What are the rules for running my MINI Cooper S in STX?

The Street Touring X category of vehicle modifications is meant to fit between the current Stock and Street Prepared categories. In 2004, the Street Touring X Class will have National Class Status for the first time (It’s been a provisional class for the past several years)

The MINI Cooper falls into STS and the MINI Cooper S falls into STX.

AUTHORIZED MODIFICATIONS - STX

·The Air conditioning systems may be removed in whole or in part.
·Pedal kits and other interior cosmetic accessories may be added.
·The driver and front passenger seats may be replaced, with the following restrictions: The seating surface must be fully upholstered, the top of the seat, or an attached headrest, may not be below the center of the driver's head. The seat, not including mounting hardware, must weigh at least 15 pounds.
·Removal of factory trim (rub strips, emblems)
·Fenders may not be cut or flared but the inside lip may be rolled in order to gain tire clearance. Flares that are part of body kits may be attached to the stock fenders.
·Spoilers, body kits, rear wings, etc. The total surface area of all spoilers and the rear wing may not exceed 8 square feet as seen from above.

TIRES
·Tires up to and including a width of 245mm. And tires must have a minimum tread wear rating of 140. The tires of choice for the S in STX currently are: Falken Azenis Sport, Kumho MX, or BFGoodrich g-force TA-KD. Some run SO-3’s in the rain.

WHEELS
·Any wheels up to 8" in width that fit over stock brakes. You can run 15”, 16”, or 17” wheels if you’d like. Most STX MCS’s run 15X7 or 15X7.5 wheels -- The remainder run 16X7.

SHOCK ABSORBERS
·Shock absorber bump stops may be altered or removed.
·Any shock absorbers may be used, provided they attach to the original mounting points. You can use Koni’s with the stock or aftermarkets springs, or choose a coilover setup. Common coilover setups seen on STX MCS’s are Leda, KW, H&R, and Spax.

BRAKES
·Brake rotors may be replaced with any rotor of equal or larger diameter made from a ferrous or aluminum alloy. Calipers are unrestricted, but must mount to the original attachment points.
·Alternate DOT approved flexible brake lines.

ANTI-SWAY BARS
·Any anti-sway bar is permitted. Bushing material, method of attachment, and locating points are unrestricted. You can replace either or both the front and rear sway bars. Most just add a bigger rear bar and leave the front as stock.

SUSPENSION
·Ride height may only be altered by suspension adjustments.
·Suspension bushings may be replaced with bushings of any materials (except metal) as long as they fit in the original location.
·Adjustable camber plates may be installed at the top of the front strut, and the original upper mounting holes may be slotted. The drilling of holes in order to perform the installation is permitted. The center clearance hole may not be modified. This means that front aftermarket camber plates like the H-Sports, Kmac’s, or P&D’s are allowed. Dialing in at least two degrees of negative camber in the front is highly advisable if you want to be competitive.
·Camber kits or adjustable length arms that provide an adjustment to the effective length of a control arm are allowed. Alignment outside the factory specifications is allowed. Both the upper and lower rear control arms on the MCS can be changed. The common choice seems to be the H-Sport rear arms. Other rear arms that use heim joints are not allowed.
·Strut bars are permitted with all types of suspension. Strut bars may be mounted only transversely across the car from upper right to upper left suspension mounting point and from lower right to lower left suspension mounting point. No other configuration is permitted. Additional holes may be drilled for mounting bolts. Only bolt-on attachment is permitted.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
·The make, model number, and size of the battery may be changed but not its voltage. You can add a smaller, lighter battery like the Odyssey 680

ENGINE
·Engine and transmission must remain unmodified, including emissions equipment.
·You can add a Cold Air Intake.
·Any spark plugs may be used.
·Any spark plug wire may be used, including those with an in-line capacitor
·You can’t make any changes to the intercooler.
·No throttle body changes
·You can add emissions-legal Headers. High flow catalytic converters are OK.
·You can change from the stock muffler just like HS or GS can.
·The engine management system parameters and operations may be modified via an ECU chip. You can do the Evotech, AMD one-click, the Shark, and maybe someday the GIAC chips.
·Short throw shift kits may be installed.
·You may not change the effective diameter of any pulley which drives the supercharger.
·2WD vehicles may use any LSD unit. The Quaife ATB is the mod of choice for the STX MCS.

