MINI2

Albert · Apr 5th, 2003, 12:23 AM

As Randy knows, I've been dying to get my MCS lowered but have been struggling with the fact that my 17" OZ Superleggeras ET37 with 205-45 tires would rub with lowering springs. I didn't want a slammed look, but I was looking for about a 1inch drop to get rid of some of the wheel well gap.

After hearing about others having to trim and so forth with H&R/Eibach/etc. springs and various wheel/tire setups, I had pretty much given up on lowering the car. That was such a bummer too, b/c at that point I had heard that Hotchkis was coming out with lowering springs under their H-Sport division (run by Mark Hotchkis). This was a particular bummer to me b/c I really truly respect Hotchkis as a company, their well thought out research/design/development, and the quality of their products. This all comes from my life before the MCS, when I used to be heavy into the domestic scene (in particular Chevrolets). Most import crowds haven't heard of Hotchkis, b/c up until recently, their focus was primarily on the domestic car and truck scene.

Just as I was about ready to hang it up, I had a chance to talk to J.C. at H-Sport (J.C. has posted before on that "other" Mini board). J.C. told me to swing by their offices in Santa Fe Springs, CA (I live and work approx. 20 miles from them) so that he could have one of their engineers check out my car and give me their opinion on whether or not I would rub with their springs. When I showed up, J.C. went and got Mark Hotchkis to come out and take a look. To make an already long story short, Mark was interested in taking my car in for a little R&D! He was very interested in seeing how his springs performed with my wheels since he recognized that the OZ's are rather popular with our cars. Not only did they hook me up with a full set of springs, they also set me up with front and rear sway bars!! Needless to say, I was very pleasantly suprised.

But even more so, I was pleasantly suprised by a number of other things.

Customer Service: Without a doubt, H-Sport has great customer service. Both J.C. and Mark Hotchkis were great to me. J.C. was very helpful from the start. He was very informative and eager to talk to me for how ever long it took to get all my questions answered. The car was finished as promised, on time and ready to go. When they said the car would be ready to be picked up by 1pm on Friday... it was ready at 1pm on Friday. To top it off, Mark gave me updated phone calls on the progress of the install, plus he even updated me with an emailed picture below of the installation! Mark also personally drove me back and forth to and from my work, which was no small feet b/c of the southern california traffic (must've have taken an hour out of his day each time!). During that time, I got a chance to ask about Mark's racing career, the Hotchkis company and life in general. Let me just say, Mark is a real cool guy. Super nice!

Product Quailty: WOW. A full week later, and guess what? NO RUBBING! Now granted, I haven't had anyone in the back seat yet, but then again, I don't usually have anyone back there to begin with. So barring that fact, I'm haven't experienced any rubbing. The stance is absolutely PERFECT. It doesn't look slammed <this is a good thing for me>, but the stance is more aggressive/sporty for sure. With a 1 inch drop all the way around, it still maintains the stock "rake" which I like. Furthermore, the drop is perfect b/c you can still tool around town (over speed bumps and parking lot ramps) without having to "creep" over each and every bump. And believe me, if it did, I'd have to answer to my wife (our last car was much lower and life was hell in everyday driving). The ride quality is only slightly stiffer for everyday driving. Again, another "perfect" in my opinion. I expected a harsher ride since the H-Sport springs are linear instead of progressive, but was very suprised at how compliant the ride was. It's just stiff enough to let you know that they are there, and inspires a very sport feel and confidence.

With the sway bars and springs, this car is absolutely unbelievable when pushed. Whereas previously the MCS felt very front heavy to me, the car now feels like everything is turning from the center!! If you think the MCS or MC felt like a go-cart stock.... wait until you try this setup!

It's to the point now where I believe my wife will give me a good run for the money on the canyons (she normally drives the MCS, and I normally drive an S2000). We shall see .... some canyon runs and track days are coming up soon.

macncheese · Apr 5th, 2003, 12:26 AM

Very nice. I'm another domestic (dodge dakota) hotchkis fan. Hotchkis is one of those top notch companies that seem to be a rarity these days. Did you get the control arms and plates as well?

