Bump into this.....

 

lol, what is that? not really an extra bumper right? . . . that can't be good for crash collision though., but who knows...

I already order Outmoring hitch receiver
I like minifying hitch receiver very much but I really wanted everything hidden on this one... so why I went with out motoring instead.

 

T.G.
Post pics please when your done, I don't think I'll go with the hitch, but would like to see how yours looks.
It's my wife's car so I have to get the OK first,I might just go for the spare in the trunk first and see how that works for road trips!
Keep us posted!

Steve

 

Steve, definitely!

I'm actually excited to get to this project going. My original plan was to custom everything but finding ways to mount any contraption to the frame was slowing me down. I think getting the hidden hitch will save me a tone of time dealing with that aspect. I'm much more comfortable building something that attaches to the hitch than figuring out how to do it to the frame in a robust way.
I'm a bit of a perfectionist so the plan is for a supper clean setup!

Some objective of mine for this project:
- get the spare tire close to the boot, unlike any other setup that seats far out. The challenge will be to make sure no vibrations allows the setup to touch the car body.
- create some sort of cover to make it look fancy and well integrated. I'm not sure on the materials yet for that (soft vs hard).
- make the design so it doesn't hurt the car overall look.
- be able to attached the wheel with the flat back on it.
- Be able to easily relocate the license plate.
- Last but not least, be able to move the spare aside to access the inside of the boot as fast as possible.

It's a tall order but we'll see

btw, it's my wife's car too during the week but I'm happily the weekend and trip driver of it . . . well when ever I can get my hands on it really

Also, keep in mind that I intend to use this for long trips only. For everyday use my wife has 4 options outside of the spare tire.
1. Bottle of slim an compressor under the passenger seat
2. Call MINI road side assistance
3. Call me if I'm not too far and can come to the rescue quickly
4. puncture plugs in the passenger dash compartment (though I don't expet her to use that one since it's probably very hard to do)

 

Oops . . . maybe you're talking about the bike rack and not my little spare tire project
Either way you'll see the situation as I'll post images...

 

Nope, I was talking about the spare project, I mentioned that I probably won't go with the hitch because we would only be using it for a spare, as opposed to a bike rack or other things.

I will probably talk to someone about the muffler relocation as there definitely seems to be room to do that, but I am aware of possible effects on performance and or sound !
As for the support of the muffler, I believe that the mounting locations are there because the muffler is in that position on the non S models .

Anyway I'm looking forward to se what you come up with!

Steve

 

In terms of space, keep in mind you need to take care of the wheel with the flat as well! . . . just a thought.


Me too

I'm getting the hitch receiver next week. Once it's mounted I'll have a platform to better access the situation dimensionally and be able to start on the design. Dimensions will drive a lot of the materials I'll end up using.

 

Impressive!

 

[QUOTE=TG.;3900254]In terms of space, keep in mind you need to take care of the wheel with the flat as well! . . . just a thought.

Yes,that was the case on my Z3, it had a donut under the trunk,but the stock tire wouldn't fit there! To really put you in a bind tho, the stock tire didn't even fit in the trunk!

Steve

PS
As to a full size spare, I've heard that the Miata wheels fit Minis,could anyone confirm this?
It seems it would make finding a spare in a junkyard a lot easier if this is true!

 

Check out the website for Super Bumper.
http://www.superbumper.com

What Works and What Doesn't
According to the Insurance Institute For Highway Safety, for a bumper to work effectively, you need a strong enough bumper beam and something to absorb the crash energy. First picture below would be for a car. Small receiver hitch required. I am using what a Pickup Truck would use.

One small bump and Mr body shop will say thats about $1,500 to repair cosmetic only.







Also







These Bumper Buffers are an easy to install, front-end collision absorber that fits on the front of the license plate.

BTW

Way Motor Works has some sort of small donut spare tire that will fit behind the seat that is covered for a spare. But you have to figure out what to do with the original flat tire.

 

oh I see! . . . I would have a hard time having this on my car all the time. Just wouldn't fit my aesthetic criteria
But it's pretty cool!

ps: I do have a spare tire seating in the garage. It does fit behind the passenger side (sort of) but doesn't help us with long trips because it makes the passenger side for a tall person very cramped.

 

I am still using the original Run Flats. I don't really mind them and I do like the convenience as there are several places I drive that are just not safe.

As for the Bumper and Hitch, it helps knowing I can take it off. Maybe it is just me but after driving a large car and pickup truck the Mini is so small. Fun, but at stop light I swear people get about as close as 1 inch and remain there. After some really bad accidents (rear ended) this gives me some piece of mind. Sort of like running training wheels on a bike again.

 

I can appreciate what you are saying.

Me on the other end, I do what I can to fight fears. There's just too much of that in the world. The way I rationalize it as far as this particular point is concern, the odds are with me and the size of car I drive will have little effect to that. Will the car sustain a crash is a totally different subject all together that goes back to the choice of car in the first place.
For the little stuff like small damages as much as it's an inconvenience if someone bumps me they'll take care of making it right and I don't feel like compromising my life for them or for the rare case it might happen.

