MINI2

Eastereggmini · Mar 25th, 2007, 03:33 AM

Anyone done any suspension upgrades that they'd like to recommend?

I'm looking at the Koni kits on minimania, but I just wanted to know if anyones done any work they could recommend.

thanks
Joel
EasterEggMINI

blalor · Mar 25th, 2007, 10:04 AM

What are you looking to accomplish, Joel?

snid · Mar 25th, 2007, 12:20 PM

Yes, your goals / application is very important in figuring out what to do.

For my car, I need to be able to drive it every day, year round. So lowering was out of the question. I autocross / track my car, and don't mind more noise and a harsher ride.

Camber plates are a great upgrade. I have the Helix adjustable plates. Very highly recomended. They do create a little noise. Squeaks at low speeds like when turning in parking lots. And more "crash" noises when hitting expansion joints etc. But much improved front grip and steering feel.

A rear swaybar is another really good upgrade.

I have the JCW suspension upgrade (springs and shocks) on my car, and love it. Very minimal drop, which I needed, and improved track handling without much of a sacrifice on the road.

On the track, I've had instructors amazed at the handling of my car. On the road, I think it's fine, but I've had other passengers ask if something was wrong with my suspension because it doesn't ride like a "normal" car.

If you're going to do lowering springs, you really need to do the shocks (struts) too. And you want to find springs and shocks that work well together. Unfortunately, I have no idea what combinations are good, other than the JCW suspension kit. Turner Motorsports recommended H&R springs and Bilstein shocks. Webb motorsports recommends H-sport springs and Koni shocks. I'd guess these guys know what they're talking about... but either of those setups will make the car painful on the street, and unusable in the snow.

Eastereggmini · Mar 26th, 2007, 12:55 AM

Well, thanks for the advice.

goals:
i need the car to be a daily driver. I don't mind a bit of a harsher ride, but would like to keep noise down if possible. I won't be tracking the car, but will be doing driving school stuff. I guess I just want an aggressive daily driver. thanks all

joel
EasterEggMINI

blalor · Mar 26th, 2007, 02:49 AM

I've heard (2nd hand, of course) that Koni FSDs are the bee's knees, offering an improved ride on the street in addition to better control all-around.

My first car had a very minimal effective drop due to the 15" wheel/tire combo I was using; it was enough that the air dam scraping became part of the background noise. I don't personally find lowered MINIs to look all that attractive, either, once the wheels start to tuck into the fender wells, and the clearance issues would make that a no-go for me, too. The GPs look like great cars, but it's downright comical watching them try to navigate the rough pavement that we always seem end up on! (Yes, I'm looking at you, Dave

)

bjl · Mar 29th, 2007, 06:11 PM

Bee's knees!

jfritch2004 · Mar 29th, 2007, 06:24 PM

Just two days ago I had H-Sport springs installed and left the stock shocks in place. Mine is a daily driver, it lowered it about one inch all around, looks great and handles really well and the ride is very acceptable. Outmotoring.com said these springs do just great with stock shocks as well as with Koni FSD's. I also have 18 inch rims on the car and it is not a problem, the ride is way better than before the changes. If that helps you at all.

Mike Edwards · Mar 29th, 2007, 06:29 PM

JCW - lowers the car and (like FSDs) improves the ride.

gpmick · Mar 29th, 2007, 06:46 PM

Just seen your thread and wondered if you know there is a feature in the Modern Mini magazine? Its about fitting the Koni fsd dampers. Looks like a lot of pics and plenty info
Issue 10 may 2007 just had mine delivered should be in the shops soon

bjl · Apr 2nd, 2007, 11:33 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by jfritch2004 (original)

Just two days ago I had H-Sport springs installed and left the stock shocks in place. Mine is a daily driver, it lowered it about one inch all around, looks great and handles really well and the ride is very acceptable. Outmotoring.com said these springs do just great with stock shocks as well as with Koni FSD's. I also have 18 inch rims on the car and it is not a problem, the ride is way better than before the changes. If that helps you at all.