--
Cheese

Albert · Apr 5th, 2003, 02:26 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by obehave
Nice post and glad to hear it.
Ran Hotchkis sway bars on my truck years ago and loved their stuff.
Also had some Mustang and Camaro buddies loving their products as well.

Have you had a chance to play with the bar adjustments?

And how about that strut brace??

Haven't played around with the adjustments yet. I think right now it's set at the softest position up front, and the middle position in the back. The turn-in is awesome. Feels like my S2000.

As for the strut bar, I replied on the other thread!!

Albert · Apr 5th, 2003, 02:28 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by macncheese
Very nice. I'm another domestic (dodge dakota) hotchkis fan. Hotchkis is one of those top notch companies that seem to be a rarity these days. Did you get the control arms and plates as well?

--
Cheese

Cheese-Wiz,

I did not get the control arm and plates. I did however, see the pre-production rear arms, and DAMN, talk about a nice piece of equipment!

Romhog · Apr 5th, 2003, 04:31 AM

sorry, how many settings are on the front? I see the 3 on the back. Still loving the ride?

Albert · Apr 5th, 2003, 06:02 AM

Two settings in front, and yes I'm still loving the ride.

Romhog · Apr 7th, 2003, 09:23 AM

sorry if I didn't notice this, but where at and how much was this whole set?

Thanks for the nice writeup!

Albert · Apr 7th, 2003, 02:53 PM

Romhog, I forget what the prices are. I'll check and post again.

Two places I know of where you can get them is Randy from Mini-Motorsports (720) 841-1002 and J.C. at H-Sport (562) 907-7757.

Albert · Apr 10th, 2003, 01:32 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Albert
I expected a harsher ride since the H-Sport springs are linear instead of progressive, but was very suprised at how compliant the ride was.

Correction. I just confirmed with Mark Hotchkis that the H-Sport springs are indeed progressive, not linear.

M3NTAL Kev · Apr 10th, 2003, 08:34 PM

Albert,

Now that you've had the H-Sport for a couple of weeks...

Did they settle and get any lower than the initial install?

Is there any rubbing at all, even with aggressive driving or the car totally loaded up?

Thanks,

Albert · Apr 10th, 2003, 10:27 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by M3NTAL Kev
Albert,

Now that you've had the H-Sport for a couple of weeks...

Did they settle and get any lower than the initial install?

Is there any rubbing at all, even with aggressive driving or the car totally loaded up?

Thanks,

Kev, the car has pretty much maintained its height since install. Maybe just a tiny tiny bit of settling... hardly noticeable. Also, I've run my fingers across the insides of the rear fenders, and couldn't feel any rubbed spots. I plan on taking a closer look this weekend (e.g. take the rear wheels off for a closer look). I haven't loaded up the car though, so I can't really comment on that.

Albert · Apr 14th, 2003, 02:06 PM

Here are some pictures:

Sorry about the focus

Albert · Apr 14th, 2003, 02:11 PM

Dang, I can't post any more pics for some reason. What's up?

Albert · Apr 14th, 2003, 11:51 PM

Obehave, thanks for trying. I'll try again a little later... hopefully just a temporary glitch.

Boo · Apr 15th, 2003, 08:00 AM

Looks good with the new suspension.. Can't wait to get mine done.

What is the offset for the superleggeras??
I have OZ Chrono Eolutions 17" x 7"

Albert · Apr 15th, 2003, 08:58 AM

Mine are ET37.

Albert · Apr 16th, 2003, 01:21 PM

Ok, I fixed it. Here are the rest of the pics. (Thanks Miniac for helping me with the pics!)

Romhog · Apr 16th, 2003, 06:42 PM

man that looks really good. So its not a hard ride even with those 17"?