But we all gauge different risks different ways. In the end it's what ever makes one comfortable to enjoy the drive that matters

 

Just got mine. I hope to put it on this coming weekend.
Now any tips on the job Mackie?

It came with instruction but I can't say the images are all that clear. In 2014 color prints should not be an issue!

 

I hope others can respond with help. I had mine done at Way Motor Works. I live in Atlanta, GA and it was convenient. Besides, Way does real good work and my hat off to his shop and quality of work.

 

No objections to WayMotorWorks
Except they got their site a little confused with images for R59 hitch.
See the link for R59 hitch receiver

http://www.waymotorworks.com/mdm-tra...h-r58-r59.html

As I said before I went with OutMotoring specifically because the hitch receiver is completely hidden...

 

My friend and I watched a video of a similar scenario. That helped, in addition to the step-by-step instructions.
Used the new Thule 990xt bike rack with the Curt (inch and a quarter) extension. Modified the extension so that it was shorter hole to hole by about an inch and 5/8. Where the extension goes into the hitch receptor, there is some side to side wobble. Ordered an anti-wobble clamp today. I'll let you know how that helps out, but by design it should work.
The bike rack works perfectly and access to the boot is not impaired even with the bikes on it.

 

great! thx

 

By the way does anyone knows what is the total towing load for the MINI roadster?

The numbers from the manual are surprisingly low in terms of total weight. Hauling should be more but I'm not sure how much? I'm also not sure if it is more a matter of engine load under more extreme conditions such as mountain driving, or if it is for structural reasons?

As far as total load is concerned, the curb weight is 2,800lbs (MCS auto) while the approved gross weight is 3,318lbs (MCS auto).
That gives us 518lbs (-18 lbs for the hitch receiver) to play with which isn't a whole lot for carrying both of us plus two bikes. I'll have to look at that more closely and see what our bikes weighs...

Good my wife and I aren't very heavy yet somewhat average to tall.
I guess MINI never thought roadster owners would want to carry and haul anything

 

It's 500lbs. Not much, but that's it. There are small trailers the people haul. If you have an automatic, it's not really a good idea at all...

 

Well I looked at our heaviest bikes and they are about 28 lbs each (I'll have to double check that. It's an online estimation). My wife and I combined are about 290 or less (sorry that's already too much information ), so that makes it to about 350 lbs rounded. Which gives me 150 lbs to work with for any sort of bike rack which should be plenty. That will play in the choice for sure. I'd like to have a decent margin...

As for the spare tire mount project that will give me even more, though I do have to account for the heaviest wheel and tire combination we got which might be around 44 lbs if that gets used. Leaving me with 166 lbs for the attachment and what ever clothes/equipment we load in the car. I never though I'd have to think like when we're traveling by plane :p

So, yes it's an automatic but those numbers are for an auto so I think I should be okay. Obviously I won't be hauling much of a trailer ever :p but that was not my intent. If feel we should be alright and within MINI specs though admittedly we are loading the rear wheels more than the front.
Oh and by the way, according to the manual the load rating seems to always be greater on the auto than the manual!


(I do have a nice road bike that is very light and I think I'll be getting one for my wife to use with the MINI rather than our heavier hybrid bike we use for trails...)

 

Okay the hitch receiver is on the roadster tonight but I couldn't finish because I didn't have what I needed on hand to cut the bumper metal which is quite thick, and I didn't want to wake my neighbor's kid , so I'll have to remove the external bumper again... at least the next time will be faster now that I know what to do.

And boy those plastic snaps drove me crazy . I have 3 to replace now...

I also decided to keep the foam liner instead of disregarding it. I simply cut it with a wood saw. It was easy and keeps some of the electronic component where they where

I was also very happy that the formed steel plate to remove is heavy enough that the hitch receiver isn't that much more weight added. Yeah!!!!
I'm going to weight it later to see what is my added weight from the hitch install.

Here's a few:

 

Ours is the non-S roadster, so it's somewhat different. No metal cutting involved. But, looks like it will be easier to have operating backup lights for you! Overall, I am very pleased. The big picture was completed yesterday when the hitch clamp arrived. We installed it between the outmotoring hitch receptor and the Curt 1-1/4" extension. All wobble and rattle eliminated! If you are in a scenario like mine where you require an extension, I highly recommend the Hitch Rider. 30 bucks plus shipping, well worth the extra few dollars.

 

Yes, no light modification needed on the S.
I'll probably need that clamp considering I hate rattles

It's odd that they used a different bumper structure between Justa and S...

 

Maybe so, TG. But I'm thinking that it was a matter of necessity when they added the S models, given the location difference with the exhaust manifolds. We will just leave the extension attached, so no need for a cover for the old backup/fog lights unit. I'll post a picture shortly…