I had the H&R Coilovers from the Alta website and I had them installed today. The guy left the ring all the way down at the bottom when he installed so I showed up and my car was super slammed and he could even get lift arms out from underneath it!

So he raised it up and started cranking away, he got the threaded ring halfway up in the back on both and the fender measured 24 and 24.5 inches off the ground. This gave only about 1/8 inch of clearance between the tire and the fender.

The fronts he was able to crank all the way to the top and the fenders measured at 25 inches off the ground, but the ride was super stiff!!!

I test drove it around the block, bottomed out at the driveway and at every corner. I had to leave it there so it could get worked on on Monday.

PLEASE NAM!!!!! help me!!!

What do i need to have him do? All I wanted was about 1 inch of lowering and it seems everything has gone wrong and I am without my baby! Is there some spacers that are missing from the coilover kit or something?

 

No, this is a photo of the H&R coilovers on their highest setting.
http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f3...f/L1030383.jpg

 

So you have the rings all the way at the top? What is the measurement from the ground to the fender for front and back?

thanks!

 

CORRECTION! After I drove around the block, the front settled to 23 inches! The front is at the hightest setting too.

 

At the risk of starting something...BIG...

H&R have recognized this problem. Their official repsonse is that "We recognize that some Mini owners do not like the low ride hieght and so we offer a number of other spring lengths."

Unfortunately, H&R have no ETA on the next set of springs, but 6 weeks is what I was told. The front springs need to be 2-3" longer. And, H&R will charge you about $70.00 each for the new springs.

With the front perch set as high as possible, the spring has one working coil. This is not nearly enough! And, this spring is progressive...so when the perch is set that high, all the progressive coils are out of use. I don't see this as an "alternative", I see it as wrong.

I suggest everyone with the Sportcoilover kit - red springs - contact H&R and tell them that this is not correct. As far as I am concerned, H&R need to replace the current spring design with something else.

The dampers also have some issues, but a little grinding will take care of that.

Your sudden drop in ride height may be atributed to the fact that these dampers have no 'stop' on them. So if the pinch bolt was not tightened properly, the dampers will slide farther down into the knuckle until the brake hose flange contacts the knuckle.

The ride should improve dramatically with the correct springs.

 

I have a shorter rollout than you, so my fender to ground will not be the same. I'm running 7X16 BBS RG-F's with AOO48's in 195/50/16. This is why my car might look to have a bit more clearance. After testing numerous combinations, this tire size seems to work the best for my car. I run the rear as high as it will go, with the front about 3mm lower than max. height. This combination works perfectly for my car.

 

Well.

Hmmm.

For background I have been running the H&R setup for 2 years now. I have had zero issues with mine from day 1. I give this as background to offset some of the trash that is gonna get thrown about in regards to H&R in this thread soon.

To adress the OP's issue, Meb has beaten me to the pinch bolt issue. This is the first thing to look into. Did the shop install them correctly. Next I would contact H&R as he suggests. I really haven't heard of anyone having issues as bad as yours, but I know some do not like how low the H&Rs go. I have mine set at about mid height and the car is low, but not undriveable.

PM me if you want more info as I fear this thread may head the usual NAM route.

 

Here is my previous car with 205/40/17's. This dia./rollout is similar to my current car, and worked brilliantly with the same H&R setup. With this size wheel/tire combo there is no need to go any higher, but with a bigger dia., you might need to go with another spring size. Hope this helps.
http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f3...f/L1010272.jpg

 

Thanks for all the info, I will contact H&R tomorrow and express my concerns.

I got a call from the shop today and apparently Larry was having dreams about my car and couldn't sleep, so he went down there today and worked on it some more....I told him I was flattered I had somone dreaming about my car...Larry told me to "F#*k off".

Anyways, he noticed in the frond that the black cover on the strut was covering about 3/4" of threads, so he moved that all the way up. The rears he lifted all the way as well. Springs were compressed waaay too much. I had him lower the back just a bit, and the fender sits at 25" off the ground.

Helix camber plates are on back order and should be here in a week or so, and I am ordering some H-Sport control arms for the rear. A little negative camber should fix this up a bit, then I can probably lower the back a bit more as well.

 

Excellent!! I've tried pss9's, koni coils, and finally H&R's. H&R's are the ones that stayed on the car,....and now they're on a second car. Glad you got that fixed.

 

you can lower the car more to gain more working coils, as one is not enough. But, my ride height was established for the track.

The crux of the spring problem lay in the fact that these are progressive; so when adjusting ride height, every crank on the perch yields quite a bit less movement than if these were linear rate aprings.

I do agree that this kit provides a great ride vs handling compromise. But, the optimal ride height established by the springs is not rerally an ideal ride height for the track...it's actuall quite slammed.

I am surprised by some of the design details...I had my share of problems with Megan. I opted to purchase from a well known company, hoping my problems would end. The truth is, modifiying cars is a process and all of us want many different things from our rigs. This make it nearly impossible for one size to fit all. So despite H&R's reputation, their size does not yet fit me...but at least it will and that's a positive outcome.

 

I had a set of Hr's back in the day with a custom spacer sleve in the front. It worked great and i drove it everyday (1500 miles a week).

 

Did your guy check the knuckle pinch bolt/interface to make sure the strut body wasn't sitting too deep?

Sorry to hear you are still having problems Meb. I wonder howmany, of all the H&R owners out there with MINIs, have a similar problem. To be honset yours and the OPs are the first I have heard of this.

 

Oh well I'm use to it by now.

Regarding the damper sitting too low...one of the issues is that the pinch bolt flange on the damper is located too high - from the bottom of the damper. When the hole in the pinch bolt flange lines up with the hole on the knuckle, the damper is about 3/8" lower in the knuckle than the stock or Megan damper. That 3/8" could be viewed as valuable ride height...