Albert · Apr 16th, 2003, 11:44 PM

Thanks Romhog. The ride is fine, especially b/c I got rid of the stock run flats.

Romhog · May 6th, 2003, 07:25 PM

Man, I just went to get a quote to see what it would cost to put these on, and the import (small car shop) turned me away because they don't know how to bill out the work in hours. People these days. then he has to stand there for 20 min talking about how he loves my car....JUST WORK ON IT DUDE AND YOU CAN MAKE LOVE TO IT.. oh well his loss

Anyhow, does anyone know what the labor is for this sway and spring install, most techs here don't know how to bill me for it. Also how many hours did it take?
Thanks

Apr 5th, 2003, 12:23 AM	#1
Albert MINI2 Regular Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Costa Mesa, CA Local Time: 12:57 AM Posts: 303 Offline	H-Sport Springs & Swaybars As Randy knows, I've been dying to get my MCS lowered but have been struggling with the fact that my 17" OZ Superleggeras ET37 with 205-45 tires would rub with lowering springs. I didn't want a slammed look, but I was looking for about a 1inch drop to get rid of some of the wheel well gap. After hearing about others having to trim and so forth with H&R/Eibach/etc. springs and various wheel/tire setups, I had pretty much given up on lowering the car. That was such a bummer too, b/c at that point I had heard that Hotchkis was coming out with lowering springs under their H-Sport division (run by Mark Hotchkis). This was a particular bummer to me b/c I really truly respect Hotchkis as a company, their well thought out research/design/development, and the quality of their products. This all comes from my life before the MCS, when I used to be heavy into the domestic scene (in particular Chevrolets). Most import crowds haven't heard of Hotchkis, b/c up until recently, their focus was primarily on the domestic car and truck scene. Just as I was about ready to hang it up, I had a chance to talk to J.C. at H-Sport (J.C. has posted before on that "other" Mini board). J.C. told me to swing by their offices in Santa Fe Springs, CA (I live and work approx. 20 miles from them) so that he could have one of their engineers check out my car and give me their opinion on whether or not I would rub with their springs. When I showed up, J.C. went and got Mark Hotchkis to come out and take a look. To make an already long story short, Mark was interested in taking my car in for a little R&D! He was very interested in seeing how his springs performed with my wheels since he recognized that the OZ's are rather popular with our cars. Not only did they hook me up with a full set of springs, they also set me up with front and rear sway bars!! Needless to say, I was very pleasantly suprised. But even more so, I was pleasantly suprised by a number of other things. Customer Service: Without a doubt, H-Sport has great customer service. Both J.C. and Mark Hotchkis were great to me. J.C. was very helpful from the start. He was very informative and eager to talk to me for how ever long it took to get all my questions answered. The car was finished as promised, on time and ready to go. When they said the car would be ready to be picked up by 1pm on Friday... it was ready at 1pm on Friday. To top it off, Mark gave me updated phone calls on the progress of the install, plus he even updated me with an emailed picture below of the installation! Mark also personally drove me back and forth to and from my work, which was no small feet b/c of the southern california traffic (must've have taken an hour out of his day each time!). During that time, I got a chance to ask about Mark's racing career, the Hotchkis company and life in general. Let me just say, Mark is a real cool guy. Super nice! Product Quailty: WOW. A full week later, and guess what? NO RUBBING! Now granted, I haven't had anyone in the back seat yet, but then again, I don't usually have anyone back there to begin with. So barring that fact, I'm haven't experienced any rubbing. The stance is absolutely PERFECT. It doesn't look slammed <this is a good thing for me>, but the stance is more aggressive/sporty for sure. With a 1 inch drop all the way around, it still maintains the stock "rake" which I like. Furthermore, the drop is perfect b/c you can still tool around town (over speed bumps and parking lot ramps) without having to "creep" over each and every bump. And believe me, if it did, I'd have to answer to my wife (our last car was much lower and life was hell in everyday driving). The ride quality is only slightly stiffer for everyday driving. Again, another "perfect" in my opinion. I expected a harsher ride since the H-Sport springs are linear instead of progressive, but was very suprised at how compliant the ride was. It's just stiff enough to let you know that they are there, and inspires a very sport feel and confidence. With the sway bars and springs, this car is absolutely unbelievable when pushed. Whereas previously the MCS felt very front heavy to me, the car now feels like everything is turning from the center!! If you think the MCS or MC felt like a go-cart stock.... wait until you try this setup! It's to the point now where I believe my wife will give me a good run for the money on the canyons (she normally drives the MCS, and I normally drive an S2000). We shall see .... some canyon runs and track days are coming up soon.

