Hello all,

recently I've been going crazy with my MINI doing many things to her. I even scheduled to get her sport stripes in two weeks from now. I just bought the rear sway bar for a good price I couldn't say no to. I'm excited I am doing all my suspension work first. I am looking to get the Helix rear adjustable control arm links and I don't know if I want to get Koni's or Megans for coilovers(any help on that would be great and if there are good prices for them too) and do I need to get the endlinks? Also..do I need to still buy springs if I am going with coilovers? Help me, I need to figure all this out and I am at a loss here. Thank you!

-Rob

 

What do you use the car for? You really need to be honest with yourself.

For a car you just drive on the street, coilovers are a waste of money. In the real world, lowering a Mini more than about .75" makes drivways, speedbumps, potholes a real worry.

I'm completely happy with the Koni's, TSW springs, and the H sport bar. It a daily drive it, I don't track it. It gets me to where I'm going, and is far more comfortable and compliant than stock. In the real world, nobody is getting to the Starbucks any faster ithout going directly to jail...lol

 

Install it.
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...6k-beware.html

 

Great choice!
I'm ordering mine this week, but will be holding off from the installation until I make the same decision (springs vs. coilovers). Plan on doing both at the same time.

 

well, i put the h&r lowering spring put on my car and i love the way and the way they feel around corners. but if i were you guys i would go with the megans because they are adjustable in camber

 

Do you think that the Konis improve the ride? I remember installing Konis on a 914 and the ride and handling improved tremendously. Along with the konis you installed the springs. Are the new springs about the same rate?

 

I have Koni Yellows and NM springs and yes it does improve the ride. I also have Hsport rear control arms and Hsport rear sway bar. It is a marked improvement in handling and comfort over the stock suspension.

 

Are Koni yellows different from KoniFSD?

 

Yes,Koni Yellows are meant for lowered MINIs and they have stiffness adjustment.

 

Oh boy. You sound just like I did when I first got my car. How my taste's have changed and what great lessons I have learned from other MINI'acs.

You really need to ask yourself what your final goal is for the car. Hot stylin' daily driver? Garage gem that only comes out to car meets? Track toy? Every goal has a different set of qualified modifications.

From what I've observed you're still in your early 20's, just starting your career, and the MINI is your daily driver that you love a lot. Nothing wrong with that!

It sounds like you want to lower the car and improve the handling of your MINI. You've already done the swaybar and that's already your biggest bang for the buck. You need to ask yourself how low you want to go. If you want to slam your car the only thing that will allow that is coilovers. With coilovers comes sacrifices. My car is dropped about 2.6" all around and when you're that low, the smallest of debris, potholes, bumps, and ramps can make driving a pain. You'll be looking hot no doubt, but think about our fabulous Michigan roads and if you're ready to face that. The biggest advantage to coilovers is the adjustability and ability to fine tune your suspension. In my opinion, this is best suited for drivers that frequent the Auto-X or track circuit. If you decide to go this route, you'll need to buy front swaybar end-links. The OEM end-links are too long and if you drop the car enough they'll bang into the front control arms. You don't need to buy the rear swaybar end-links unless you want to corner balance the car (more cost ~$400 for corner balancing). Next, you'll need to buy H-sport rear lower adjustable control arms to be able to adjust rear camber back to a street friendly setting. Depending on your front tire size and wheel offset, you may or may not have to buy wheel spacers and a wheel stud kit depending on what coilovers you buy. The inside of the tire can rub on the coilover springs.

The alternative route is to buy some lowering springs and Koni yellows. There are a few members in MMMC that have NM-Eng springs and Koni's on their cars and they have a very nice drop, handle well, and are more cost friendly than a coilover setup. You'll still need to buy rear lower adjustable control arms with this setup but don't need any end-links. I would say this option makes more sense for those who aren't going to be gung-ho at the track and don't want to take out a second mortgage on their house. You can still kick some major 8ss with a setup like this at Auto-X and at the track.

You should really think about heading to the MMMC Summer Picnic on September 8th. There is usually a great turnout and you'll see lots of different MINIs owned by all different kinds of enthusiasts. I won't be able to make it since I'll be at Grattan Raceway this weekend, but don't be shy to meet some new folks and get real first hand opinions from local owners.

 

Words of wisdom

 

Hey guys thanks for all the information! It really is helping me narrow it down now. I believe I am going to go the Koni Yellows and NM springs route. I am Looking to auto cross maybe once or twice during the summer, it would be a fun experience(not this summer but next, want all my mods to be done). With that said, would I still need to get the front end links? And what kind of brand? Shane, I was actually looking forward to meeting you on the 11th or 15th to talk about your mods and so on, hopefully we'll meet soon. Thanks for your input!

 

I have a question, sorry with all my questions but I want to make sure I know what I am doing exactly. Which of these two is a good adjustable rear control arm links that would be recommended with the H-Sport competition RSB?

http://www.waymotorworks.com/nm-adju...bar-links.html

or

http://www.motoringwerks.com/p-1337-...trol-arms.aspx


I'd like to save some money while doing this process, but I don't want to break my car if these parts aren't legit enough to use. Let me know, thank you!

 

Rob,

You won't need any swaybar end-links. You're not corner balancing the car and you're not lowering the car enough to justify needing the fronts because of a massive drop.

I would buy the H-sport rear lower adjustable control arms. You cannot go wrong with anything H-sport makes. Just give TJ at Detroit Tuned a call. They will most likely have them in stock so you can pick them up at the store.

I'll be at the MINI dream cruise on Saturday the 11th and also at the Coffee Beanery on the 15th. My car may be there or not depending if I rebuild my front brake calipers in time. Bill, Denise, and Joan are really good friends of ours. It's a great place to B.S., talk cars, and have fun.

 

Awesome, thanks I will definitely do that!

I look forward to meeting you then one of those two days!

 

Hotchkis is a great product and priced nicely. Also if you have some mechanical skill you can do the install yourself. After installing my sway bar I wish I had done the springs and shocks myself instead of paying for it. Though while there consider any bushings that you might want ot upgrade to polyurethane.

 

OK one of those links is for rear lower control arms and one is for adj sway bar end links.
We recommend replacing the rear lower control arms with ANY lowering. We use the Hsport control arms as we used them on cars for 8yrs without issues. http://www.waymotorworks.com/h-sport...ber-links.html

As for sway bar end links they are not needed unless you are trying to set the sway bar with zero preload or corner weighting the car.
If you do want to get them we have our own that are sealed ball sockets to keep them quiet but still be adjustable and super strong.
http://www.waymotorworks.com/wmw-adj...-endlinks.html

 

Hi Way,

Does this H-sport bar come with grease for the bushings?
http://www.waymotorworks.com/h-sport...-sway-bar.html

If not, what is recommended to be used to prevent squeaking?

 

This is great advise. I would like to say in addition to what you want to do with the car, what do you think you want to fix with the handling. What is your driving style?

Over lowering the car may cause other problems such as vibrations in some cars.

 

Agree! Great combo for ride, handling and looks.

 

Yes it comes with a small tube that is enough for both bushings.