Proud to FINALLY annouce that the camber plates are coming! Initially, we will offer camber only - but camber/caster are coming. For the majority of people (except the dedicated track junkie/autocrosser), camber only would be the recommendation. These have been road tested, autocrossed and track tested.

With any luck, these will be in-stock and ready to ship in the next couple weeks!

How are these different? Well, how about a sealed double roller bearing AND an oversized spherical bearing? The double roller bearing allows for rotation, while the spherical provides complete freedom of motion - these are completely unique among current offerings. You don't have to settle for roller-style or spherical any more, nor the binding, bump travel, or longevity issues associated with them...

Depending on the application, the double roller bearing is either housed in an upper spring perch that works with coilovers OR a replacement OEM-style upper perch. This bearing and housing then interfaces with the GIANT spherical. The spherical bearings themselves DWARF the competition and are designed to withstand the rigors of street and track abuse. All components will be plated for maximum corrosion resistance and long life.

In order to properly use our camber plates, you must choose spring perches that match your strut brand and spring type. Our camber plates are designed to be compatible with 2.5” and 60mm “coilover” style springs, stock style springs and all strut types.

- With coilovers, adjustment was from stock to -3 degrees. OEM style springs netted an adjustment range of stock to -2.7 degrees (inside of the strut towers were massaged)
- Compatible with 2.5" and 60 mm Coil-Over springs, factory springs and all struts.
- No need to change camber plates when switching from regular springs to coil-overs! Some companies sell you two totally different camber plates for coil-over springs and factory style springs.
- Installs with basic hand tools, no chassis modifications required.
- Plates are designed specifically for MINI R50/R52/R53 chassis (R56 coming!).
- The spherical bearing used in the camber plate is the largest used in any MINI camber plate. The result has much better durability and wear characteristics than the undersized bearings used in our competitors plates.
- Designed for maximum suspension bump travel. More than an inch more strut travel than some of our competitors! This is EXTREMELY important on the MINI!
- CNC machined bearing holder, Laser Cut main plate, 100% alloy steel construction - Tough as a German Tank!
- All components plated for maximum corrosion resistance and long life.

OEM-style plates:





The trick OEM-style upper spring perches, with the double roller bearing pressed into the retainer ring:



AST plates (or any 60mm springs):

 

Any pricing available yet? Or perhaps a package deal with your AST/Swift coilovers?

What about going with stock spring perches and upgrading to coilover perches later on?

 

wow. these were worth the wait. That looks like one hell of a camber plate. I hate to ask but any idea on the price tag? And another question on everyone's mind i'm sure. If you buy the perch's for the oem spring style... how much will an upgrade to the coilover spring perch run later on.

Gotta hand it to you guys at tsw... you're doing a damn good job of r/d and coming up with new stuff.

 

For the caster adjustable version-
When do you expect it to be ready?
How much price difference?
Any weight difference?
How much adjustability on Caster for the MINI?
What effect do you think a more positive caster will have on the MINI?
Besides track, would it be at all used for street driving?
As you adjust for caster does that in any way compromise maximum negative camber?
Many plates raise the ride height in the fronts- does this plate do that?

If I have Bilstein PSS9 Coilovers then what perch would I use and have you test fitted your plates with PSS9s and gotten more than -2.5 degrees negative camber (seems the limit for other plates with PSS9s is about -2.4 or -2.5).

Thanks, great looking product.

 

We're in the last stage of planning and production for the TSW camber plates, and we'll get back to you with answers to your questions (good questions BTW) ASAP. Thanks for the interest!

 

YAY......I can not wait......they look so nice

 

Me likey! How much!?!@

 

 

Looks good. I'll order a set as soon as you tell me they won't lift the front-end of my car.

 

The will not change ride height on the OEM setup... On the AST's we had to raise the perches (and re-cornerweight the car, again).

Coming soon, we'll answer the availability date, price question, upgrade question (e.g. going from OEM-style springs to coilovers), and pricing for the camber/caster plates... We were always shooting for a 1Q release, and we're getting close!

 

If you guys wanna 'beta' a set of these with the TSW springs, just let me know! :D

 

Kevin beat you to it...

 

You where closest R53 with plenty of track time planned riding on AST/Swifts is too

 

I'd offer to "beta" them, and I've already got the springs, but you wouldn't get any auto-x/track feedback on them, just street time..... and I'm broke at the moment anyway...

