I want to keep my MINI MCS looking stock. However, I want a bit tighter handling than stock. It seems all after-market springs/suspension combos result in a lower ride height. Any suggestions as to what parts may be in order to achieve this goal? Tower braces will likely be involved...
I search the threads for good ideas, but there are a lot of manufacturers out there.

dan

 

First things first, get some lightweight wheels and high-performance tires. You can compliment those with a good rear swaybar (I'd suggest H-sport competition 22mm hollow or H&R 19mm) and shocks (Koni or Bilstein). From there you can get some camber plates and rear adjustable arms that'll allow you to fine tune the camber. You can also add polyeurethane bushings throughout the suspension to get rid of slop. There are ways to work around lowering the car, but a set of H-sport springs will help the handling even further and the drop isn't noticeable to all but the most astute observers.

It's open to debate, but tower bars really won't help you much at all on the MINI, especially at the beginnning stages of suspension tuning.

 

The JCW suspension upgrade will improve the handling of the car with only a minimal (1/4" or so) drop in ride height. My fast lap at the local track dropped from 1:05.5 to 1:02.9 when I switched to the JCW suspension in my car - but I also had more track experience / instruction, so that would account for some of the improvement.

 

You can purchase any of the after market adjustable coilover kits which will allow you to retain stock ride height - not a bad thing at all. I would perform this before trying sway bars or camber kits; spring and damper are the soul of the suspension. Use the other components to fine tune after the spring and damper install.

As mentioned, the JCW kit is very nice - I had the opportunity to drive one recently, and Bilstein's PSS9 kit. The PSS9 kit will offer more adjustability; you can decide how aggressive you want to get. The JCW kit comes as is and nobody knows the spring rates, but definately much more controlled than my stock 05...very nice indeed. This is how the Mini should feel in my opinion...

 

or just do some Koni yellow's and rear swaybar. 22mm will probably be enough.