Hey everyone, I have an R50, stock, no sports suspension. My main complaints are the body roll and general "squishy" feel of the ride. Shortly I will be getting rid of the winter tires, which of course do not help, and putting on Fuzion ZRi's.

At the same time I think I may get a stiffer sway bar. 19mm seems to be the popular choice since I do not track the car. However, is there any real world advantage to the pricier Alta/HSport bars compared to the relatively inexpensive (129.95) H&R, other than more options for adjustment? I imagine if I go with the H&R I would set it stiff and just deal with the results, unless I was losing the back end puttering to work.

Alta does have an 18mm sway bar package with H&R sport springs, which I inquired about in another thread. How much of an effect on handling will springs give me? Is 18mm "enough" to notice a dramatic difference over the stock 15mm? Would you recommend doing both at once?

Generally I want the car to feel more solid and crisper in turns. Having it a little lower would look cool but that is not a big deal for me.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

I would recommend going with the Hsport 19mm swaybar. It does cost more but you'll find the quality to be the best. It is a one piece bar and has the best bushings they have a grease channel that will actually hold the grease unlike any other bars bushings. Also they have grease zerks to regrease if needed, no other bars have them either. If your really looking for price I have a few of the old 19mm Minspeed sway bars for $160, but not near as nice as the Hsport.

For springs you really need to research the TSW springs. These we found to be the best for the R50/R53. They are linear rate with a mild drop so they ride better than stock, but are still more performance, and the most predictable springs you can get.

 

Thanks for the reply Way. I will check out those springs. What are the downsides of the Minspeed springs compared to the Hsport?

 

If i were you, i'd start with just a sway bar. The h-sport is really quite nice, i'd love to get one, and i'll probably get one of the larger hollow ones someday, but m going to get an eibach 19mm bar this week, and a set of bushings from way. these are the cheapest bars on the market, running at just 102 dollars shipped from one place i found. and that fits into my budget lol. If you have the money, go h-sport, without a doubt. I'd hold off on springs, and consider saving for coilovers, the general consencus on here and other places is to just wait for coilovers. though tsw is the way to go if you do decide on doing it.

 

I would start with a sway bar. I have TSW springs and love them. Imho, a 19mm sway bar is definitely a good investment for any Mini, street or track driven. I purchased the Alta bar and I have had it for nearly three years, no issues and no regrets.

TSW springs are my favorite for sure.

-Linear Rate
-Modest drop
-Excellent ride quality
-works with OEM Shocks as well as aftermarket

19mm rear sway bar and TSW springs. Honestly, you will love the way it handles, rides, and looks.

 

How many miles on your OEM shocks?

Koni Yellows, IE fixed camber plates, front control arm bushings, and call it a day.

The TSW springs have pretty good specs and would make a nice addition, and maybe a rear bar. But the other parts are higher priorities IMO.

- Andrew

 

Andrew, there are about 35,000KM (22,000mi) on my stock shocks. When do they tend to need replacement? Those Konis are a bit out of budget for an immediate purchase. What practical benefit would I get from fixed camber plates and new control arm bushings? Please forgive my ignorance, I am pretty new to all of this suspension jargon!

 

22k is a lot lower mileage than I expected, you're good to go for a while . Same goes for the control arm bushings, except those will go before the shocks. I just replaced my stock shocks at 58k and they were still fine, but the Konis have made a nice improvement for me with my springs.

The fixed camber plates have 2 advantages.

The first is that they eliminate the mushrooming problem as they are a much more solid and beefy design.

The second is the camber...you end up with close to -1.8* camber up front which makes a HUGE difference in overall grip and response from the car. In my opinion and a few others it's a better mod than the rear bar, it's just a little tougher to install and you need an alignment afterwards. It is a better mod than most springs honestly, which i think suck but the TSWs are good. For me it's a no-brainer since it eliminates mushrooming. You do not end up with too much camber and you don't need to worry about poor tire wear as long as you align the car afterwards.

With the stock rear 15mm or whatever it is for the R50, a 19mm rear bar upgrade would be very nice. I would still probably do the fixed camber plates first, but maybe I'd do the plates, rear bar, and TSW springs for now if you can afford it all. The other idea would be some sort of strut tower defenders, the rear bar, and the springs.

Way is a great vendor to shop with.

- Andrew

 

Thanks for the reply! How involved is the installation of camber plates compared to a bar or springs? Just wondering so I can price out installation costs. I will be getting new tires and an alignment at the same time, so that would work out fine. I think at the moment, considering the cost of new tires and installation, I can probably afford the bar and the plates in addition for the time being, and maybe look into springs or shocks a little further down the road. Do you think the combination of plates and a 19mm bar would significantly improve the feel of the car during cornering?

 

The camber plates would be the same install as springs, since you have to take that assembly apart for one or the other so you just swap the stock tophat for the camber plate when you put everything back together. It's a little tougher than the rear bar but not that bad IMO.

The plates and an h-sport 19mm bar would be a great combo and the route I would go for a "stage 1". It will be a pretty big change, so start with the rear bar set on full soft! If you can fit the TSW springs in there I'd say it's worth it so you can combine the installation and alignment costs since it's the same exact install as the plates.

- Andrew

 

Okay, I think I have a pretty clear picture now. Thanks a lot for taking the time to help me out, much appreciated! I may just hold off a month or two so I can afford to install all three components in one shot.

 

No problem, have fun! Maybe do the rear bar for now, since it's an easy install and will make a nice improvement.

- Andrew