Hey guys!

Just wanted to say Hi from Japan and give you a quick update.

I have some new stuff! Even though most of the CF stuff is already sold but I will have some extra Hear light rims with me. I will give a full report once I get back but I got some stuff for my car to see if there is any interest in the near future. How do you like this one?

front (half) splitter


I have more engine dampers as well since few of you missed them last time.

As far as the Under Wings go, I bought few more sets so I will have them available next week. I am glad to hear people's experiences on this thread. I really think these things work. I had a chance to speak to the company owner who makes these and he was thrilled to hear that the US MINI owners are liking his product. I am going to get some publication on this product in Japanese so I will translate it and post it when I get a chance.

Due to exchange rat difference etc, I do have to charge shipping and handling separately again. Still the price you would pay in Japan though. $180 plus $20 shipping. I will be in Vegas so if they last until then I will bring some with me.

I know Randy & Peter at M7 really well so I should ask them first but from what I can see from the photos of the USS, these wings will not fit together. I will have VERY LIMITED sets of "triple bar system" (I have to come up with some fancy name later. This is the fun part!) that can be installed with the wings. There are two bars under the car and one that will connect the rear fender arches in your trunk. I will post the full spec with pics once I get back.

 

What's the price on the frt diffuser in the pic. Carbon fiber or fiberglass. Thanks Larry

 

Wow, note taken. Obviously since this Japanese person has come up with something totally ridiculous, everything from Japan must be totally ridiculous. I don't ever remember anything from America being silly.

 

Wow, that's an interesting choice. I hope you at least tried the M7 USS first. I installed mine last night and felt an immediate improvement. Will get the chance to evaluate it further this weekend.

 

edit- never mind! ( ie: cf sheets)

 

pfunk,

Can you get Argray parts?

 

It isn't one person. These art cars are a major thing in Japan, just like Hotrods in the USA. Check the link below to see dozens of them. You made the broad generalization about buying habits of the Japanese, but you apparently don't know their car market fads.

Also it would seem that you don't watch F1 as you would see cars with large wings being launched off of bumps and curbs and realize that no wing is going to keep your car down on a bumpy road, especailly not some flimsy little under the car winglet thingy.

http://tanetane92.web.infoseek.co.jp/20050116tas2.html

 

I'm not going to bother.

And no, I don't watch F1. Unfortunately, I only have network television and I don't even watch that.

 

The under car wings really well, it creates a suction - vacuum effect from the inverse weight loss from your wallet being pinched, so when you sit in the car with less money in your back pocket from being punk'd your car rides faster with less weight in it. real simple,,,LESS is More
LOL..

 

That only works if I paid for the items with cash, coins, whatever. If I use a debit card, the weight of the debit card remains the same. Thus, the question remains.

 

so wings don't keep me down on bumpy roads? i wonder why does f1 cars even have them ? seriously, what can compress the suspension enough to keep the car even on bumps? maybe another mini on its roof?

 

You still got punk'd

 

F1 cars have wings for aero dynamic down force to increase grip in high speed corners on smooth race tracks. They do not have them to counteract the force of the car hitting bumps. That is the job of the tires and the springs and dampers. F1 cars have stiff suspension and stiff tires and that is why they launch on the curbs and go flying.

You don't want to compress your suspension before a bump. You want your suspension to absorb the bumps. So first of all get off the brakes right before you hit a bump. Get lighter wheels and more flexible tires. If you have the S-lites and the runflats get rid of them. Go with some 16" wheels and 50 series tires.

 

so it won't work on smooth new public and highway roads? sorry, i didn't mean to sound like i'm countering you if it is... but the roads that i drove were highway roads in extra-legal highway speeds. i don't feel them when i turn at a corner of a city block... so yeah they don't work... around city/urban speeds.

 

I have tried it. Look at my picture gallary. I chose to keep the wing cuz of my late night highway cruises. Need all the down force I can get. Will put the USS back on when I go to the tracks.

 

so what is your problem against pfunk? do you have these wings, are you an aerodynamicist? (sp?)

from what im hearing, it is quite frankly all those who slam these things are from people who have never even seen these wings in person... all the feedback from those who have em says they are good... so.... tossup is, people with real world experience against a bunch of bench racers.... hm... tough call

sorry, not to rant... and its not a slam against those who do know their stuff...

btw, pfunk, those half splitters look good.. defenitely a + in my book even if they dont do anything but look cool...

 

I'm not so sure they are worth the $180.00.

You could put adjustable wing on the back of the car, and get much more adjustability.

Most cars act like a wing naturally, by increasing the surface area under the car you actually decrease its ability to hold the ground. It's simple aerodynamics.

GT cars typically have flat bottoms, and louvers(sp?) overtop of the fender wells to pull the air out and further pull the car down. minimize the surface area under the car is the key.

I personally would want to see some actual analytical data such as a large skidpad. I'm not saying they don't do what they say they do, but there are many more performance parts for $180.00 and under that would make a larger peformance gain in other areas.