Did you add new control arms as well? Or are you living with the more negative camber in the rear?

lunlun · Apr 4th, 2007, 09:37 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by bjl (original)

Did you add new control arms as well? Or are you living with the more negative camber in the rear?

Wht does negative camber mean?

bjl · Apr 5th, 2007, 06:36 PM

When you lower your car the wheels are going to point in, slightly, towards the top because they're rotating about a fixed axis. Control arms can adjust the axis of rotation so the wheels can be tilted the way you want, up to a certain point. Camber is the amount of tilt. If the top is in toward the car then it's negative camber and if the top is pointed away from the car then it's positive camber. Camber is measured in degrees.

snid · Apr 5th, 2007, 06:46 PM

Or...

look at your car from the back. If the tires look like this

\ /

You have positive camber. That's not going to happen on a MINI.

This is negative camber

/ \

As you lower a MINI, they start leaning more and more in the back. Too much lean is a bad thing as you will wear out the tires more quickly. It also has some handling ramifications you might not want. But that's probably not an issue unless you're going to be autocrossing or track driving. The tire wear is an issue.

Mar 25th, 2007, 03:33 AM	#1
Eastereggmini MINI2 Newbie Join Date: Jul 2006 Local Time: 10:22 PM Posts: 26 Offline	Suspension Anyone done any suspension upgrades that they'd like to recommend? I'm looking at the Koni kits on minimania, but I just wanted to know if anyones done any work they could recommend. thanks Joel EasterEggMINI

Mar 25th, 2007, 12:20 PM	#3 (permalink)
snid brown is back Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Burlington, VT Local Time: 10:22 PM Posts: 4,216 Offline	Yes, your goals / application is very important in figuring out what to do. For my car, I need to be able to drive it every day, year round. So lowering was out of the question. I autocross / track my car, and don't mind more noise and a harsher ride. Camber plates are a great upgrade. I have the Helix adjustable plates. Very highly recomended. They do create a little noise. Squeaks at low speeds like when turning in parking lots. And more "crash" noises when hitting expansion joints etc. But much improved front grip and steering feel. A rear swaybar is another really good upgrade. I have the JCW suspension upgrade (springs and shocks) on my car, and love it. Very minimal drop, which I needed, and improved track handling without much of a sacrifice on the road. On the track, I've had instructors amazed at the handling of my car. On the road, I think it's fine, but I've had other passengers ask if something was wrong with my suspension because it doesn't ride like a "normal" car. If you're going to do lowering springs, you really need to do the shocks (struts) too. And you want to find springs and shocks that work well together. Unfortunately, I have no idea what combinations are good, other than the JCW suspension kit. Turner Motorsports recommended H&R springs and Bilstein shocks. Webb motorsports recommends H-sport springs and Koni shocks. I'd guess these guys know what they're talking about... but either of those setups will make the car painful on the street, and unusable in the snow. jtross \| snid \| jason - bloggage (including videos)

Apr 5th, 2007, 06:46 PM	#13 (permalink)
snid brown is back Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Burlington, VT Local Time: 10:22 PM Posts: 4,216 Offline	Or... look at your car from the back. If the tires look like this \ / You have positive camber. That's not going to happen on a MINI. This is negative camber / \ As you lower a MINI, they start leaning more and more in the back. Too much lean is a bad thing as you will wear out the tires more quickly. It also has some handling ramifications you might not want. But that's probably not an issue unless you're going to be autocrossing or track driving. The tire wear is an issue. jtross \| snid \| jason - bloggage (including videos)

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Mar 25th, 2007, 10:04 AM	#2 (permalink)
blalor Rabid Motorer Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Nashua, NH Local Time: 10:22 PM Posts: 1,906 Online	What are you looking to accomplish, Joel?

