Does anyone have any experience with the ride quality? The fronts lower 1.2" and the rears 1", but will it jar my teeth loose, or is it still a tolerable ride? I do ALOT of road driving and want it to still be comfortable for daily use.

Thanks for the input!

 

Greg, there's a lot of post here on NAM and other places about ride quality when lowering. You can find them here to start: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...fications-196/

Or, just use the search function. Anyway, expect the ride to be pretty harsh. Many people that lower also like 18" rims. The look is thrilling, but the ride is drilling. I suppose if you live where the roads are smooth, it really wouldn't matter so much. The roads (non-hiway) in the Midwest suck.

 

Thanks - I found a thread specifically about the NM springs and the general consensous was thery are very forgiving on the road, so I went ahead and pulled the trigger.

Thanks for your input.

Oh, I run 18's, but that's why I went with a slightly larger tire (225 vs 215) to give me the same sidewall as a 17", and going with non-runflats, the ride is very acceptable.

Take care, and have a Happy New Year!

 

I don't disagree at all with this thinking. I sometimes forget that not everyone is driving an R53 . I actually have one of the very early R53s that came with the "euro tuned" suspension. It sets lower and has stiffer dampening giving the car amazing handling. MINI changed it by early 03 because too many American's complained about the harsh ride .

Anyway, by the time the R55/56 came around, I believe MINI added another inch or so to the wheel travel to please the US buyer. I believe the lowering springs you pulled the trigger on puts it about where it should be anyway, at least for the S and JCW versions. I'm a huge fan of the R55, and this will give it the look it deserves.

Happy New Year and please post some pictures when you're done.

 

I didn't realize there was that much of a difference between the 53's & 56's.

I'll post some picts as soon as all of my goodies are on.

Greg

 

The R53 has about 4 inches of wheel travel. The R55/56 has about 5". The ride is better on the R55/56.