Has anyone installed the JCW Suspension and left the stock front sway bar on, and installed the JCW rear sway bar. I am installing the kit on a non sport suspension car. If you have done this what was the effect? How did the car handle?

 

I do not believe there is a different JCW rear bar. I believe the JCW is the same 17mm rear bar as the sport package but maybe you are asking about adding the 17mm rear bar to replace the 16mm bar. Or maybe you are talking about adding the R56 18.5mm bar.

My car has the JCW springs/shocks with the stock front bar and the sport 17mm rear bar. I recently added adjustable camber plates to reduce understeer.

If you do not plan to add more negative camber to the front by using Fixed Camber Plates (adds -1.2) or Adjustable Camber Plates, I would suggest using a larger aftermarket adjustable rear sway bar, such as a 22mm solid or 25mm hollow rear bar.

 

I guessing 'MiniMacster' is talking about using the R56 JCW 18.5mm bar on an R53 car.

I have the JCW suspension on my car and that's what I'm thinking of doing soon.

I've done the IE fixed plates and the M7 under-strut system, love them both, and now I'm thinking of a rear bar,
most likely the R56 bar, for the next improvement.

I'm considering the the JCW bar because it's a factory part and most likely sufficient when combined with camber plates.

I added the under-strut first and a few months later the camber plates and each one made a noticeable difference,
for the better, in the cars ride and handling.

Hope this helps...

 

You have the stock rear bar with 15mm wheel spacers, does this add more understeer?
Have you thought of a larger rear bar or are you happy the way it is?

I'm thinking about new wheels with 38 offset and I may have to rethink my rear bar, larger than 18.5,
because I read that less offset on the wheels will add more understeer to the car.

So I'm curious if you think they, the spacers, have added understeer to your car.

Thanks in advance...

 

I added 17" 38mm offset wheels on my 2003 MCS. The only handling difference that I noticed was due to the lighter wheel/tire combination. I did not notice increased understeer due to the offset.

My 2006 MCS has 18" wheels with 52mm offset. I did not notice a handling difference when I added the 15mm spacers, which is equivalent to a 37mm offset. I added the spacers to clear the brakes and for looks (space the wheel closer to the outside edge).

My next mod is lower front and lower middle strut braces.

I have thought of a larger rear bar for the 2006 MCS but it is low on the priority list because I am pretty happy with the handling. I had a 25mm hollow bar on my 2003 MCS with camber plates and thought the bar was a little too stiff for street driving. For my 2006 MCS, I have thought about the R56 18.5 bar but I think I will go with an adjustable 19mm or 20mm bar for the fine tuning capability.

 

Hi,
I'm not sure which model you have, but maybe a little info will help. I have a 03 MCS and a 06 JCW GP. Obviosly the GP has JCW suspension, but both cars came with exacly the same sway bars (P/N and size). So the idea is, before buying new sway bars be sure that you don't already have them. The website www.realoem.com might help.

 

Thanks for the reply as now I do not have to totally rethink what mods I've done or would like to do in the future.

Now I just have to decide if I want to go with the stock R56 JCW bar or get fancy
and go with a 19mm red adjustable bar to match the red JCW springs.

Decisions, decisions...

 

I should have given more specifics in my first post. I have an R50 with 7Jx16 wheels and 205/55R16 Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S tires. The suspension right now is a bone stock non sport suspension set up. I have the JCW suspension kit in the garage now, and will be installing it soon. I had a Ford Fiesta many years ago, and only put a rear bar on it. The handling on that car was very neutral, and with the left foot braking technique I could get the rear out fairly easily. I was curious if leaving the stock R50 bar on the front and adding the JCW bar in the rear as well as installing the JCW springs and shocks on all 4 corners would be worth it as far as helping the car point, or would it be too tail happy?

 

Sounds as if it would get you want you want.

Your car has a 22mm front and 16mm rear bar vs a 24mm front and 17mm rear bar and I'll guess that doing the R56 JCW bar
with fixed or adjustable camber plates when you install the JCW suspension will get you the nutrality you want.

On the R53's some people are using 19mm bars on the middle setting or 20mm on the soft setting with camber plates
and JCW suspension or lowering springs. I'm not an engineer but I think that's the equivalent to what your thinking of doing
and most likely will be fine.

I don't mean to sound like a shill for camber plates but they do increase the car's neutrality while adding steering feeling
and enhancing tire wear. They also add mushroom protection to the strut towers.

Hope this helps...

 

I am also a big proponent of camber plates due to the handling improvement and structural support. Also, when you are installing the JCW springs that is the perfect time to add camber plates since you will have the strut off the car. Fixed plates are less expensive than adjustable plates but fixed plates do not provide adjustability which many people do not see as a big negative.

Fixed plates are about $180 from IE or Mini Mania.
http://store.nexternal.com/shared/St...ount2=45066475

If you go the adjustable camber plate direction:
I have the Hotchkis Adj. Plates which are currently $495 at Mini-Madness but also available from many other vendors.
http://www.mini-madness.com/index.as...PROD&ProdID=61
The TSW adj. plates also look good but I could not find the plates on their website so you would have to call to verify availability.

If you add fixed or adj camber plates you will need less rear sway bar so you need to decide your suspension plan before purchasing a rear bar, especially if you do not plan to purchase an adjustable bar. With camber plates, you will probably want a 19mm adjustable rear bar. A 19mm is about twice as stiff as your 16mm bar. Without camber plates, you will probably want at least a 20mm bar (2.5 times stiffer than 16mm). I had a 25.5 hollow bar on my 2003 Mini without camber plates and a 24mm front bar and it was a good setup. However, the 25.5 hollow bar is over four times stiffer than a 16mm bar so it will tend towards oversteer. When I added camber plates, I thought the 25.5 bar was too stiff.