Looking at a site that sells wheel spacers for the MINI from H&R. Anyone have experience with them on the R56?

Sizes available from 5-20mm. Do they put a lot of unwanted strain on the car?

Right now I have MINI Web Spokes. Don't know what the offset is, and have 215/45/17 tires.

I was thinking of doing just the rear and going for the thin ones to start (5mm).

Comments, opinions, advice, and pictures please....

Thanks,

 

No more strain on the car by any means. Generally they come with longer lugs so you have no problems, just measure where you want the wheels and get the control arms to match.

Have fun!
Josh

 

why would you want to do this what's to be gained? is for looks or performance?

M

 

Looks. The swaybar solved the performance issue.

I do disagree that there is no added strain. Extrapolate a little and imagine 1 foot spacers. And why would I need different control arms? If the car is properly aligned before the spacers, how is 5 or 10 mm going to throw the wheels attitude off?

 

You are going to end up with a different wheel offset, a 5mm spacer would be like running a 43mm ET wheel (stock is 48-5mm spacer) which will slightly increase your scrub radius and give some weight to the sterring.

I ususly run 5mm spacers on the front only to promote a larger front track, reducing understeer slightly, anything over 5mm will require new bolts.

I will be using spacers on the front to fit old R53 MINI 16" wheel on my MCS, just need to know how much spacer i need (if it works at all lol)

 

I don't see any extra strain. The whole suspension, however, will have more leverage on the springs/shocks, and make it feel softer.

 

I've frequently read that the addition of larger spacers is tough on the front components... not so much the springs/shocks but the ball joints, control arms, etc. I'm not enough of a suspension guru to explain why, but it came from sources that I trust, so I try to keep my spacer use to a minimum.

I run 5mm spacers on the fronts only with my web spokes, but only because I need a bit more space to clear the Wilwood BBK. I've got a set of 12.5mm spacers on the way to help with some new track wheels that need even more clearance help, but the 12.5s will be reserved for the occasional track day... not day-to-day driving.

I bought H&R spacers and they did not come with longer lug bolts. Luckily I had already converted to studs and installed a long set with this in mind, so I was prepared.

Because the MINI uses hub-centric wheels, there aren't many spacers for us in the 10mm width... that's the depth of the centering hub, so you either need 12.5mm or greater with milled-in hub-centric rings or something less than 7mm so you can use the remaining bit of the factory hub-centric ring that protrudes from the spacer.

 

Good point. I think I'll just stay with stock. I ordered some new springs so that should make things look better. I was really only considering spacers from an appearance standpoint.

 

There is extra strain, but not where you guys are thinking. It will be on the wheel bearings. Ever wonder why we have offsets, and they vary by make or model. It's because the offset is to set the centerline of the wheel to the centerline of the bearing. When you start taking the centerline of the wheel off the centerline of the bearing you will start to stress the bearing more.

How much more - it depends.

 

There is a guy in CA that makes custom spacers in the width of your choice with hubcentrics. MINI-PETE has a set! He says they look good and came polished! Just info for those searching custom spacers!

 

As with anything moderation is the key. A 5 mm offset ,with additional length lugs if needed ,should be fine , even for a daily driver. Will there be additional strain, yes , but not anything that should be of great concern.

 

Eibach sells TUV-approved spacer kits that come with extended lug bolts for about the same money as H&R without. FWIW, on the R53, 15mm front and 5 rear is a good set up with stock offset and 205/45-17.