Hi,
I'm newbie from Vietnam, just need your idea/advice for my cooper S R56. The stock suspension is too hard for me, therfore I have changed a brand new FSD shocks, a lot improvement but it is still hard for me, I don't want to lower my mini (If not I would get a coilover set).

Should I change all new springs? If yes, are there any springs with the same height with stock? Or as high as possible?

Thank you very much for reading.

 

Are you riding on runflat tires? If so, regular all season tires will give a smoother ride.

 

No, I use normal tires, Michellin Pilot sport 3, pressure are always less than 2.3 kg (33 psi). I also tried my friend mini, also the same. May be I'm not yet familiar with "mini ride", but I love it and really want to make it smoother.
Road are not good here also!

 

I was wondering about the FSD myself, but that is why people say a mini turns like a go-kart!

 

Look into Hyperco springs. They can custom tailor you some springs with softer spring rate to accommodate you.

 

Hate to say it but with the FSD's, stock springs, and non run flat tires you are at the end of the ride comfort scale. That's as good as it's going to get. You probably haven't driven sporty cars before? It's got a short wheel base, which doesn't help either.

 

Did you test drive your mini before you bought it? They ALL have tight, responsive rides like a go-kart. They corner and respond before you even KNOW you want to corner!

I traded in a large, heavy, gas hog that had no feel for the road, and an automatic transmission. It was like a bus. The MINI was like driving again for the first time!

The downside (for some, not me) is that you can feel EVERY ripple in the pavement. The upside is that you can FEEL every ripple in the pavement

 

Some good points being made here. My first two cars were British roadsters back in the '60's. Family grocery getters intervened over the next few years then the MINI came along so the return to real 'Road Feel' seemed natural to me whereas if you're not familiar with it, I can see where you may be put off by it. Yes, you will feel all the little pebbles, sticks and leaves on the road in a MINI. It is one of the features that endears itself to me as my mother-in-law hates it and won't ride with me.

 

Switching to Continental ExtremeContact DWS tires will help. Even more so in size 205/55-16 with 16" wheels. Read some tests and reviews here and at tirerack.com.

 

I noticed you said you didn't want to lower the car so you don't want coilovers. I think coilovers would be about the only thing that you can "tune" to fit your liking. The min. drop for coilovers is 1.2", which from our customer feedback makes the car a bit more fun to drive. You may consider the new ST XTA coilovers, they are height and rebound adjustable. If you want more information about this avenue let me know.

 

More info might help:

What year is your mini? What wheels/tires do you have? How many miles? Which suspension?

Some thoughts:

Older/higher mileage minis may have worn out bushings that can degrade the ride quality.

If your car has the sport or JCW suspension, you may be able to swap the springs (and bars if you want) to the base suspension. You'll need to take your VIN number to the dealer and have them look up the part numbers, since MINI uses different spring rates depending on the options your car has (to better match heavier or lighter option packages).

Tires can vary widely in ride quality. The Pilot Supersports are a very nice tire, but the ride quality on choppy pavement will suffer a bit, especially if you have 17" or 18" tires. Something like a conti DWS or other all season tire might help.

 

Damn!!! Op should ride in The Dread Pirate!!!

 

Tks, I agreed with you the point, I used to have same set up for my previous BMW E46, that's wonderful.


Tks for comment, I believe I will get familiar with it soon.



Tks for comment, I also consider about tire and size of wheel, but I experienced that suspension should be set up correctly first then you can get nice ride at almost wheel size.

With tks, I'm impressive your mini, it's wonderful, I love cold start sound of it too!

Tks, I will consider if I decide using coilovers.

Thanks Jahan,
My mini cooper S, 2008, wheel size 17", tire Pilot sport 3 Michelin, 30.000 miles, I can't stand stock springs + shocks and have changed FSD shock + stock springs.
Have checked all bushings, they arr still good condition, no bend or crack.

I think I will try different springs of non-sport.

 

Just a thought.....my wifes Justa with 15 inch wheels rides really well compared to my Clubman S with non-sport suspension and 16 inch non-runflats...Have you thought about putting Justa springs in your S? I don't know all of the pro's and cons, and it's pretty heretical, but it might work....?

 

From the reviews I've read the fsds are the closest thing to "as soft or better" than oem. I love my koni yellows. I wish I would have run these struts on all my previous cars for street driving or even weekend tracking. They're great to me. Hope you find what you're looking for.

 

How about switching to a 16inch wheel. It should give you more sidewall. Maybe try a upholstery shop that could adjust the comfort of your seats. I too have Koni FSD's and I think they made as much or more difference than replacing the runflats.

 

@6000 pounds and mini on: thank you, FSD is much better than stock, I will try 16" wheel if possible.