 

i also refer them to as 'spec racers.' you know, they look at the specs in
magazines and start racing cars in their minds vs other car specs and
they think they know the sh*ts.

lots of guys that have never even modded cars do this often...in the
kitchen while they wait for their coffee.

honestly, i wouldn't be surprised if those under wings don't do anything.
but it's worth a try if it interests someone.

and for the guy that drives his car in the air, like i said, get better shocks.
what you're feeling is underdamp. your car's not going fast enough to
make a difference with those little wings.

 

I just returned from Japan.

It is kind of sad to see some of the post now attacking my personal integrity.

I have this "vendor" status because there isn't a category for someone like me. I am fortunate enough to have a job that will take me out to Japan 2-3 time a year and get paid relatively well. I thought I can use my position to bring new stuff out here. I want to make one thing clear. I am doing this for fun. I don't make living doing this. We have fun talking about it in the meets. I have something not everyone has....All fun juvenile stuff.

Whatever I am going to post here is something I bought in Japan with my own money. When something is cool, I try to get a volume discount and get them to you guys if you are interested in. Sometimes I get a bit of volume discount so I can share with you guys at the price they sell in Japan. Sometimes I don't so I need to add a little to cover my cost. That's all. Nothing to it.

Why am I doing this? My wife asks me this all the time too. Because it's fun. Am I the only one who is bit tired of seeing threads titled "15% vs 17% !?' or "best intake, which one?!" for the 175th time? There is a HUGE MINI mod scene outside of US that you don't even know about and I just thought you would be interested in it. I am not in a hurry to recoop all the money. I actually don't want to get rid of them until Vegas. I am looking forward to talking to some of you there and show some of my finds.

I am only defending myself from someone implying that I am selling something I got for really cheep for $180 because that is simply not true.
I just spent entire two days trying to get the things shipped to me in Tokyo and organising cash to get all the stuff and carrying two 30kg suitcases from Japan and reading some of the post here is really heart breaking.

I look at it this way. Most of you did the pulley right? I paid $400 including the install to and I love it. Is the actual piece of metal worth $400? I don't think so. But the result is worth every penny for sure. I also think these two pieces of metal is not worth $180 materially. However, the result I got from them is well worth the money in my opinion. I know it's not a fair comparison but you can do the install yourself for the wings so the actual mount of money you would pay for an "effect" or "result" is what I am comparing. I did worse in the past. I bought Nology

I don't have the skill or the brain to figure this out. Someone in Japan did and made a small company specialising in this. He makes these for more than 30 cars. Hats off to him. Let the guy eat. I bought 10 of these this time and he really scrambled to get these for me in time. He said he was honoured that his parts are starting to get recognition in the MINI community here.

Having said that, please don't buy these wings from me if you are tapping into your kid's college funds. They are not worth it.


I think it's great to ask questions about the product. I am not an aero dynamic expert so I really want someone to explain to me why me and few others in the States and hundreds of people in Japan who experienced noticeable down force are delusional. I only heard back from people who had positive experience. Let's keep the constructive discussion going.

I have received many kind e-mails and PMs from you guys and that's good enough for me to continue what I can do in my spare time for now. Thanks for your support.

I will post all the good stuff (including the new half splitter and AMAZING CF cowl scoops ) as soon as I catch up with stuff back home. Over all, it was a good trip. I made new contacts with shops and manufactures over there.

I am tried. I am going to bed now. I will email everyone who prepaid me for parts tomorrow. All your orders are safe in my studio...

Thanks

 

Placebo effect maybe?
What really needs to be done is a blind test. Have someone drive a control car around a designated course, both with and without the wings installed (obviously you can't let them know when they are installed). Get their opinion of the difference between the different runs. That should rule out most of the problems of people thinking there is a major difference just because something is different.

Of course I doubt anyone would do that as it would take quite a lot of time. But it's just a thought.

 

pfunk- welcome back! otsukare sama

it's not easy to sell things especially those parts that you have. but
i think people with extra cash will want to see what it can do. and i
hope you don't take my posts too seriously because i do mean what
I say, but at the same time, im just here having fun too.

i think easier things you can sell is something people can see above
the car (JDM ofcourse). something that will be more distinct in differnce
from before and after. more decorative things like CF bonnet stripes
in different shades of color, special wheels, steering wheel hubs
(daikei?, etc.) with plug & play harness, stereo add-ons, any special
brake cooling stuff (i donno) etc. things of that nature.

Personally im done modding my MCS, so won't be buying anything more
for this car.

ive noticed that there's a much younger generation now that are
modding our MINI's. younger the age, the larger the wheels, the larger
the gap between us and them and the rotor to inner rim... hehehe.

thanks for trying hard and keep your chin up.

 

I, for one, appreciate you, GOOD WORK !! I will run the tracks with the wings on

 

I doubt it'd matter. I posted earlier that the manufacturer had done his own tests on a track using a track driver, and the wings helped the driver shave some seconds off his time. People believe what they want to believe.