My 215s fit fine with the Ohlins, I guess the extra width of the 235s is just too much. You had the pre-load set? Where was the camber set?

 

Now you're talking my language. Go wide and low! Fender flares would be super awesome.

 

Preload was set at 8mm front and 10mm rear per the instructions. Camber was one notch out from the highest setting on the Vorschlags. I wouldn't think camber would make a difference since the entire assembly tilts together. But then again I know squat all when it comes to suspension compared to some of our members.

These are the 45mm flares I'm looking at. Not super aggressive where I'll need nine inch rims and our friends over at ECS Tuning have a set of 30mm spacers for a reasonable price that should do the trick.







They're also available in carbon if I want to sell another body part.

 

I am not going to claim to be a suspension expert... but why your 235s fit with the stock shocks + swift springs and dont fit with the Ohlins has me scratching my head. Where do the tires hit - on the springs? Is there a difference in the spring coil diameter? The Ohlins springs are much smaller diameter than the stock so I never had a worry.

The question about camber was that will help the top tuck in under the fender well.

 

The problem is the spring perch. On the stock suspension the springs are shorter and the lower perch is high enough that you only have to worry about the tire clearing the strut. The spring is above it and out of the way. With coilovers the spring are longer and extend further down. With the factory strut and lowering spring I had 5mm clearance between the tire and strut. Now add the width of a 60mm ID coil wrapped around it and well...

Dan with MachV was the first to put 235's with lowering springs on a Mini that I'm aware of. He even went 245 18's but they rubbed.

Not the end of the world. Moving the wheels out should actually improve the geometry for track use but does put a little more load on the bearings. I can live with that. Performance = Tradeoffs.

 

ah, I knew I was missing something.

 

I had the wheels off this weekend since I was bleeding the brakes and checked out the spacing between the front tires and the Ohlins. You are absolutely right, the spring perch is right next to the tire. I could get my pinkie finger in between so about 10mm of clearance, and I have 5mm spacers so the wheels fit over the JCW brakes. So yeah with 235s assuming the same wheel offset you're going to need at least a 10mm spacer. One mod leads to another.

 

Those fender flares look spectacular!

 

Grateful to hear you are fully recovered

 

Thanks Chris. One of my buddies at work said it best I think. "Weeds are hard to kill."

 

 

Im sure they didn't help the longevity. Still 65000 miles out of a sport strut isnt bad.

RaceEng makes nice stuff. Almost bought one of their ***** for the short shifter.

 

Not much to report. The flares should ship from Italy tomorrow. Sitting in customs at the moment. Not sure yet if I want to go ahead and paint all the trim, color matched to the body or try and duplicate the plastic trim texture with a plastic crinkle spray. That could turn out tacky if not done well. Hmm... wonder what wrapping all the trim to match in black would look like. Think Ill have to experiment with that a little bit.

 

I love a good sunday read.. and good builds. Great stuff on the website, the X51 looks like a solid design and addresses all the OEM shortcomings along with it. Cant wait to see more. *cheers

 

Thanks. I spent more money in R&D than intended but I'm pretty happy with the results so far. Can't wait till the engine is done and I can actually push it hard.

The wheel flares came in so I had a chance to temp install them and double check my measurements with one of the wheel spacer fitment kits from our friends at ECS Tuning. I was originally planning on 30mm spacers but decided on 25mm instead. The 30mm would have flushed the wheels like they are now but I'd like to have a little more clearance in case I decide to drop it more. Sorry for the crappy photos but it was late at the end of a loooong day.

Stock


Flared

 

This is gonna be good!

 

Thanks Chris. Since Im a little OCD I was a bit nervous about adding flares but I think these will turn out ok.

Note to self: "Hire Mini Chris for graphics design on next website update."

 

That's gonna be sick. Those the Rsic6 flares? What are the attachment means for the flares?

 

Hi Ag. Yep those are the RSIc6 flares. I've attached the installation instructions which I don't totally agree with. They have you using a sealant to attach the flares which is all fine and dandy till you need to take them off. I'm considering fiber glassing in plastic tie-wrap attachments then using metal buttons on the back of the original attachment holes. That way I can use tie-wraps to secure them but the flares can still be easily removed.

 

 

You are certainly not nervous to start cutting into the fender panels and make sure proper fit and seal of everything to prevent corrosion.

I would like to see pictures how you will "tie-wrap" these things up LOL.

 

I received a set of 25mm spacers from our friends at ECS. I only ordered a single set as I wanted to make final measurements before ordering a second set, and work on removing and painting everything. I'm impressed with the construction of these. 6061-T6 anodized aluminum with 4140 steel inserts for where the wheel bolts secure the rim to the spacer. They also come with the bolts necessary to secure the spacer to the hub.


Unfortunately, I ran into a little problem. I ordered the 002609ECS02A25 for Vlad but received the 002609ECS01B25 which appears to be for the first gen. These spacers are designed to accept 12mm wheel bolts instead of 14mm. Oops. I emailed ECS and I'm sure it will get sorted out while I work on prepping the trim pieces. The clutch and LSD will both handle 600 HP, so axles are next on the drivetrain upgrade list.

 

This will be hard on the wheel bearings but I believe your set up is mostly for show and not driving.

As for 600HP........... you are really dreaming. Its out of question for any S block and drive train and the stronger JCW block and internals cannot safely handle more than 300HP without serious potential damage and road handling issues.

Of course, this is just my opinion as I never saw a Mini as an investment but more a basic transportation of some kind with more appeal as a Coupe.

 

Vlad will never see those kind of numbers lol. Nor did I ever say he would. My intent in making the statement was to point out the increased capacity of the drive train and that the axles will be next. With Vlad my plan is to build as strong of a foundation as possible. First with the drivetrain then later in the engine. 100 octane race fuel and meth will get you to 400 but that would make a pretty impractical daily driver. God knows what it would take to get to 600 but I'll bet good money it wouldn't last very long.

I agree spacers will make it harder on the bearings. However, I know several track enthusiasts and even a professional driver running spacers to make the wheel base wider which increases stability and cornering power. Seems like there's always trade offs with performance.

Somewhere in all these changes I have to decide on a BBK as the factory Brembo's will not cut in on track when pushed hard. AP Racing, StopTech and TCE Performance has some nice kits but I'm also in discussion with EBC about a BBK for the Mini.

 

Sorry to hear that, please contact our guys and they will take care of you. If you have any issues you can contact me. I have run the 25 and 30's, now i am on the 20mm. On both MINIs. I had the spacers for a long time and no evidence that they are hard on the wheel bearings, my MINI wheel bearing went at the same time as everyone else at around ~150K, well mine held up longer, most can go at 120K on the fronts on the Gen 1 MINIs. Its the front ones that go first as they have the most use as you turn. I found doing the wheel bearings over the years the salt and crap on the roads here really beats up the seals (on the back side) and that's what causes them to go bad. Not really a wheel spacer.