I've heard of people not running a rear sway bar for auto-X, but is it advisable for the track? I specifically go on Infineon (Sonoma) and Thunderhill most of the time. Would I be experiencing major understeer or oversteer?

 

That's a new one for me.

Two reasons why I wouldn't:

1. more body roll will not help the front camber, reducing front grip and increasing tire wear, and

2. increased understeer...

Are you concerned about spinning the car? Is your setup prone to swapping ends?

Cheers,

Charlie

 

^+1
I don't know a lot about setting up a car for a track, but I'm pretty sure you don't want to go without sway bars.

 

No I have not spun out before in the current setup even when the sway bar stays on max stiff for track days.

 

What run group do you run in for HPDE?

 

Group 3

 

Not sure what that translates to. Do you run solo?

 

Meant to say HPDE 3. So yes, it's a solo run group.

 

It's common not to run a REAR sway bar in a BMW. However, BMW's are rear wheel drive and if the rear is too stiff you end up lifting the inside rear tire.

I would think that if you we're going to pull a sway bar on a MINI, you'd want to pull the front.

 

Then I would suggest you read the book: going faster, mastering the art of race driving by Carl Lopez. It answers most of the questions you seem to have and includes a section in car setup.

 

I've heard great things about that book. Just ordered a used copy off Amazon.

 

I suspect that you heard of not running a rear sway bar from people with rear wheel drive cars. As has been stated you want the rear sway bar on the Mini Cooper and probably even a stiffer rear sway bar to reduce the understeer.