 

I'm already on the list, and patiently waiting to order these along with your springs at the same time!

Eric

 

I would definitely be down for a set of these when you get closer to production. I love the springs y'all sold me!

 

Pricing for the camber only plates will come in at $449... If you bought the OEM-style first and then eventually swapped in some coilovers, the swap should come in at $60 - this includes a new top spring perch with the double-roller bearing already pressed in... Plug-and-play!

Camber/caster is yet to be determined, but we're shooting to keep them at/under $549. The fixture is somewhat different for those puppies! We'll know very shortly what the adjustment range will be... I'll let Dr. Mike weigh in on why he would like caster adjustment...

A bit more information on these, too:

The spherical? Aurora Performance Racing Series PWB-12T Teflon Lined - 1.375" OD, .75" ID, .875" width - max load rating of 7735 pounds... Most other people use a Aurora Commercial Series COM-10T Teflon Lined or Chinese equivalent - 1.1875" OD, .625" ID, .625" width, max load rating of around 4200 pounds. Quite the difference!

Measurements taken during datalogging have shown that the impact load of a common pothole can be in the 5000 lb. range... The bigger the bearing, the stronger (and safer) the system. It's not the place to cut corners, in our collective opinions (and yes, these bad boys are significantly more costly - three times as much to be exact!).

Because there's a roller bearing, too, the spherical doesn't have to rotate, either - this is what causes many spherical bearing setups to fail prematurely or generate free play (which is why some get 'noisy').

 

Sold!

 

sounds good. will they be very streetable/liveable for a daily driver? looking to setup my suspension in the spring.

 

Well, the short answer is that I have the caster where I want it with the (beat to h*ll) KMAC camber plates I have now, and I'd like to keep those numbers the same!

I generally run more caster than stock (about 1 degree more) because I like the caster-induced camber gain I get in tight corners (tight meaning significantly more than 1/4 turn of the steering wheel). I also like the added stability at the front end, and the slight increase in steering feel (at the expense of a little heavier steering). Some folks despise this and actually shoot for less caster than stock to liven up the front end and to reduce steering weight (less effort at the steering wheel), and these plates will be able to do that too if desired.

 

These going to be at AMVIV?? They sound awesome! I'd like to check 'em out.

 

Wow. I'm glad I didn't pull the trigger on those H-Sport plates after all. Well, better get to saving again!!!

 

I'd like to know why the general daily driver weekend track guy should opt for the non-caster as you mention. I mean, if they will be more prone to making noise or they will be more harsh, or you really feel that the caster increase will not benefit a driver such as myself. Let me know. On my S2000, I had caster maxed out in the front which brought it to about 6.5-7 degrees. I enjoy the benefits of caster and the heavier steering doesn't bother me.

I just would like some reason behind why only the dedicated track junkie/autocrosser should be looking into caster adjustment.

 

Drmike,

What did you set your castor to?
What about front negative camber and toe?
Tires wearing OK?

The question: To caster adjust or not?

Castor is not normally adjustable for any stock MINI.
Stock castor-
(Difference between left and right max 0.30 degrees)
With plus or minus 10 degree steer angle:4.47 +/- 0.3 degrees
With plus or minus 20 degree steer angle:4.55 +/- 0.3 degrees

Castor angle- provides self centering effect for steering (goes straight without having to steer)

Additional positive castor- increases the self-centering effect which is usually a good thing. Too much of this will increase the effort it takes to turn the steering against the added castor (heavy steering feel). It is possible that excessive castor could result in tire edge wear.

Castor- affects camber
Added positive castor results in more negative camber on the outside tire during cornering. Adjust camber settings accordingly keeping the degree of castor in mind. For those of us that have reached maximum negative camber, this would be a method to increase negative camber when turning which would be helpful for performance driving.

So - castor adjustment would be a good thing for any performance driving. It's not really needed for daily street driving. Castor can be set to the amount that gives enough self-centering effect for steering (stability straight ahead) while avoiding heavy steering as the extreme. Generally a little more positive camber is good. And a little more front negative camber while turning would be good especially if you have reached your limit (with stock castor) and you want a little more negative camber.

 

So do I see a group buy comming?