Increase ride comfort - R56 S
 

Hello Everyone, I have a 2012 R56 S. I'm at a point that I wanna sell the car, merely because I want a more comfortable ride. I live in the city so pot holes are just killing me. It feels like that the car is just falling apart.

I've swapped the run flats to the regular non run flats continental 17" inch. It did make a difference, but still harsh.

I can consider switching to 16 inches, but don't know if that will make a big difference. This is my R56 second mini, so I am quite familiar with them. I also have a F54 All4 S, which is definitely more comfortable for obvious reasons.

I love the car, as it is the goodwood edition and I know I will regret selling it.

Any advice is welcome

I have run flat driveguards on 16" rims on my 2012 S and the ride is great. I can only imagine non runflats are way more comfortable. The stock continental run flats were like driving on concrete blocks, harsh as hell.

Do you have any soundproofing installed on the floor or doors? I have non runflats and vibration dampening material in the rear, sides, and the doors and it does sound better than when I didn't have any while going over Los Angeles roads. It's a quieter ride and lessens the awful rattling / falling apart noise when hitting a pothole. Maybe try the full three layers of soundproofing on the floor and add a little vibration dampening to the sides and rear. It will add a bit of weight to the car, but way more comfortable. https://store.secondskinaudio.com/install-steps/

Koni special active struts will make a world of difference

+1 changing off of factory runflats and getting the KONI Reds, https://www.ecstuning.com/b-koni-par...89/87451189kt/

I recently installed koni fsd's before they revised them and they are a little more comfortable than the stock's but I only had the stockers on for 47k miles. Car is less skiddish over uneven surfaces too.

Thank you all for the much needed advice. I'm gonna do some more research on the struts. If I keep my 17inch Non runflats that I have currently on, will it still make a difference with that new struts?

New struts will definitely make a difference, especially if your current struts are worn out. The tires are a massive difference in my opinion.

However, these cars have such little suspension travel, and so little negative travel especially, that the ride is always going to be harsh compared to just about everything else on the road. My R56 S rides worse than anything I've owned, including many cars with firm coilovers. It's a fun enough car that I can deal with it, but it's by no means comfortable and I don't really expect it to be.

the konis are a good upgrade regardless. BUT you can't lower the car with the FSD, or active whatever they are called now. they are made for stock height S springs. and like gnarmach said this ain't no touring car ;-)

EDIT: here is some decent sounding advice for not lowering on mini application. Basically, we have so little suspension travel that lessening that doesn't give the FED magic room to work. Cutting bumpstops seems to be an option
FEDs and lowering springs

You can use lowering springs with reds. I have also been on jcw springs and wmw tsw springs for 20+k on my fsds with no problems.
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.nor...979fcd93cb.jpg

I've seen people post that going to 16" non runflats make a huge difference.

So my son still has his stock suspension. We have all the new components ready to put on, but my wife’s car has new springs and struts/shocks and it is night and day better. Her car rides smoother over bumpy stuff but when she gets aggressive with the progressive spring it really helps. My sons stock suspension is rough and almost unpredictable at times. In about a week we will change all his also. It is nice to be able to go back and forth within the same hour and feel the suspension differences.

Glad to see the reds "solved" the lowering spring debate on FSDs. I've read mixed results with various springs and the FSDs, no doubt amount of drop and/or spring rate (linear vs progressive) you can find a good combo that allows usage and doesn't sacrifice shock lifespan noticeably.

Note that the old FSD shocks had the same generic
product description about lowering springs in general,
but for MINIs specifically, they recommended strongly
against lowering springs with FSDs.
I wouldn’t go any lower than JCW springs (-10mm) with
the Koni Special Actives on MINIs:

Are the Reds a more comfortable ride than the Yellows?

Yep, yellows are a sport. Reds are like daily smooth ride that removes the small jolts from the stock suspension.

will I need an alignment with new struts?
 

I'm reading with interest the suggestion to change struts for a better ride. My (new to me) 2012 R56 MCS has just turned 120k but since I've only owned it a few months, I don't know if the struts are original or have been replaced. I do know the tires and wheels are fairly new, and are not run-flats. It's a harsh ride and I'd like to improve it if I could. I had the car aligned recently and now I wonder if new struts will require it again

New struts will require a new alignment.