I have noticed that my 05 mini seems to have lost a lot of the plushness it had when new. I have a little over 25K in mileage logged and most of this is highway. There is more jolt and bounce over small road imperfections. While I do not believe the struts to be worn they have dropped off in performance.

I had the opportunity to drive a used '03 version prior to buying my Mini and had noted at the time that it's suspension was more harsh than the '05 I had tested. At the time I marked it down to ride improvements. Now I am not as sure as the '03 also had similar mileage and that makes me suspect a falloff in performance in the suspension around 18-20K in mileage.

 

worn out struts/shocks probably wouldn't give you a more jarring ride. if anything, you'd notice more "porpoising" or the car bouncing after going over bumps and not settling as quickly. what type of tires do you have? have you recently changed them?

 

Mine lasted about 2 months before I installed the H&Rs and Bilsteins :smile:

 

The sport suspension has been changed to a sligthly plusher ride in the '05s, I believe.

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My 03 has about 45k miles on it and I could tell the shocks are just not the same as they used to be. No surprise there, especially because the car has gone through a lot of canyon driving. I know that if I were to upgrade the springs, the shocks would be destroyed in a matter of months. But as far as the car ride when I was at 25k, the car still felt fresh then. I recognized the car ride has had matured only in the past 3-4 months, so yours should still be fine. Also codemunkee's question is very important, because different tires make a big difference.

 

I also replaced my shocks at about 45K. The car started to bounce too much on the freeway drives. Now with new shocks it is nice and smooth. I also had many autocross miles, track days, and lots of hard street driving to help wear them out. Hope that helps.

 

nice car agokart - love the Ro_Ja wheels

 

Was that warranty work or does the dealer have to agree to it first?

mb

 

How expensive are OEM struts to replace? Or it would be better to get koni strut and drop it into the OEM housing?

 

Thankyou! i have been working hard to get the right look. i have a few idea's still yet to come.


if your shocks go bad with out lowering springs, then it should be covered under the warranty, but if you have lowering springs i would guess they would make you pay for them.

Not sure what OEM shocks cost, but Koni's will run you in the $630 range, and give you the adjustment to play with. so far i have liked mine and they were great on the track!

 

Stock strut replacement was expensive enough that the JCW suspension upgrade seemed like a bargain. And now I have red springs.

I forget the exact price I was quoted for four new stock struts, but it was quite high... aftermarket will be cheaper.

 

Or find someone who has replaced theirs. I took my 2005 SS+ shocks off at 5k miles. Gathering dust as I type this.

Per