Hi All,

Thought you might be interested in my experiences with having just lowered my S.

First off, I bought them from Mini Mania. They were the only people in all the U.S. who had springs IN STOCK for the post march build on the Cooper S. They were a bit more expensive than what some of the other spring manufacturers are quoting, but I just couldn't stand the GAP any longer.

I had them installed by a local shop. I admit I was nervous to have amatuer messing around with a car they had never worked on before, but all turned out fine. In reality, changing out springs is really no big deal...I was just paranoid. The same shop also aligned it.

So, I picked it up and I must confess it looks very nice.

In the back I used to have quite a gap. Before, I could get 3 fingers between the top of the tire and the outer edge of the wheel well (the black plastic). I was frankly a little shocked to see that now they are dead even. I know it's not scientific, but that translates into roughly a 2" drop....although it is probably more like 1.5".

The fronts came down quite a bit also, at least the same distance, however there is still more gap in front that in back. Apparently this space is needed because under extreme braking, and cornering you'll need that gap to avoid rubbing.

Now here's the important part. The shop re-aligned the fronts but the rears have a noticable negative camber. The stock assembly does not allow manipulation of camber, only toe in and out. I was told it's probably in the range of 1 - 1.5 degrees. This translates visually into about 1/2 inch negative camber.

This negative camber has created a couple of issues that you need to be aware of.

1 - The tire will actually be set in farther at the top of the wheel well, so that it will not appear as flush as the fronts are with the outer edge of the fender.

2 - The rear tires will wear more on the inside if left this way.

3 - More negative camber is good for cornering, if you're into that sort of thing.

So, Mini Mania does have a kit that will allow you to dial in and out camber on the rears if so desired, but it's an additional $550. You can also keep rotating your tires on a regular basis. Considering that the rear tires have the least amount of wieght sitting on them I am not sure how frequently this will be.

As for me, I am going to wait a bit and give things time. A friend of mine has a subaru WRX and he lowered it recently. I was amazed at how much the car settled after a week. It looks much lower than the first day he had them on. So, I am waiting to see if these springs will settle any further.

I should also point out that the mania springs actually have an additional wrap on the coil, one more than the factory. They are also supposed to be a bit more progressive. It is probably my imagination, but the ride along rough freeways actually feels a bit smoother. I don't know if this is actually the case, but the end result is that I am happy, and the car looks great.

I'll post pic's this week for those interested in seeing it.

Later

 

Look forward to seeing those pics!
Happy Motoring.
SW

 

Pics please!!!

R

 

are you saying that the ride is better now than before you had those springs installed? like you, i also don't like the "gap" and also not fully committed to the idea of having 18" rims on my MCS. so how about those pics and perhaps a little more about how the car feel around town. i like the factory feel; any stiffer and i will keep my MCS stock. i rather drive around with that gap than to drive around like i "choped" my springs (bouncing up and down). so until then, motor on dudes....

bbt4
electric blue MCS/spt pkg

 

One other thing to be aware of is that if you lower much more than the 1.5-2" range mentioned by PatrickH is that you might also need to replace the shocks; they can actually bottom out on lowered cars (operate "below" the range of their designed "stroke&quot. That's why the Bilstein Kits offer the Sport setting shocks. Last time I checked, the sport shocks were designed to be used with a decreased ride height (shorter spindle). Another option (although it's probably not available "yet&quot is the Bilstein PSS-9 suspension kit. I had this installed on my Golf GTI. It allows you to ADJUST both the RIDE HEIGHT (via adjustable spring supports threaded onto the shock body), and the shock STIFFNESS (a small dial on each shock, with 9 click stop positions). With this setup, you can lower your car and (if it's TOO low) adjust it back up in ride height if you want to. They even supply the adjusting wrenches for this ride height adjustment (at least if you buy thru Neuspeed). You can also adjust the compression & rebound damping of each shock, while on the car (even wearing a suit... I had to do it once). Very slick setup; about $1200 + installation.

Although I like the setup very much on the Golf, the MINI is SO MUCH BETTER handling (right off the showroom floor) that it'll be awhile before I attempt something like this on the MINI (although the observation about "the look" does have merit).

The other thing I learned was to CHECK after the suspension is installed, to make sure the dealer realigns the suspension. When they installed my PSS-9 kit on the GOLF they were supposed to realign the front end, but didn't. Right after that I put 4 lovely Yokohama AVS "Sports" on the Golf... and, before I knew what happened, the outside of the front tires was completely scrubbed away. Darn.

 

OK, I have uploaded pictures, unfortunately it was so bright out you can hardly make out the wheel from the fender. I did include one pic of the rear wheel camber, now that it is lowered. Fortunately you can just make it out because the wheels are chrome. See pages 50-51 in the gallery...it's the red S with chromies.

So, just an update. Now that I have been driving it for a week lowered a few other observations.

The springs did settle over the first few days. This might explain why the first day it felt slightly softer. I actually feels slightly stiffer now, however, this may be mostly to the shock being used at the upper extremes, instead of in the middle where it should be.

The front end actually came down noticably after a couple days, while the rears stayed about the same. My guess is the wieght of the engine and braking and accelerating helped the front springs settle.

One other thing I have noticed is that when I drive through a dip in the road I really notice it now. I think this goes to what was said earlier. The shock is not being used in the most ideal area. Maybe later I'll look into new shocks. For now it's OK. The ride was stiff before, it's only slightly more stiff now.

Hope this info is helpful.