Mar 26th, 2007, 12:55 AM	#4 (permalink)
Eastereggmini MINI2 Newbie Join Date: Jul 2006 Local Time: 10:22 PM Posts: 26 Offline	Well, thanks for the advice. goals: i need the car to be a daily driver. I don't mind a bit of a harsher ride, but would like to keep noise down if possible. I won't be tracking the car, but will be doing driving school stuff. I guess I just want an aggressive daily driver. thanks all joel EasterEggMINI

Mar 26th, 2007, 02:49 AM	#5 (permalink)
blalor Rabid Motorer Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Nashua, NH Local Time: 10:22 PM Posts: 1,906 Online	I've heard (2nd hand, of course) that Koni FSDs are the bee's knees, offering an improved ride on the street in addition to better control all-around. My first car had a very minimal effective drop due to the 15" wheel/tire combo I was using; it was enough that the air dam scraping became part of the background noise. I don't personally find lowered MINIs to look all that attractive, either, once the wheels start to tuck into the fender wells, and the clearance issues would make that a no-go for me, too. The GPs look like great cars, but it's downright comical watching them try to navigate the rough pavement that we always seem end up on! (Yes, I'm looking at you, Dave )

Mar 29th, 2007, 06:11 PM	#6 (permalink)
bjl MINI2 Regular Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Brookline, MA Local Time: 10:22 PM Posts: 209 Offline	Bee's knees!

Mar 29th, 2007, 06:24 PM	#7 (permalink)
jfritch2004 MINI2 Newbie Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Millersville, MD Local Time: 10:22 PM Posts: 5 Offline	Just two days ago I had H-Sport springs installed and left the stock shocks in place. Mine is a daily driver, it lowered it about one inch all around, looks great and handles really well and the ride is very acceptable. Outmotoring.com said these springs do just great with stock shocks as well as with Koni FSD's. I also have 18 inch rims on the car and it is not a problem, the ride is way better than before the changes. If that helps you at all.

Mar 29th, 2007, 06:29 PM	#8 (permalink)
Mike Edwards MINI2 Master My Classifieds Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Herefordshire Local Time: 03:22 AM Posts: 760 Offline	JCW - lowers the car and (like FSDs) improves the ride.

Mar 29th, 2007, 06:46 PM	#9 (permalink)
gpmick GP 56 MCK 0774 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: stoke Local Time: 03:22 AM Posts: 537 Offline	Just seen your thread and wondered if you know there is a feature in the Modern Mini magazine? Its about fitting the Koni fsd dampers. Looks like a lot of pics and plenty info Issue 10 may 2007 just had mine delivered should be in the shops soon

Apr 2nd, 2007, 11:33 AM	#10 (permalink)
bjl MINI2 Regular Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Brookline, MA Local Time: 10:22 PM Posts: 209 Offline	Quote: Originally Posted by jfritch2004 (original) Just two days ago I had H-Sport springs installed and left the stock shocks in place. Mine is a daily driver, it lowered it about one inch all around, looks great and handles really well and the ride is very acceptable. Outmotoring.com said these springs do just great with stock shocks as well as with Koni FSD's. I also have 18 inch rims on the car and it is not a problem, the ride is way better than before the changes. If that helps you at all. Did you add new control arms as well? Or are you living with the more negative camber in the rear?

Apr 4th, 2007, 09:37 PM	#11 (permalink)
lunlun MINI2 Regular Join Date: Mar 2004 Local Time: 02:22 AM Posts: 64 Offline	Quote: Originally Posted by bjl (original) Did you add new control arms as well? Or are you living with the more negative camber in the rear? Wht does negative camber mean?

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Apr 5th, 2007, 06:36 PM	#12 (permalink)
bjl MINI2 Regular Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Brookline, MA Local Time: 10:22 PM Posts: 209 Offline	When you lower your car the wheels are going to point in, slightly, towards the top because they're rotating about a fixed axis. Control arms can adjust the axis of rotation so the wheels can be tilted the way you want, up to a certain point. Camber is the amount of tilt. If the top is in toward the car then it's negative camber and if the top is pointed away from the car then it's positive camber. Camber is measured in degrees.