Thinking of doing some more handling mods to my 03' JCW.........it's got good brakes, good tires, good shocks.....but stock front and rear sway bars. I'm thinking about adding a larger rear sway bar.

But.....for a daily drive that never gets tracked at all, would I even be able to tell that the rear bad has been changed out? Unless you are pushing the limits of the car and sliding it around corners, will upgrading the rear sway bar even make a handling change that you would notice?

Thanks!

 

A rear swaybar is for the suspension pretty much the equivalent of the s/c pulley for the engine. you will notice it. It stiffens the back quite a lot when cornerning.

 

It will be night and day, even on a DD.

As Ghost said, the RSB is the SC pulley of your suspension.


Hotchkiss 25mm Comp Bar

 

Rear Sway bar is like the #1 ( 71416-2) first upgrade on the MCS, and getting rid of the runflats back in the gen1 New car days , better ride. You will feel it.

https://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2003-...sion/Sway_Bar/

 

Best bang for your buck mod that you can do to your MINI. I run Whiteline personally. We have a DIY here: http://www.pelicanparts.com/techarti...eplacement.htm if you need help with the install.

 

It looks like ECS has everything from a 17mm up to a 25mm and everything in between. So should I go with the 25mm for a daily driver, or will that be too stiff/harsh? I thought a while back I saw guys praising the 19mm for daily drivers.

 

The 25mm is tame. Set it in the middle hole and you won't know it's there until you turn or pass over an off camber bump. Larger rear bars will cause a bit more of a "solid rear axle feel" due to the added stiffness, but nothing that is detrimental to the ride.

We put the H-sport 25mm bar on every customers car who wants a bar, no complaints yet.

The H-sport bar is also tubular Chromoly, not heavy barstock.

 

Yea, we have almost everything

, 25mm can be a bit tighter but not harsh for DD. You can adjust them also per the holes.

 

I see the 22mm H&R on your site, but don't see the 25mm listed. Can you get that one?

 

Kind of hijacking this topic, but are front sway bars of any importance or is it only the rear you should bother with?

 

Front sway bars do make a difference, but not many people need them. The rear bar is enough for most cases.

My only reason for running one is that my stock front bar was rusted and swollen under the bushings, I picked up a nearly new H-sport 27mm front bar for $100. It does keep the car flatter in the corners, but the amount of work involved may outweigh the benefits to some.

 

Think he meant 22. Typo, For the front 27mm upgrade, for the rear we have 19, 20, 21, 22mm options.

 

The front bars are part of a bigger package, but you can get instant handling improvements with the rear bar. One thing that hasn't been mentioned is that you need to lube the poly bushings that come with aftermarket bars about once per year, or they will dry out and machine themselves. Once they do that, They clatter. That's the only compromise.

 

For a DD the size of the rear bar depends a little on whether or not you plan to increase the negative camber in the front by adding camber plates (fixed or adjustable). If your front top strut bushings (rubber) are wearing out it might be a good time to replace them with IE Fixed bushings that increase the front negative camber and provide more support for the strut and strut towers.

If no front camber plates I would suggest:
A 25.5mm hollow (H-Sport Comp) or a 22 solid bar
If front camber plates:
19mm solid

 

Anybody have the H&R 22mm bar? It uses urethane Teflon bushings that apparently don't require any lubrication. Seems like a pretty attractive option.

 

^Yep^ the H&R is another good alternative. We haven't got enough long-term data to confirm the durability of the poly/teflon bushings, but H&R is an excellent manufacturer, so we have every reason to believe that they are more durable bushings.




Edit: It does have just two adjustment positions vs. three on the H-Sport Comp, FYI.

 

Gotcha. I'll probably give that one a try whenever I get around to getting a bar. Thanks!

 

Yes

 

We have the IE fixed plates and the H-sport solid 19mm setup. I really like it in the twisties. I also like that the H-sport has grease fittings that are pretty easy to get to.

 

I love my Webb Motorworks Extreme Sway Bar.



Can now be found at Way's

Nik

 

Wow, that seems like overkill. And $530, sheesh...

 

I think it was cheaper back in the day....

 

yea but it's been impregnated with Teflon...

 

I've prob installed about 1000 rear sway bars in the last 12yrs and can tell you by far the best is the Hsport Comp rear sway bar.

Yes it is a 25.5mm hollow bar, which makes it the same stiffness as a solid 22mm bar, but without the added weight which is a plus. But the best thing about the Hsport bar is it is a one piece bar with the best quality bushings and brackets for mounting it. The Hsport ones just plain last and don't make noise, that is why I use and recommend them as I don't have to deal with come backs as that is a killer when you do real everyday service.

So don't waste your time over analyzing it, go with an Hsport comp bar and be done, you'll never look back.

You only need a font bar when you get real serious, and have a complete suspension build. Rear bar only works for everybody.

 

Thanks for all the info guys.

FYI....I already have IE fixed camber mounts on the front

So with that being said, should I go 19mm like some have said you need to do if you have more camber in the front, or just jump to the 22mm solid or 25mm hollow bars you guys all say are great.

With more camber in the front AND a stiffer bar out back, is that going to make the car over-steer really bad and constantly want to make the rear end swing out on me?

Just trying to do all the research I can before I drop the cash on a rear bar.