Apr 10th, 2003, 01:32 AM	#9 (permalink)
Albert MINI2 Regular Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Costa Mesa, CA Local Time: 12:57 AM Posts: 303 Offline	Re: H-Sport Springs & Swaybars Quote: Originally posted by Albert I expected a harsher ride since the H-Sport springs are linear instead of progressive, but was very suprised at how compliant the ride was. Correction. I just confirmed with Mark Hotchkis that the H-Sport springs are indeed progressive, not linear.

Apr 15th, 2003, 08:00 AM	#15 (permalink)
Boo Sponsor and Widget Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Nth Beaches, Sydney Local Time: 05:57 PM Posts: 1,752 Offline	Looks good with the new suspension.. Can't wait to get mine done. What is the offset for the superleggeras?? I have OZ Chrono Eolutions 17" x 7" The original SWORKS

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Apr 5th, 2003, 12:26 AM	#2 (permalink)
macncheese MINI2 Master Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: New Jersey Local Time: 03:57 AM Posts: 1,224 Offline	Very nice. I'm another domestic (dodge dakota) hotchkis fan. Hotchkis is one of those top notch companies that seem to be a rarity these days. Did you get the control arms and plates as well? -- Cheese

Apr 5th, 2003, 02:26 AM	#3 (permalink)
Albert MINI2 Regular Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Costa Mesa, CA Local Time: 12:57 AM Posts: 303 Offline	Quote: Originally posted by obehave Nice post and glad to hear it. Ran Hotchkis sway bars on my truck years ago and loved their stuff. Also had some Mustang and Camaro buddies loving their products as well. Have you had a chance to play with the bar adjustments? And how about that strut brace?? Haven't played around with the adjustments yet. I think right now it's set at the softest position up front, and the middle position in the back. The turn-in is awesome. Feels like my S2000. As for the strut bar, I replied on the other thread!!

Apr 5th, 2003, 02:28 AM	#4 (permalink)
Albert MINI2 Regular Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Costa Mesa, CA Local Time: 12:57 AM Posts: 303 Offline	Quote: Originally posted by macncheese Very nice. I'm another domestic (dodge dakota) hotchkis fan. Hotchkis is one of those top notch companies that seem to be a rarity these days. Did you get the control arms and plates as well? -- Cheese Cheese-Wiz, I did not get the control arm and plates. I did however, see the pre-production rear arms, and DAMN, talk about a nice piece of equipment!

Apr 5th, 2003, 04:31 AM	#5 (permalink)
Romhog My mini is my casket Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Dayton, Ohio Local Time: 02:57 AM Posts: 511 Offline	sorry, how many settings are on the front? I see the 3 on the back. Still loving the ride?

Apr 5th, 2003, 06:02 AM	#6 (permalink)
Albert MINI2 Regular Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Costa Mesa, CA Local Time: 12:57 AM Posts: 303 Offline	Two settings in front, and yes I'm still loving the ride.

Apr 7th, 2003, 09:23 AM	#7 (permalink)
Romhog My mini is my casket Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Dayton, Ohio Local Time: 02:57 AM Posts: 511 Offline	sorry if I didn't notice this, but where at and how much was this whole set? Thanks for the nice writeup!

