Well, I did the second install of this bar today, and I can honestly say that it is a great mod. It changes the whole character of the car. You can actually drive the car with the throttle at the limit, bringing on oversteer or understeer at will. Four wheel drifts are not a problem - the car is very balanced.

The install was on my own car this time, and I'm very happy with the bar. DiD had the first installed bar that I have done, and was so impressed with it that I had to have one

With Dave's car, we utilized the rear droplink mount, whereas with my car, I decided to try out the front (ie stiffer) setting. After some exstensive testing, both Dave and I have decided to go with this setting.


I can't recommend this bar enough - it's a great change to the car, even if you have already done the springs



Here is the bar in the softer setting. The front setting is clearly visible, as are the H&R springs.

I provide both of these items at the lowest cost possible.

Randy
randy@mini-motorsport.com



_________________




MINI-Motorsport

 

I had quite a bit of fun in an empty office park this morning.

The nature of the change is really sublime. It's amazing to me how much different the car handles. Very very worth while.

If I had to choose between the two, I'd probably reverse the order of how my car was modded, and do the sway bar first, then the springs. Otherwise, doing both at the same time would make sense.

 

It sounds like blast! How's the ride under normal driving? Does it suffer too much? Honestly I was thinking about wheels & tires first, with no intention of doing the sway bar any time soon. After reading of late, though, I may have to re-think that!

Jeff in ATL

 

Hey Jeff,

If I had to do the car again, this is the order (and the products) I would do things in:

1) MINI-Madness Intake
2) Rear Swaybar
3) Magnaflow Exhaust
4) Coilovers (be they H&R or Bilstein)

That said, what I did was:

1) Borla Exhaust
2) Pipercross Intake
3) Magnaflow exhaust
4) H&R Springs
5) Rear Swaybar

I plan to do wheels and tires for track events only - I like the look of the S-lites. I will be doing the Rota package from RSPeed with Falken Azenis tires. 16", light, strong, cheap - perfect for the track - and the Azenis tires are the hot ticket for grip vs. wear vs. price.

I have all of the mods I am doing available for purchase.

Randy
randy@mini-motorsport.com

 

Oh, and the ride has not changed at all. Just the handling. With the springs too, I'd say the ride is just a bit firmer.

 

Oh wait, I did this for performance reasons....

R

 

Just another picture for the thread. This is the stock vs. Madness sway bar. Gee, see any difference.



R

 

Am I missing something or is the Mini Madness rear sway bar essentially identical to the Mini Mania rear sway bar with the only difference being that the Madness one is $189 and the Mania one is $250?

Looks like we'll have to be saving our nickels for a Mini Madness rear sway bar to deal with the front end's "pushing" on our otherwise hot-handling MCS.

And if we come to Portland, can we get it installed?

 

SoCalTom,

I sell the Madness bar. It is different than the Mania bar in that the Mania bar does not have stops on the mounts to keep the bar from sliding around. The last Mania bar I saw wasn't red either! I also don't know if the diameter is different.

The key to the bar is two-fold. 1) It is 19mm in diameter as opposed to the 16mm factory bar. 2) It has to positions for drop-link adjustment.

Both settings improve the stock handling, with the forward (stiffer) setting making an absolute dramatic difference.

Let me know if we can set up a package for you. I try to cater to the individual goals people have for their car. I carry most of the product lines (that are worth carrying) and continue to research what's out there to bring MINI owners the best possible solution for their needs.

Randy Webb
Owner, MINI-Motorsport
720-841-1002
randy@mini-motorsport.com

 

Okay the Mini Mania bar is powder coated, the Mini Madness bar is powder coated. The Mania bar is 19mm, the Madness bar is 19mm. The Mania bar has two setting, the Madness bar has two settings.

I get it, the Mania bar cost more because they delete the thingamabobs that prevent the bar from slipping around and they paint it boring silver instead of bitchin' red...

All in favor of paying more for less, say "I"...