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Hi everyone. I have a R55s that I am getting ready to do some work on.
What I was thinking:
1. 17in Rota wheels +30mm
2. AirLift Digital suspension
3. Duell AG full kit
What I have found:
There are some pretty awesome builds out there. I found this in a different string. What I would like to accomplish is a low race stance with a sturdy fast speed ride, that can be adjusted easily. I don't want to have air ride if I am constantly going to be adjusting while driving. If that means I move away from Air ride I need to know then. Because I think that will change my setup. All advice is appreciated
Looking forward to seeing what you come up with. I love my Clubman, and next year I'll be going after the suspension with some kind of coilover system.
I have a 2010 Clubman S identical to yours...a friend passed away late last year and left it to my and I now have the adoption papers. It has less than 7000 original miles. I've done a couple of things to improve sound and performance and now it's time for suspension.
Tell me about the AEM intake you have and how the experience has been. I decided on the wheels at this point now.
XXR 527's (These wheels are pretty cheap and look very good for the cost..Finding less than $550 on average for the 4)
Front: 17" x 8.25"
Rear: 17" x 9.75
Nice looking Mini. Is yours a JCW or have you added the body work?
The AEM is ok and I did notice a seat of the pants change in performance so it had to be in the 5/10HP increase...I've been drag racing for some 40+ years and my derriere is a finely tuned tool...although I did to do some modifications.
I raised the powder coated shield up about 3/4" as I added a ceramic insulation under the shield, I also safety wired the bolts and the bolts are aircraft grade aluminum. I also got rid of the OE turbo shield which is almost useless and added an ALTA turbo blanket. The turbo blanket did seem to help a little in throttle response from the OE shield and does dissipates heat better also.
I have only driven one 250 mile cruise and the AEM intake attached to the hood did get pretty hot so I will also be using a heat shield on that. I also put the OE shield on the oil line from for the turbo and shielded that line close to the block.
I also have a Magnaflow cat back exhaust which I love and I know that also could be felt in my derriere.
My next project is to put an RX catch can on the car as I want to see if that will help with the coking of the intake and exhaust valves. I do have a scope and the engine internals are pretty clean as the oil has been changed 4 times in the less than 7000...so I'll be able to see what the next 7000 miles will bring.
I have the JCW Star95 wheels on the car with 251/45x18 tires and the retro-fit steering stop for those 18" wheels. I am looking at coilovers and that will be the next step along with a 21 or 22mm rear sway bar and some chassis stiffening as I'd like to autocross the car...maybe.
Because I've raced in SCCA and NHRA drag racing most of my life after I've finished I've been thinking about building a 300hp motor...just thinking at this stage although the power to weight ratio should be great.
Unfortunately the Beautiful Black Mini directly above is not mine. I Have the Pepper white R55s at the start of the String. I will be purchasing the wheels shown on the Black R56. Ton of great information on the heat dissipation. That's a lot of oil changes in 7k miles. Why so many?
Ok.
I am not a fan of wheels and tires sticking outside the body lines nor stretching the tires like the rears are on the black Mini...just think it looks too tuner...IMHO
I have ordered some 12mm spacers with extended lug nuts for mine as don't like the retro-fit kit for limiting wheel travel.
Last year the Mini had just under 4k miles, I drove it to Phoenix when my friend moved...he was there less than a year and I drove it back for him. I put 2600 miles of seat time on the Mini...all freeway driving. Each time I drove the car he had the oil changed and when I did the mod's to the intake and turbo I changed the oil...so the oil has been changed a lot. Because of the turbo and the very poor PCV/oil evacuation system this motor has...the reason I am putting an RX oil evacuation system on it...I would have changed the oil every 3000 miles anyway. There is a reason Mini says to "walnut blast" the intake and exhaust valves after 60k miles. I'm not a mini expert although I've learned a lot in the past several months.
Picture of my last Drag Car...9.801 in the 1/4 @ 136
Last edited by olerodder; 05-17-2017 at 01:14 PM.
Reason: left out a picture
Ill be doing my blasting in about 5k miles. What do you know about liquid cooling systems for the engine? As in what seems to be a great brand name for performance liquid cooling systems.
05-12-2017, 08:13 AM
