Please try the following - Fill your gas tank up - Load up two or more bodies inside - And you will notice a smooth ride - The factory suspension is built to handle a full load, just like a truck - Load the bed of a truck and you will see a huge improvement in the ride - This proves the following - The S with 17' runflats can be smooth on the street - The factory has to balance the suspension for different load rates - I even notice the difference in the ride when my gas tank is very low

 

Its a trade I wouldn't want to make. A softer ride means more lean in the corners.

 

Not true - load it up the car sits lower and leans less into a turn

 

the ride height doesn't account for the extra weight. your centrifugal force will push the car to tram in the corners. your exit speed will be reduced by the extra weight as well.

 

I'm talking about the ride, not the handling - The factory could balance out the ride and handling if extra load capacity was not a concern - The Mini should have front seats only

 

My dad has a Coupe de Ville. You don't need to load that thing up and the ride is very cofmy in town. Rides like a houseboat on a smooth lake.

 

You guys don't get it - Why does the S ride better when it's fully loaded? Why does everyone blame the runflats for the harsh ride? The suspension it designed to handle a full load - That's why it rides so harsh when you are tooling down the road all alone

 

they didn't have comfort in mind when they designed the mini S.. they had performance & handling in mind... obviously there's a trade-off...

With that said, you can certain buy adjustable shocks to made the ride better... obviously you'll be sacrificing something(mostly performance & handling)... I have Qa1 fully adjustable shocks in my truck and they're set as hard as they can go... why? because I don't like dipping in the corners and like to keep the truck as flat as possible

as far as the mini should be a 2 seater car?? I dunno about that... Mini would cut their market greatly if they didn't allow for rear seats..

almost every sports car I've ever driven rides hard.... is the mini a sports car... well, that's debateable... but i believe they designed it with a performance/handling forte'

cheers

 

I agree - Mini could design the suspension to ride better a still handle better then ever - The ride difference between a light and heavy loaoded car is shocking, just like my truck

 

I like the ride. I don't feel like I have to go out and get some Bilsteins on a new car like I did with my VW.

 

I agree that MINI could have designed the MCS to handle well with a better ride. A friend's $90K Porsche Carrera handles better and rides better. His wife's Jag XK has an extremely nice ride and handles quite well for such a heavy car. So, if the MINI cost over $50K we could expect better handling.

I do agree that the MCS should not have rear seats. Mine doesn't. I guess I need to mod the suspension to make it appropriate for a two seater.

 

Motor Trend states -"The Porsche GT3 rides better then our long term Mini S"

 

And costs 4x as much.

 

I'm going back on E90 post - You guys are weak

 

Of course it does!

Listen; you're not telling anyone here anything they don't already know. If you build a car that will hold four people and their gear, have razor sharp handling whether it is loaded or not, and have a smooth ride when driven empty....well, it's certainly NOT going to be a MINI!

 

That's good!

 

Sir,

Perhaps you might wish to consider selling your MCS? Assuming that you treat people in person the same way that you are behaving here, it seems unlikely that your car will be packed full of friends eager to help soften out your ride.

With that said, and in the proper spirit of the MINI forum - if you would like your ride to be more comfortable - WITH 17" wheels, consider changing your tires. That would go a fair way toward your objective of a more comfortable ride, while still maintaining excellent handling characteristics.

An obvious alternative of course, is to head over to your local Home Depot, etc., and buy a sufficient quantity of 40# bags of topsoil to achieve your result. This will cost substantially less than a new set of tires (about $1.50 per bag). Then you could get rid of your pickup ... :-)

Have a nice day ...

 

My old truck is a buckboard, so when I get my MCS it was somewhat of an improvement. I expected as much, and I enjoy the taut ride and razor-sharp handling. It can get old though if the roads I drive on are rough or broken. Now, my new truck rides better than my MCS by a considerable margin. I am still trying to get used to the idea that a 3/4 ton heavy-duty diesel 4x4 can ride like a Caddy.

 

I know how you feel - my 89 chevy blazer handles like a pig. The MCS will be a very welcome change (though I'm keeping the blazer around as my "primary"). I'm sticking w/ 16s to help keep that balance of comfort and handling, but will definitely replace those run-flats pretty quickly.

 

ANY vehicle is going to have a smoother ride when loaded.
That's a big DUH!

Sounds like you want a lexus or cadillac. (cars that come from the factory with lots of extra weight and a smooth ride)

again - any car is going to be smoother with more weight in it.

yes, MINI could have made it softer. BUT it's a sporty car with great handling - NOT a land yacht.

Don't let the door hit you in the butt on the way out.

 

Well, thank God he's gone back to where he came from... I'll take handling any day! In my opinion the s rides perfectly fine, runflats and all. I'm sure he would be happier in a winnebego

 

Given that the OP mentioned going back to e90post, I presume that he has driven a larger, heavier, RWD BMW prior to the MCS.

I would agree with his points that a heavier MCS "rides better" - I went through some canyons/twisties by myself and felt uneasy (too bouncy), but felt much better with a passenger.

That said, I think I need some coilovers and rear sway bar!!!

 

Maybe get your s checked because I drive hundreds a month & don't personally agree.....

 

Just caught this thread by chance. Lol, Motormouth is so right, weight makes the ride smoother more than anything else... also, the wheelbase is very important as well (think of the space between the wheels as a lever). I believe the GT3 is a heavier car and a longer wheelbase as well, which, not surprisingly would give a better ride.

There are ways to offset the harsh ride that wouldn't compromise handling, but they are expensive. Take for example the "magnetic ride" suspension in the vette, which can vary the damping force of each shock according to the road condition. I believe porsche has a similar adjustable suspension (I remember on had an automatic ride height adjustment, was it the 959?). Anyways, BMW did well to keep the 2nd gen cars handling well and improve the ride over the first gen cars. We own one of each, and let me tell you, if you drove a 1st gen car you wouldn't complain as much.

Btw, kidney damage aside, I personally love the buckboard feeling. I have an 05 and the wife an 07, and while as a passnger I prefer her car, as a driver I much prefer the ride of mine.

Daniel

 

the E90 to the best of my knowledge is a 3 series bmw... guess what I have an e60... and when I turn sport on it rides as hard if not harder than the mini....

besides 80% of the people on the bmw forums are assclowns... with the ... I own a bmw and I'm better than you attitude.... which is seriously lame if I do say so myself

from the little bit I know of the people on this forum everyone's atleast down to earth...