I have purchased a set of Cooper S - SS+ springs and I will be installing them on my 2005 MC. Has anyone done this and if so with what results?

 

When I do this swap, I will follow up with my experence.

 

Definitely let us know how it turns out.... I've got a set of springs from an S in my garage... my wife is interested in having them installed on her 2005 Cooper..

 

Hey Ben, you think Laura needs better handling on Chilly? She does pretty good now.
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...Cooper+springs

 

been there, done that.
It will fit without any problems, only what really bothers me...is that it has still the same ride-height!

 

It depends on what Cooper S SS+ springs you have...there are two, depending
on the vehicle weight as specced, and three Cooper SS+ springs, also
depending on the vehicle weight as specced. Part #'s listed below:

There are lines painted on the springs, and the number and color of lines
determines the part # in a manner unknown to myself.

For the Cooper with SS+ : (choice depends on vehicle weight with options chosen)

31-36-6-758-310 or -311 or -312 front
33-53-6-758-354 or -355 or -356 rear

For the Cooper S : (choice depends on vehicle weight with options chosen)

31-36-6-758-311 or -312 front
33-53-6-758-356 or 379 rear

 

I Installed springs today. Ride is not as harsh, cornering is noticable alot flatter.
I am very pleased.
The only thing that they have raised the rear by about 1/4".

 

So was it worth the time installing them? I am in a position were I could pick up a set of SS springs and Rear sway bar. Is it worth the investment or should I just save up my money and go w/ a brand name set?

 

Presumably this is due to the higher compression rate of the rear spring compared to the stock SS spring, so the static weight of the lighter MC does not compress the spring as much as a heavier MCS does.
Can anyone confirm this?
And would it make sense to install the higher rate springs in the front only and leave the rears alone? (assuming that an additional 1/4" gap to the rear fender is objectionable)

 

Originally Posted by tools
The only thing that they have raised the rear by about 1/4".

I would wait until the springs settle down a bit, and then check the ride height.

 

I guess it depends upon what you are trying to accomplish.

But I cannot see that any of this spring swapping is going to actually improve the ride and handling of the car. The whole system (springs and dampers, front and rear) is designed to work together from the factory. Mixing and matching pieces from all over the place doesn't seem like the way to go to me.

Stock sports suspension specced for your car is good.
Stock SS+ specced for your car is better.
JCW suspension upgrade specced for your car is better still.

With the various spring rates of the stock parts being an unknown, mixing and matching seems like a bad idea. As does taking springs that are designed for one set of struts and putting them on another set of struts (like SS vs SS+ - I'm not sure if there are different struts within each "family" like there are springs).

If you can get take-off parts from someone for free, then maybe it's worth what you're paying. Otherwise...

My opinion, which I'm sure many people are going to disagree with.

 

I agree it's a bit of a slippery slope, but folks mix and match all the time - that's what keeps the aftermarket vendors afloat!

My Cooper was ordered as a minimalist machine, SS+ was not available to order, and I have added the rear swaybar and 16" X-lites from the MCS, and shod the wheels in Toyo T1R rubber.

So far I have been happy with the results of this tinkering, and would like to upgrade to the SS+ on the cheap. (although the local dealer quoted $390 to install the new springs, and advised that the dampers should also be changed, else there may be undue wear on the existing SS dampers)

If I could do this retrofit myself I would, but have limited tools and no experience with brakework or springs/struts, although I installed the rear swaybar myself and regularly swap/rotate wheels.

Still deciding.

 

The ride height has not changed after almost 1300 miles. As far as it being worth the time and effert - YES. The ride is better and it does corner better.
It only took 2 1/2 hours to swap springs. I do own spring compressors and I have done this before on other cars. And I did have an alignment done after.
I would recommend an after market rear adjustablle sway bar instead of SS one.
As far as the question of weather changing springs makes a difference in handling - then why do you think people choose any suspension over stock.
The car handles better. as far as the struts they seem to be the same for all applications except JCW setup.
Springs a sway bar are the differences

 

There are different part numbers for the struts for SS and SS+, I just looked it up on http://www.realoem.com/

What I'm saying is going to the full SS+ is good. Putting SS+ springs on SS struts is not as good.

Since there are multiple spring rates within SS and SS+ depending upon the options / weight of the car, taking someone else's springs and putting them on your car is a bit of a crapshoot - especially since the spring rates aren't published.

Of course there might be some magic setup that works great. I'm betting that the factory specced setups are the ticket, though.

I'll quote some of my previous post that seemed to get lost / misread:

I've got the JCW suspension upgrade on my car, so I am a believer that there are better solutions than stock for performance. But, I'm also a believer that suspension systems are just that - systems. Care should be taken when building up the system. Springs that are designed to work together and the struts that are designed to work with those springs seems like a reasonable starting point to me. My swaybars are not what is specced by the factory for the JCW suspension upgrade, so I guess that's where I draw the line on where to diverge from the specification.

 

I am just passing on my experience with what I have done. I am happy with the results. Anyone can do what they want with the info.