That can also happen due to blown dampers as that will throw the combination way out of whack.

 

Yeah, it's just a 1.4" drop. Not too much, but just enough to ditch some of that ridiculous factory wheel well gap!

True dat. If I was gonna track my car I'd get the control arms to have some camber adjustability, but totally not necessary for daily driving.

 

Something else to consider if you lower. What kind of tires will you be using when these wear out?

I'm running Hankook Ventus RS2, 215 45-17's. They'd be real close to rubbing if I lowered my JCW.

 

I've been wrestling with this decision for quite some time now and, sadly, I've recently come to the same conclusion as Dix. The local road conditions, particularly during the winter months, are just not conducive to a lowered MINI. Heck, the lower lip on the Aero bumper of my MINI is showing a lot of wear and tear in its non-lowered state. I'd be ripping it off completely if it were any lower.

Even if I were motoring on smooth southern roads, I'd probably seek professional assistance if I ever decided to go lower. There are far too many interrelated suspension and drive train variables at play for a novice to simply throw on a new set of springs and expect everything to still function well together. There are way too many historical threads on NAM that seem to bear this out. Better to spend the $$ up front and have it done right.

 

I put on the very slightly lowering TSW springs (about 1 inch lower) and was almost immediately running -3 degrees camber in the back. Way too much for the street. I added rear control arms as soon as I could to prevent further damage to my tires.

My car only dropped 1 inch or less... I can't imagine what deeper drops would do to the suspension geometry without lower rear control arms to dial the camber back in. I do have a heavily equipped MCS, which may have played a roll in the excessive camber, though.

 

You can't see the wheel gap while driving. Driving is what MINIs do best, so one could argue that an aesthetic change simply isn't worth the dynamic compromise.

I just switched to 55 profile tires from 45s. The difference is about 2" of tire height, or 1" of clearance. It doesn't sound like much, but that extra inch makes a big difference in driveability. I no longer have to think about my approach angle on driveways and bumps. The peace of mind is fabulous.

The great thing is that I can't see my wheel gap from the driver's seat....it just doesn't bother me.

 

True....but the added 2 inches will hurt the gearing ratio as well and thus hurts acceleration. Every mod has pros and cons. And every person has their own interests. Some people want a car that is really low, some want one that drives comfortably, and some want all-out handling.

Springs:

Pros:
Looks great
Handles better

Cons:
Slightly stiffer ride (some people like that)
Lowers damper life
Some people scrape on very steep driveways (easily remedied by taking them at an angle)

 

The only thing that scrapes is the plastic.. Even my parents Mini Van scraped when I used to drive it when I was a kid. The only thing I would be worried about is blowing out the stock shocks. I want to lower mine and add a rear sway bar.. But I also want to keep the factory struts until I upgrade to better struts or coil overs.

 

This is all very much true.
But, the hassles associated with lowering a car are not worth dealing with for the perceived benefits, in my opinion. That’s just me, though.

Please, only modify your car to suit your own preferences. The results of modifying based on someone else's opinion can be anything from annoying to brilliant to downright disastrous. Whatever you do, do it because you want to. That way, you'll have nothing but s.

 

I should also add that I have a penchant for rally and rally cars. I think cars look cool with a bit of clearance, high profile tires, lights, etc. So again, my bias shows...

 

Very well stated shoe. They must be doing good things down there in Hokie land.

 

Think again- here in the South, there is either too much water in the soil which compromises the foundation of the roadway leading to monsterous potholes, too much heat in the summer so when heavies drive over, the asphalt develops huge waves, or there isn't any money to repair previously mentioned damage so it is left to get worse and worse...

And that's why I am not going to spend any money making my MINI any closer to the ground than she already is. Reality indicates I should be looking for a lift kit!!!!

(no worries, I'm not going there)


(unless I find a salvage MINI for very cheap and then all bets are off)

 

No way am I going to lower Romi. We have pot holes in the streets around here that already cause the bottom to scrape as it is. New ones form everyday.

Our roads are an exercise in "how cheap can they really be made?"

 

For anyone who WANTS to lower but is afraid of scraping....I strongly encourage you think about trimming an inch off the little plastic flap thing that hangs down. I trimmed mine and havent scraped since....and my front bumper hovers an inch off the ground. And believe me....80% of the roads in Ohio should be considered "off-road" at the rate they're going

Again...just advice for people who have wanted to lower their car but were afraid of harming the underside of their car.

 

If you do lower your car, don't even think about adding an oil drain valve to your oil pan. They hang down a bit, and one bad pothole will drain your crankcase.

 

Rally, that is one fine looking car.

How low did you go and how much camber are you running?

 

i have 18" rims on my mini. do u guys suggest lowing it with my rims so big? i know most of you have 17". I was thinking of getting the H-Sport but im not sure if 1" is too low or not. (i havent really looked at it to measure it either, i havent had time) what do u guys suggest??

 

Thanks

I never really measured to get before and after heights because I've gone from springs to springs+konis to coilovers....so my ride height has been all over the place

I run -2.5 camber up front and haven't changed the rear yet, but it's a little less than 2 in the back.

 

believe me, 1" is not too much, it is actually much too little.

 

Really depends on your tire size, wheel width, and wheel offset.

Unless you've got really big tires, one inch shouldn't be a problem on 18's. Lots of people run all sorts of springs on cars with 18" wheels

 

this is my wheel/tire specs:

wheel: 18" x 7.5"
tire:215/35ZR18

my tires aren't big, they're actually low profile, but they are thicker than the stock (7.5). idk if that matters much. i also dont want to be nervous every time a minor bump on the road comes by my way and i dont have time to avoid it. i wanna lower it but not have the fender resting on my tire lol

 

Any idea what your offset is....or maybe what the model of the wheel is?

Your tire size looks fine for a one inch drop

Here is someone who ran the same wheel and tire size on h-sports without any issues.... https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...8&postcount=15

 

F-It.. Raise the SOB like 2 feet

 

umm im not really sure what you mean by the offset... (sorry) but the wheel model is "HP Racing Lightning"

the pic of that mini with the h sports with the 18" rims looks good. the cars dropped low but yet not ontop of the wheel. thanks

 

http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/tech/...jsp?techid=101


Looks like you should be fine...the offset options don't look too low.