I am converting my 1996 BMW 3 series from a rallycross car to a stage rally car and I am looking at options for a new rallycross car. I have two kids now so I am looking for a 4 door car that I can depend on to get me home after an event. I have a car trailer but I don't want to use it all the time. An occasional school run would be a nice bonus. The Countryman popped up as an option and I have a few questions.

How does the AWD system work on dirt? Some of the FWD biased systems pulse power front and rear in low traction conditions and it makes it hard to drive fast.

How hard is it to fit 15" wheels? I see oem 16" wheels. Is a small brake kit enough? I have a bunch of 15x7 BMW wheels with gravel tires for my current car. If they fit, it would be a big bonus.

Any idea on rallycross suspension for this car? I assume I want to lower it a bit to make it less tippy. Bilstein HDs are my standard so I would probably go with Bilstein B6s. Can you get aftermarket suspension arms to push out the wheels?

Can the countryman keep up with the Subarus? On paper, it is down on power but weight is low too. The 60" track width and 102" wheelbase roughly matches the WRX from the same era. The twin scroll turbo should help with low end torque out of the slower corners.

 

I am revisiting this idea after 6 months.

The bad news is disabling abs disables awd. That really hurts braking performance.

The good news is I forgot about the Paceman. According to the rules, those can be run without lowering the car. That saves a ton of money since I can run Bilstein HDs instead of getting fancy coilovers. They also have a cool tartan/plaid interior option and are easier to find in a manual.

Jury is still out on downsizing the front brakes. I am not sure if non-S Countryman brakes will fit a 15" wheel. There are some aftermarket options but they look expensive,

 

Here is info on some MINIs from the past. The x1 and the Countryman/Paceman share alot of the same platform for driveline.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...an-s-4all.html




Check out the X raid team as they have done a bunch of rally cross builds for these cars.


Countryman SCCA: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...allycross.html

 

I would love a WRC replica but I need the back seats these days.
The issue with the Countryman in SCCA events is how to work around the rollover rules. It is taller than it is wide. I can lower the car but that feels counterintuitive on dirt. A widebody like the WRC cars could work but that bumps me all the way up to the top class with fully gutted Subaru Legacys with modern STI swaps.
Do you have any ideas on a small brake kit for 15" tires for one of these? I have a ton of BMW OEM 15x7s for my current rallycross car/stage rally build.


Reusing 5x120 wheels is one of the reasons I am looking at Countrymans instead of the usual AWD suspects.

 

You would have to take the brakes from a countryman cooper (base) but i think its still 16", i have never seen 15" fit.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ountryman.html