lol, some people.

 

 

http://autos.aol.com/article/fiat-50...ncid=webmail10

 

I like the rest of it, I truly do. I just don't understand or appreciate dropping cars down until the frame sits on the ground. Low is fine by me, but there is a point to which I gotta say why? All I can see is ruined suspension geometry. Your site looks great and some of the projects I can get into, until the frame rubs the ground.

 

Since you've only been in the MINI community for about 5 minutes & Rally is far too honorable to reply in kind I'll take the time to explain.

His MINI has a tremendous amount of custom work that starts with the second version of his custom height & performance adjustable air ride system. He has many more custom mods that make him one of the pioneers in correcting suspension geometry due to altered ride height. Those wheels that you are making uninformed statements about are custom re-drilled hubs that have converted his car from the OEM 4x100 bolt pattern to 5x112. Yes, that means that he is running 5-bolt wheels natively & I assure you they fit quite well (just ask all the people who saw it at the Dragon two years ago). Frankly, all of this only scratches the surface of the amount of work he has put into his car.

As for Rally himself, he's been a long-time contributing member of this car community since he bought his first MINI (an R50) that he used to autocross many years ago. He's an accomplished artist & photographer & I can assure you that all of the beautiful pictures that were posted are both real & lacking in PS trickery beyond the processing he added to refine them.

Additionally, much of the work on his car was largely done before he started his own company (Stance Design) & then moved on to a business partnership with StanceWorks. He's also been a NAM vendor & supporter for some time now.

My guess is that you wouldn't want the rest of us to make similar ***-umptions about you (say like where you choose to live) to those you've made about he & his MINI. Cudos to you & your awesome MINI, Rally. Thanks for pushing the boundaries & being a friend to me.

...and to get back on topic...I'd rock an Abarth in a hot minute. And I'd even stance it in between driving it hard on the track.

 

Personally I like the look of this Fiat and of the Stanceworks Clubman



To each his own though. I also enjoy cars built for tracking and racing along with nice long walks on the beach. Time and a place for everything.

 

1. I didn't knock any of the custom work other than the fact that it's belly is touching the ground. Prove to me that bagging it and dropping it in the dirt are great for your suspension and I will change my mind about the geometry. However, some folks like the look, I however do not. I didn't realize that we were here to have the same opinions about everything.
2. I like the site, I like his photographs. I never called it shopped. In fact, the image you quoted me posting was proving that it was not shopped. Get it right.
3. They still look like Audi rims to me.
4. You can make assumptions all you like. Stating an opinion and making an assumption are two different things. Go ahead and make fun of Mississippi, I do all the time. Go on, do it. Won't hurt my feelings. Not one bit. This is a stupid, backwards, redneck state. If I wasn't getting paid for being here, I wouldn't be here.
4. I would make just as much fun of it if it were jacked up on 30' rims and looking like a welfare stagecoach. I appreciate a car that sits where it should. I am sorry if that doesn't stroke your ego.

 

I was the one that blew the "real/fake" call - mea culpa, mea culpa. But in my defense, this is a case where the truth is almost stranger than fiction - someone really did bag a Clubman, perform a hub conversion to go from 4-lug to 5-lug, and then put on OEM Audi wheels for the photo shoot!

And while I still don't care for the look, I did want to say that the lowering job (and the car overall) look very cleanly done. I have the fashion sense of a colorblind pimp, so I'm the last one to ever rag on anyone else for their aesthetic choices, anyway. Enjoy what you drive, and be proud of the work you put into it!

 

First of all I like the new Fiat, I like old Fiats also having owned a 68 850 Spider and a 75 X1/9. However according to the news media things are not looking to good for the new Fiat

Fiats North American Head, Laura Soave has been relieved of duty. Apparently extreamly poor sales was a reason. 29 of Fiats Dealers in the USA failed to sell a single car last month

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...FREE/111129985

Hope they make it. Sure is a neat little car.

 

.

 

My replies in blue text.

 

The lug conversion wasn't done for a photo shoot. It's his DD and was done to be able to fit other wheels than the selection in 4x100 as well as to show what can be done. It's just one small part of a group of well thought out mods he's made to achieve what he wants out of his MINI.