And, getting the flange to pass far enough into the knuckle required about 3-4 minutes of grinding; the welds ran too far down the pinch bolt flange preventing it from entering the knuckle far enough for the holes to line up.

I'm not writing this in an effort to place a bad spin on H&R, just passing along information. If I wanted something that required no pain, I would have left the car alone The learning experience is very much a part of the experience as a whole.

 

Let me take this opportunity, meb, to just say how much I have learned from you because of your willingness to share the good, and bad, experiences with NAM. Really, I have learned a tonne from you without ever hearing your voice or seeing your face--your posts are honest, and clear enough for even a guy like me to understand. Honestly, I decided upon my current COs having spent months counted in double digits reading threads you have contributed to. I am very happy with them and after last Sunday's track day, I am so glad I didn't lower my car any more than I did. I sometimes yearn for the slammed look, but I was on a tight short track with 15 turns and the MINI handled like a dream. Now if only I could go faster...

Anyway, hang in there, and all the best with your current setup!
...and thanks.

 

Interesting quality issues. I willa dmit that when I installed mine I struggled to get the strut in the knuckle. I ended up using a VW strut spreader tool to get them in. A new trick I learned recently is to use a 3/8ths to 1/4 adapter and turn in 45 degress after inserting it into the slot in the knuckle. Works like a charm. PB Blaster was also very helpful

I wonder if your set wasn't a 'Friday" prduction. I have used H&R struts and cos on multiple VWs in the past and helped install a few sets on MINIs too, I have never encountered excess weld material preventing proper insertion of the strut into the knuckle to the degree you describe.

How far below the bottom of the knuckle does your strut chamber extend? I don't know what mine is off hand, but it's easy enough to pull a wheel and check. Which I am more than willing to to. In fact, I could do this, and it will also illustrate where my spring perched are set and then I can take a shot of it on the ground to show where my ride height is in relation to that. If I get a chance Wednesday I will do this. No way I can tomorrow, I know, too busy of a day at work coming up!

As an editorial note, once you do get them dialed in as far as fitment goes, I know you will be profoundly impressed. The dampening and the ride quality of them is second only to a set of KW V3s IMHO. Just amazing quality!

Let me know if there is anyway I can help out. You are far more knowledgable about susp theory and design than I am, but in the nuts and bolts dept. I will always help out as much as I can.

 

Thank you both for the compliments!!! I love this stuff, especially the back and forth experience we all have.

I'll take a picutre this weekend and post it here.

I'm trying a hybrid thingy this weekend...not sure I like the IE camber plates. So, I've been starring at the Megan camber plates and I may try to adapt the stock upper perch to that camber plate...stay tuned. If this works from a fitment perspective, I'll stay with that plate; It has been a bullet proof pillow ball set up - and I've hit some huge potholes. I'll just need to order new pillow ***** since this kit really belongs to a new owner.

 

I just put the red-spring coilovers on my 02 and was also surprised at the ride height. But I think it is going to be great for track days. Not sure what I will do with winter...

Did any of you get a rotating vibration, distinct but small rapid frequency, upon acceleration (any, even slight acceleration) in first and second gear?
I thought I read that this might be the drive axles or the u-joint rotating in a new orientation because of the lowering. Any ideas?

Charles
Milwaukee

 

from the pictures ive seen of the springs.. they look just like the mini coopers stock springs. SO can you replace the springs on the coilovers with other aftermarket springs, or the stock springs even?

 

No

 

same problem i had. h&rs at the top of their adjustment slam the car. mine set the car so low, the front lip was aout .5" off the pavement. at the highest. and i have 18s.

i had to switch no choice, as i swap out smaller rims all the time which lower the car even more...

 

shouldn't, if you are using the proper profile tire. Though this is a completely side issue to the OT.

 

Yes! I am getting vibration in the pedal when i accelarate. It happens up until 4th gear and is more apparent when i accelarate harder. I have read that this is because of the CV joint and that sometimes it goes away, sometimes not. I am hoping that once i install my helix camber plates that they raise it up a bit and then after alignment i hope it goes away....until then, i just deal and hope ti isnt the alignment and half my passenger side front tire is bald already.

 

Yes I have the same issue. This has been noted to occur regardless of type of suspension, it is the lowering factor. It takes the CV joints out of their ideal operating range and induces some harmonic/angular vibration. For the record I have had my H&Rs on with this "problem" for over 20k miles and when I pulled the half shafts in March i could detect no apprecaible damage or issues. Seals were all intacts on the them as well as the boots. The main seals in the transmission were fine.

If you raise the car up some the problem should get slighter, but may not go away completely. I just plan on buying some race half shafts when my OEM's wear out. These can be custom manufactured to have more range of motion and tolerance to ride height than OEM's. They are around $600-$700, but considering MINI charges like $440 for each half shaft it really won't be that much more of an expense. It will also add the increased strength that my car really now needs with the turbo.

 

OK, so I went to SF last night and every intersection I was wincing as my front end would hit the pavement. I don't think I can take it anymore and I am thinking I made a huge mistake and wasted almost $2,000 in suspension mods just to hit the ground everywhere.

Here is some images, a before and an after.

BEFORE is above.

AFTER is above. (sorry i had to use my phone and the light sucks)

My rings are all the way up to the top of the threads on the front coilovers. The lip under the aero kit is 1.5" off the ground. I have 17's and pirelli euphoria runflats.

Questions:
Once I install the Helix camber plates and adjust the camber to -2 degrees, will the thickness of the plate and the camber help in anyway to raise this at all? If so, how much?

If this is going to continue to be a problem, you may see a set of H&R Sport coilovers, Helix camber plates, and 4 H-Sport rear control arms in the Marketplace Forum for a discounted rate...