I asked Peter, and he said it might or might not, due to the lower hood on the MC. Anyone tried to put one on? Does it fit?

 

I love my M7 STB, but it will NOT fit under your justacooper hood. It will make 4 small dents from the inside out where the brace bolts to the plates. When I was running my stock bonnet most MINI owners never noticed until it was pointed out. I was willing to live with the "speed bumps" in the metal. One thought, if the bolts were shorter I think it might fit, but not sure if shorter bolts would meet the engineering standards.

 

You need at least 3 threads extended beyond the nut for full strength.

 

What if the head of the bolts were a lower profile? And why wouldn't the owner/designer know if it would fit. I really like M7 products, but they need to know what does and does not fit. I guess I should start looking for a different strut bar for my car.

 

I have read that the ProMINI bar works (have to purchase the low profile battery box)

 

I've sold alot of M7 strut braces and I can say on some Cooper's there wasn't a problem, but on a couple the bolts did dent the hood. The brace will also press down on the battery cover, so I don't know how any other brand brace would fit. The idea of getting shorter bolts is good, just have to test fit.

 

You can trim the battery box. That is what I am going to do when I get around to getting a bar. Just measure the width and slowly trim down until it fits nicely in the box.

 

The M7 STB fit fine over the battery box in my 2005 R50

 

Well, for those that did get bumps, were they permanent or did they go away when the bar was removed?

If it is anything permanent, I will probably steer away from a front brace towards a rear sway bar or underbody brace.

 

The Speed Bumps are dents that do not go away without a paint less dent removal visit. I would still encourage you to get the M7 strut caps to stop any mushrooming. http://www.m7tuning.com/parts/produc...1882f35233af79

 

I intalled mine a while back and love it. I removed the under lining of the hood so I wouldn't get that flex I've heard about. After a couple of weeks, I noticed two little "nipples" on each side of my hood. I popped the hood and saw that the two "nipples" came from the outer bolts (two at each end to adjust). Peter from M7 told me that the their STB wasn't fabricated for the R50 due to the differences in it's hood. I've also been told that others have installed the STB with the hood liner still intact, and only have a little gap with the hood flexing (no nipples). Needless to say I love it and still have it on mine. A big plus with the R50 is that the brace fits snug over the battery cover and secures it well.

 

I also have a 2005 R50 and have the STB installed (after alot of pounding down the mushrooming). I have flex in my hood about 3/8" all the way accross the bonnet where it meets with the body next to the widshield. It is noticable if pointed out. I have not seen any dent, dimples or protrusions in the bonnet where others have them (the bonnet liner has molded nicely around them). My STB is raising the bonnet where the center rise slopes down on each side. Personaly I don't mind it enough to remove the brace part. Here is my 2 cents at first glance to the tops of the towers looked fine until I placed a plate there (had a tremendous amount of wobble due to uneven mushrooming) I'm sure if I had not hammered it back to perfectly flat the brace mounting bolts could hit the bonnet. Suggestion 1 hammer the strut tower mounting surface until the strut tower reinforcement plate lies flat with no movement (no matter where you press down on the plate) then bolt it down. I have talked with others that have little dents in the bonnet and none of them hammered the surface flat before installing the brace. The STB clears the battery box very nicely and the finish is first rate. If you are looking for a STB only I'm sure there is one out there that is a better fit. The M7 STB comes with the reinforcement plates (which IMHO are a required upgrade) and if the fit of the brace is not to your liking you can remove it and put it back for track days.

 

Hmm, the engineering standard I've been told is 3 full threads of engagement before the thread exceeds the strength of the bolt. With a steel stud and steel bolt you should not need any stud past the nut.

Update, the question that has to be answered is "full thread" engagement as the end of most bolts/studs are tapered... which might lead the the "3 threads beyond nut" thoughts. With lock-tite or other antiloosening method I would personally run the nut and end of stud even if needed for clearance.