Hi All,

My mechanic has advised me I'm in need of new struts for the front. I have the very harsh ride over bumps and if I hit a decent size bump my car feels like I hit a curb.

Instead of just relaxing the struts in the front I was going to replace the struts all around plus a light drop.

I have a 10 fjcw clubman with 82k on it.

What do you think of this setup? Can you recommend anything else I will need? Bump stops etc.

I'm looking for a light drop but I'm not going to track it and it is my dd.

4 ( 2 front 885362 - 885363 struts & 2 rear 774335 - 774336 shocks ) STAGG SHS High Performance struts & shocks with Advanced Damper Technologyengineered for a smooth quality ride and great handling & High Performance Vogtland Sport Made in Germany Lowering Springs(951047) with a 1.25 drop all around, to fit 2007 to 2014 Mini Cooper R55 R56 R57 R58 R59 all models including S & JCW & Clubman

Thanks for the help!!

 

I don't mean to sidetrack your thread... I know your OE struts are probably worn, I mean I replaced my 09 Clubman struts at around 55,000 miles with some almost new OE struts and noticed a difference... But I would think your harshness over bumps is more likely caused by your springs, tires and sway bars than the struts (shocks) themselves. JCW has stiffer springs and sway bars I believe. Do you have run flat tires? What type of bumps are you describing that are that harsh?

 

I have the run flat tires (I'll be replacing with non run flat when they are worn.) as far as the bumps go: any bumps in the road small or large are felt. Driving on the highway and hit a separation where two types of pavement meet up literally sounds like my car is going to blow up.

So I agree I'm sure it is some of the jcw setup but I'm sure the blunt of it is the struts.

 

Struts essentially get softer when worn. They move up and down faster when worn than when new. This can make the car feel softer and less controlled when hitting bumps or taking a corner where the car is leaning for example. You can try standing outside your car and pushing down on each corner separately and it should return to a standstill within about 1 and a half oscillations if the struts are ok. There shouldn't be any clunking either.

Struts do not make much noise, just a little "psshh" sound. Listen to cars going over speed bumps and you'll know what sound struts make. If your car "sounds" like it's going to blow up when you hit a harsh bump or crack in the road then I suspect it's your tires at fault, and also the springs contributing. What brand and model tires are you running and what is the current tire pressure?

You lower the car with shorter stiffer springs and that will make the ride even harsher. Different struts won't lower the car alone.

 

I do have a little bit of clunking when I am going very slow speeds.

I have Bridgestone Driveguard Eco plus 205/45/17 and the recommended 38psi.

I know the factory jcw springs are a stiffer spring but imo the car sits a tad bit high for my liking.

My mechanic says my springs are ok I just figured if I was going to get new struts id get some lowering springs with them.

 

Bridgestone Driveguard (not sure about eco plus) gets good ride ratings on Tirerack, so probably not your tires causing the problem unless they're over inflated. If the ride with JCW suspension is already harsh, I don't think you should lower the car. The ride will get even firmer. Have you ever driven a base model Clubman (softest springs) or S model Clubman (mid-firm springs)? Maybe think about installing S model springs and Koni FSD shocks. They won't lower your car but should give a nice ride. PS: Koni FSD shocks (struts) won't work with lowered shorter springs.

Hopefully someone else has suggestions for you.

 

Before buying my 2009 Clubman S I test drove some coupes with sport suspension (the same as JCW suspension I believe) and the ride was so harsh I couldn't tolerate it. Going over speed bumps it felt like a solid suspension, as in no movement at all. And everything rattled in the car.

 

If you want to lower for looks, you may want to consider going to a 215/45 R17 tire next time as an alternate way to improve looks. It's really the right size for the car.

 

Thanks for the advice. If I were to go with a stock setup, as you suggested, what other parts did you replace? Bumps stops or other miscellaneous parts?

 

I bought some used OE struts including springs and bumps stops if I remember correctly. They were used but only had a few thousand miles on them and we're exact replacements for my R55 S springs and struts.

I don't know how long the upper mounts and bump stops last. You might be able to keep and reuse the ones you have. I don't hear too often of people replacing them. I don't know much about the JCW suspension.

 

It cost $300 labor at an independent shop to swap out all 4 of my struts.

I was playing with the struts afterwards and noticed I could remove and install the springs without a spring compressor. It was either the fronts or rears that I had to push the spring cap down about less than 1/2 inch to get the threads to engage the strut rod.

I also have larger rear and front sway bars. I didn't care for the handling with only a larger rear sway bar so I added the front. I also installed polyurethane front lower control arm bushings. The car handles really good though I do lose traction on the inside tire when turning and accelerating hard, like from a stop light. Cornering in the twisties is perfect.

I run Continental Extreme Contact DW 215/45 R17 in the summer and Continental DWS 06 205/55 R16 in the winter. I would have run 195/55 R16 in the winter but I couldn't find it in that tire. The DWS 06 is an all Ultra High Performance All-Season tire with very good wet and dry traction and snow performance that is better than typical all-season tire. You can run the DWS 06 all the time. It's an excellent all-around tire. I am actually consider doing that.

 

I put in Fsd at 100k and great difference. Also run super sports. A think maybe tear away bar bushings

 

I ran across a good thread for you to follow here https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...01334-how.html

Also check out ECS Tuning for suspension parts for your car here:
https://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2010-...nsion/Springs/
https://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2010-...ension/Shocks/

 

Appreciate the help! I'll check out the links. Thanks again

 

Another good thread for you https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...run-flats.html

 

Thanks for the mention. Koni are on sale right now .

https://www.ecstuning.com/Mini-2010-Cooper-R55-John_Cooper_Works_Clubman-Coupe-L4_1.6L_N14B16C/Suspension/Shocks/

 

Buy the Koni's. My car rides 100x better on them.