What specs are you running on your alignment? I'm wanting to get some light 15'' wheels for next year. STF says nothing wider then 7.5'' wheel and tire up to 225 section width.. Trying to decide if I should go with a lower profile 40 or 45 series tire or to a 50 series? Currently running 17 x 7 wheels w/215/45's.. 19mm H-sport RSB on Full stiff, Meagn coilovers w/camber plates, and have adj rear control arms. My alignment is at -2.1 Front & -1.2 rear if I remember correctly.

 

new alignment is about like this...

-2.7-3.0 up front depending on the alignment rack with about 0.02deg toe out per side. Caster is whatever it ended up at.

-2.7 camber out back with 0.06deg (I think) toe out per side.

The car drives well and is a bit more predictable than last year. Suspension is vorshlag camber plates on Bilstein sport shocks with swift lowering springs...and the big h-sport rear bar and toe links. Way motorworks carries most of the suspension stuff I got. great guy

As for wheels the car was plenty fast on the Konig Rollers I ran on last year, but we got the 6UL wheels this year because they make tire changes easier LOL...the car is no faster.



Now we get into the subject of gearing...I'll give my 2 cents...

The R56 (2011) I drive is geared too short IMO. I'm constantly having to go to 3rd on bigger courses for 5-10 sec at a time. The GPS says when the car starts to reduce throttle it's at about 53-54mph and the soft rev limiter is fully engaged by 55mph. The issue is it lifts off the gas for you with the elec throttle. So if you're in a slalom then say goodbye to the rear stability when it hits. The only solution for me is to hit 3rd at about 51mph and keep what little momentum I have going. This is all on a 23" tall tire (15s).

Lately for BMWCCA events I've been goofing around with 225/50-15 BFG R1-S tires (15x9 front and 15x7.5 rear) and the gearing is wonderful. So that leads me to believe the 225/45-16 ZII might be a good option to try on some 16x7.5s. But it's a long shot...and just a thought. The 205s and 225s on the 15x7.5s seem to work fine for me. I prefer the 225s because they are IMO easier to overdrive...so when I screw up I don't give up a lot of time. The 205s are a LOT sharper and feel awesome...till I overdrive them and I then get the chattering understeer.


So it's a personal preference.


All that being said...register for the Blytheville, AR double header in a few weeks. We need more entrants and minis in S3 for the pro and STF for the tour Todd Freeman is still looking for a co-driver and has a very quick R50 that has snagged trophies all around...maybe contact him about a fly in and drive It will cost some $$$ but it will be easy for sure

OR bring your car in and just have some fun with us. 4 days straight of autocrossing is AWESOME :D

 

Whew. Never heard anyone running that much rear camber. I assume that helps you stay on the gas without fear of the rear end coming around on you? I'm in NC or I like to get to an event with a bunch of MINIs at. All my local club members keep coming up with excuses not to come out.

 

the rear end is a bit more stable...it would rotate a bit easier before with the -1.0 or so in the back but I corded rear tires on the outside edge...so it's more for tire wear than anything.

 

Looks great! Always great to see other STF Minis out there

On our 2004 we have:

WMW intake
NGK plugs with Demon speed ignition coil
Miltek exhaust and header (Expensive, but one of the best Hp increases, and I wanted as quiet as possible and this was it)
Unichip tune
Ksport Pro coilovers (1.5" lowered, -2.75 degrees up front, -1.75 rear, set the fronts to +28 clicks and the rears to +12 clicks when racing)
Hotchkis 25mm rear bar
15x7.5" Rota slip streams wrapped with new 225 MFG Rivals (run 2 events on them so far, LOVE them, worlds better than the crap Toyo R1R's we used to run)

On the list:
Lightweight seats
Short shifter

I am currently regularly placing 1st or 2nd in a class of 6-8, and 6th-11th overall out of ~120, so car is doing well. Live in Phoenix, AZ so we do the San Diego National Tour every year, have yet to have the time to make it out to nationals tho :(

Will watch this thread and your progress with enthusiasm

 

Ok...update time...

Not much in the way of news. Swapped out to Carbotech 1521 front pads for a bit more modulation. I've been having issues with threshold braking lately and I hope these help.

I've also played with rear bump stops a bit. I actually added MORE bump stop to the rear of the car. The car seems to be even more controllable in the back end now as far as rotation goes, and it's more comfortable when towing the trailer (the main reason). I am using half the OEM stop and a FCM soft rear bump stop.

I also cleaned the air filter. It still looks bad LOL...I give up. I'll throw it away every 2 years and never clean it I think.

I've also been trying out tires for the rear and decided I really like nearly dead Rivals out back. I run them down to about 1/32 and flip them inside out...then they work great out back. Problem there is I can't make them last more than about 16 or so runs out back. So I'd have to bring extra crap tires to big events like nationals. :\ So I'm running 90% tread tires out back and dealing with the squirm.

I also decided that on a nationals style course the fastest way I've run the tires is worn down to 4/32 tread. They have the heat cycles they need and minimal squirm. The full tread ones are quick too but not as much for me.


All this info is kinda subjective since it's about what fits me and my driving style.


All that said...someone needs to crack the ECU on the R56 Justa cars like I have. The lack of power is KILLING me.

 

David thanks for sharing. Very interesting reading.

Some time this winter I shall have to choose between STF and G Street, and the setup notes are thought provoking.

The lack of power simplifies the problem for me. With the 210 hp Works STX car I had to pay attention to throttle. Now I can buff my nails and adjust the radio between elements - very relaxing.

Cheers,

Charlie

 

the final 2 events for the car:

Saturday -
Sunday -

I'll have a full update later...I'll also have parts for sale fairly soon.