If anybody is really interested in seeing what has been done then start reading here: http://www.motoringunderground.com/f...ad.php?t=10415
Here: http://www.stanceworks.com/forums/sh...ad.php?t=17309
Or here: http://www.stanceworks.com/tag/clubman/

And to keep this on-topic here's the US Abarth in case I missed its posting: http://www.fiatusa.com/abarth/post_e..._ebrochure.pdf

 

I went with the Pug since the engine is French, not English.
Pug ~ Peugeot Maybe lost.

 

 

1. We all have opinions. Mine is what I posted. Yes, I will be happy to change mine if someone can prove me wrong. I don't expect you to or him to but if you can, awesome. I still don't like seeing anything belly down. That, however won't change.
2. Don't quote a post of mine to call someone else out. Looked like you were calling me out.
3. They still look like Audi rims to me. Didn't say they weren't Audi rims. Like I said, you put a 2x4 on top and call it a spoiler it will still look like a 2x4.Seems like a waste to stick Audi rims on a MINI, but to each their own.
4. Nope, never a military man myself. What assumption did I make that has your panties in a knot? Opinions and assumptions are still not the same thing.
5. Thanks for not jumping on the fact that I used the #4 twice.
6. I expressed an OPINION. You are calling it an ASSUMPTION. Recurring theme here?
7. This forum is an outlet for us to express out opinions. You don't have to agree with me or anyone else. You have shown me that nothing else matters here but the opinions of long term members. You have taken the opportunity to call me names, you have jumped and bitten me for having a different opinion. Is this the less is more approach? Is this the appreciation you were talking about. If you don't like my opinions then have your say and drop it. I am not hurting you and I have the distinct impression that Rallye is a big boy and understands that not everyone "gets" what he does.

 

It got a laugh outta me

 

I will agree with you on this one. I do like it. Do you know if they are going to put that godawful clutch pedal in the Abarth? It was the main reason that I steered away from FIAT after I test drove a 500. The thing was like a mile long. Mentally I couldn't get past it.

 

Does anyone know if the 500 has a torsion beam rear suspension? If it does have they addressed it in the Abarth version?

I am just wondering why the 500 is so much cheaper than the Cooper.

 

Interior build quality might be part of the cost difference.

Still can't get over the look. They are cute and I think they are great for a lot of people. I hope they sell well - there are just too many Smart cars around - need something better to look at on the roads.

 

And this:

 

As far as I know, it does still have the torsion beam rear suspension, but it is beefed up somehow.

 

This is overblown. As stated by MINI, the MINI Prince engine is a BMW design with input by PSA. The blocks are cast in France & assembled in the UK. The partnership is for economy of scale to help them keep costs down in order to better compete.

 

Abarth .

Gucci .

 

I'm not disagreeing. Its like the Tritec being BMW or a car designed around the appearance of a dog totally unrelated to the history of the manufacturer.

Will have to add that in the context of this thread where 500's manufacturer and its partnerships are referenced as questionable, it would only be fair to point out components in the MINI made through manufacturers with similar questionable pasts.

This ---v
Manufactured in North America rather than shipped to.

 

How can you see the suspension geometry under the car?

All I ask is that you give me a chance before you judge me and my car so harshly. Have you spent any time in my build threads to know what my suspension geometry is truly like or are you just making an assumption and then judging me based on the assumption?

A great deal of time was put into correcting the geometries that I felt important. Custom Bilstein race struts were made for me with the correct valving and a much shorter body to address the MINI's travel issues. I had custom tophats and pillowball joints machined at a local machine shop to adjust the angle geometries of the struts in lowered cars. Time and care has been dedicated to addressing the angle of the front control arms and the resulting lowered roll center height. And there's plenty of other work that'd be too long to list.

I can assure you that my car rides as well, if not better, than most MINIs. Outside of the intentional camber, the geometry and suspension stroke are well within the means of handling well. The car is a daily driver, it has been on countless roadtrips across the country, it has tackled the dragon year after year, and it moves just fine

Before you go around bad mouthing my car, my company, or myself, all I ask is for a little respect. Don't jump to conclusions. You have made numerous assumptions and it has left you looking silly. You can share your opinion all you want, but you can't go around bad mouthing my car or company when it's quite clear that your level of knowledge on the subject is lacking to say the least.

We're all car enthusiasts here. Have some respect and pat each other on the back rather than knock each other down The same goes for the 500 subject. Even if you don't like it, don't call it a vacuum cleaner or trash it. Acknowledge that the 500 means there will be more small retro car enthusiasts out there and celebrate that fact.