shell)
Overall Height: 1407mm

officially the 1st gen is higher and wider than the 2nd gen, but the 2nd gen is longer.

[Spamini]

Quote: Originally Posted by rec (original)

1st Gen:
Overall Length: 3626mm
Overall Width: 1925mm (across mirrors) 1688mm (across body shell)
Overall Height: 1413mm

2nd Gen:
Overall Length: 3699mm
Overall Width: 1912mm (across mirrors) 1683mm (across body shell)
Overall Height: 1407mm

officially the 1st gen is higher and wider than the 2nd gen, but the 2nd gen is longer.

My R56 seems to feel wider than my previous mini cooper. It is even more difficult to get in and out of the drive with it. I have to do a 3 point turn to get out from behind my house, and that is so much more difficult as well. It was so easy in my old mini!

[Ryephile]

Quote: Originally Posted by Dainewb (original)

excessively high looking ride height is not part of the EU legislation! Crush space between the bonnet and engine is.

Quote: Originally Posted by KenL (original)

Who said the ride height has been "excessively increased"?

Yes "excessively increased" is subjective, however you can't escape the R56 looks less sporting in terms of ride height than the 1st version of the R53's suspension, where the wheels where properly aligned within the arches.

I wonder why exotic cars like Lamborghini or Ferrari can maintain their sexy low bonnet heights while the MINI has grown a pudgy fat nose to supposedly comply with that stupid EU jaywalking cushion. I suppose I'm bitter against the EU compliance standard, who seem more interested in pointing the finger at people walking in front of moving cars than telling those people to STOP walking in front of moving cars! Nevertheless I digress......MINI obviously thought they needed extra bonnet height to comply....however they did NOT have to mess up the wheel arch to wheel/tire relationship. That baffles me. Did they sit there in the meeting room and all say; "Hey, let's totally mess this up and make it look like an off-roader!"?

[popey]

I think thats due to the low volumes of Lamborghini's and Ferrari's produced.