If you have any questions or corrections to what I have written, please post them here or email me at the address below so that I can update the FAQ. The FAQ is just a summary --- please ask or check the current SCCA Solo Rulebook if in doubt.

Thanks,
David

 

Can back seats be removed?

 

no

 

Can a rollcage be added?

 

Cage, yes.

Twincharging, now think about that question a minute... you can't change the supercharger pulley. What in the world would make you think you could add a turbo charger?

 

Well it's not really that noticeable.

 

A new preferred tire is the Hankhook RS2's..

 

If you remove your back seats what class does that put you in?

 

Remove the back seats and you're in Street Modified. Might as well do the twincharging while you're at it. FYI, in SM you can remove the back seats but you can't gut the interior.

Scott
90SM

 

On the main list above, it states that both the "upper AND lower" control arms can be changed with the H-Sports.

I thought it was the upper OR lower, but, not both. Can anyone confirm this to be true that we can replace BOTH upper and lower? I have both, but, thought I was going to have to sell the 2nd set.

 

OasisT, where did you wind up with this please? Did you sell them? The only guidance I can find is here http://www.team-integra.net/forum/di...1&ThreadPage=3 and suggests that I should avoid both top and bottom. It's a timely question because my car is headed for lower control arms only on Jul 3rd due to the same understanding you apparently had in your post from this winter...

 

I'm not OasisT but I talked to him at the Peru National tour 4 weeks ago. He had only two of the H-Sports on the car then but said he was going to get the other two installed.

Your alignment guy will greatly appreciate that you have both upper and lower.

 

Can an engine damper be installed? The one like Lordoftheflies sales.

 

My 02 STX MCS with Quaife got abused by a lot of drivers last year and I suspect I am going to have to replace the clutch (plate was changed when Quaife was installed with another stock plate). Question is, can I beef up the clutch and still be legal in STX. It is not a performance enhancement, just a life extender.

Evidently some of my co-drivers slipped the clutch instead of spinning the wheels.

 

No you have to stick with the stock clutch. The Evo's in STU would really appreciate the ability to upgrade.

 

Why aren't heim joints allowed?

 

You are allowed to change bushings (with poly or delrin), but cannot increase the amount of metal in them, so, Heim joints in place of suspension bushings are illegal in ST and SP.

You can replace your sway bar end links with heim jointed adjustable links.

 

Because sway bar modifications are "free", which includes mounts and end links.

Scott
90SM

 

thank you for continuing my partial thought...

 

The fact they are illegal has already been established. I am wondering why heim joints are prohibited. Something along the lines of: The metal-to-metal connection gives the suspension a very precise connection and is considered (fill in the blank here) by the rules comittee.

Examples of informative answer:

• subject to breakage therefore too dangerous
• gives and unfair advantage compared to cars not equipped similarly.
• etc.

I'm not trying to be a smart-aleck or be rude , it's just your answer was redundant.

 

The rules are written for all cars. The majority of cars cannot replace a major suspension component, like the rear lateral links on the MINI, as simply. The way that they are allowed to tighten up the suspension tolerances is to stiffen the bushing material. The rule doesn't say "No Heim Joints" the rule says you cannot increase the amount of metal in the bushing.

 

Old question I know

Based on the PDF rules it looks like you cant. However it does seem that you are allowed to add poly insert into the motor mounts. So the Ireland Engineering bushings for the lower motor mount seem like a good option.

 

I understand the intercooler itself cannot be changed, but can you change the diverter?

 

on a quick read, i cannot find a section that allows it

it doesn't seem to be of the genre "plastic engine cover" "aesthetic"
it's not an air filter, nor part of the air induction system
it isn't part of the exhaust either
no language addresses the cooling system that i can find

just curious, are you having temp issues?

 

no i was just curious