Apr 7th, 2003, 02:53 PM	#8 (permalink)
Albert MINI2 Regular Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Costa Mesa, CA Local Time: 12:57 AM Posts: 303 Offline	Romhog, I forget what the prices are. I'll check and post again. Two places I know of where you can get them is Randy from Mini-Motorsports (720) 841-1002 and J.C. at H-Sport (562) 907-7757.

Apr 10th, 2003, 08:34 PM	#10 (permalink)
M3NTAL Kev MINI2 Regular Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Toronto, ON Local Time: 03:57 AM Posts: 142 Offline	Albert, Now that you've had the H-Sport for a couple of weeks... Did they settle and get any lower than the initial install? Is there any rubbing at all, even with aggressive driving or the car totally loaded up? Thanks,

Apr 10th, 2003, 10:27 PM	#11 (permalink)
Albert MINI2 Regular Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Costa Mesa, CA Local Time: 12:57 AM Posts: 303 Offline	Quote: Originally posted by M3NTAL Kev Albert, Now that you've had the H-Sport for a couple of weeks... Did they settle and get any lower than the initial install? Is there any rubbing at all, even with aggressive driving or the car totally loaded up? Thanks, Kev, the car has pretty much maintained its height since install. Maybe just a tiny tiny bit of settling... hardly noticeable. Also, I've run my fingers across the insides of the rear fenders, and couldn't feel any rubbed spots. I plan on taking a closer look this weekend (e.g. take the rear wheels off for a closer look). I haven't loaded up the car though, so I can't really comment on that.

Apr 14th, 2003, 02:06 PM	#12 (permalink)
Albert MINI2 Regular Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Costa Mesa, CA Local Time: 12:57 AM Posts: 303 Offline	Here are some pictures: Sorry about the focus

Apr 14th, 2003, 02:11 PM	#13 (permalink)
Albert MINI2 Regular Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Costa Mesa, CA Local Time: 12:57 AM Posts: 303 Offline	Dang, I can't post any more pics for some reason. What's up?

Apr 14th, 2003, 11:51 PM	#14 (permalink)
Albert MINI2 Regular Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Costa Mesa, CA Local Time: 12:57 AM Posts: 303 Offline	Obehave, thanks for trying. I'll try again a little later... hopefully just a temporary glitch.

Apr 15th, 2003, 08:58 AM	#16 (permalink)
Albert MINI2 Regular Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Costa Mesa, CA Local Time: 12:57 AM Posts: 303 Offline	Mine are ET37.

Apr 16th, 2003, 01:21 PM	#17 (permalink)
Albert MINI2 Regular Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Costa Mesa, CA Local Time: 12:57 AM Posts: 303 Offline	Ok, I fixed it. Here are the rest of the pics. (Thanks Miniac for helping me with the pics!)

Apr 16th, 2003, 06:42 PM	#18 (permalink)
Romhog My mini is my casket Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Dayton, Ohio Local Time: 02:57 AM Posts: 511 Offline	man that looks really good. So its not a hard ride even with those 17"?

Apr 16th, 2003, 11:44 PM	#19 (permalink)
Albert MINI2 Regular Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Costa Mesa, CA Local Time: 12:57 AM Posts: 303 Offline	Thanks Romhog. The ride is fine, especially b/c I got rid of the stock run flats.

May 6th, 2003, 07:25 PM	#20 (permalink)
Romhog My mini is my casket Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Dayton, Ohio Local Time: 02:57 AM Posts: 511 Offline	Man, I just went to get a quote to see what it would cost to put these on, and the import (small car shop) turned me away because they don't know how to bill out the work in hours. People these days. then he has to stand there for 20 min talking about how he loves my car....JUST WORK ON IT DUDE AND YOU CAN MAKE LOVE TO IT.. oh well his loss Anyhow, does anyone know what the labor is for this sway and spring install, most techs here don't know how to bill me for it. Also how many hours did it take? Thanks

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