Is anyone running mach v springs with stock suspension? (non sport)

Im leaning towards getting springs soon but am unsure about reports of how ''soft'' these springs are. I dont mind ''rough'' rides i just dont want to bottom out.

any help is welcome =]

 

I am running my mach v's on my stock suspension. So far I am very happy, occasionally the front valence rubs, but that is to be expected seeing as it sits barely 3 inches above the ground now. As for the ride it is stiffer then stock obviously but I wouldn't call it ruff. I think once I change my runflats out for normal performance tires the ride will be *** good as it was stock. Unfortunately since installation weather has prohibited me from really giving them a good test through the twisties but i can already feel that the car is stiffer so I am expecting pleasant results.

 

I've got the stock non-sports and I ordered mine on Sat. Everything I've heard says that it shouldn't be a problem. If not, well I guess I'll upgrade to the sports.

I did get a call from Mach V yesterday and they said the springs are on backorder but they'll be coming in in 2 weeks. Not that bad, really. So long as I can get 'em in before the ACNA track event at VIR.

 

ive had them on for a while now with the non sports suspension. Ive had no issues with them. They are awesome!

 

I have the Mach V springs with Sport Suspension and I hate them. Just too stiff for the lousy roads of California and a car that is a daily driver.

Love the look (lowered) but hate the ride.

I'm not afraid of stiff springs - I've had stiff suspension (stiffer then stock) on past Porsche's including my GT3 and Audi's with H&R springs but for a daily driver I just don't like these springs on my MCS.

I guess it depends upon what you use the car for and everyone has a tolerance level.

Danny at Mini Corsa has told me that the H&R's are softer but I am unsure if I should go this route or go back to the stock springs - any thoughts?

 

h&r's are softer?? i thought the mach v springs were suppose to be the softest?

 

[quote=WetNoseRanch;2146799]I have the Mach V springs with Sport Suspension and I hate them. Just too stiff for the lousy roads of California and a car that is a daily driver.

Love the look (lowered) but hate the ride.

I agree completely. I had the same setup and grew to hate driving my car in the city because of the jarring bumps and it bottomed out constantly in the country. My son in the back seat complained all the time about bumpy roads and when I got my new JCW, the first thing my wife commented on was the nice ride and asked me whether I was going to do anything to the suspension like before. Some people have different experiences to report, but from my perspective it was a big expensive mistake to put them on. Sometimes OEM really is better...

 

[quote=flaco;2147547]My wife doesn't even want to ride in the car now... she wants to take my truck instead - how's that for irony!

I'm putting the stock springs back on tomorrow.

 

Try the Cross coilovers. I had the regular stock MCS suspension before putting on the coilovers and I like the ride better as it is now. Wetnose, I'm in Santa Monica if you want to meet up sometime on a weekend so you can take a ride.

 

where did you get them from?

I really wish i could afford them.. haha...

Maybe once my struts blow out i will sell my Mach V spring and go for those coil overs.

 

I got them from Jan at RMW.

They are expensive but I built my MINI with very few options so that I would have funds for good coilovers and wheels.

 

^^ good thinking...

I was reading up on them and im really interested since you can lower the car without reducing travel...

Everytime i go into a shopping complex that has a slight ramp, i swear my backwheel is in the air.

Not a huge deal to me but it would be nice to have just a little more travel since i lost about 1.25 inches cuz of the drop.

Dont get me wrong if your interested in the springs though, they are awesome and i love them... but the proper way to lower a car is to get coil overs... its just that most coil overs are pricey and springs are cheap.

I figured i would start saving up for some coil overs so that when my struts blow, i will have enough to replace them with a full coil over set!

 

Out of the two main springs right now (H&R and Mach V) Mach V are noticiably stiffer. If you're looking for plush like stock, but a little lower, go with H&R, if you want stiffer, go with Mach V. If you can wait, get the new TSW springs when they come out. Linear springs are going to be a LOT more predictible than any progressive springs out there .

If you have the coin, the CROSS Coilovers are simply amazing. I've been told even more so on the R56. They're fully adjustable for both dampening and height, and no matter how low you go, the shock still has the full range of travel.

As others have offered, I'd be more than happy to give anyone who was interested a ride in my car .

 

By definition linear springs have the same spring rate during their entire travel. But I don't think most people would call progressive springs "unpredictable." A well-engineered progressive spring will exhibit good repeatable results and won't result in any sort of surprises in transient maneuvers.

There are pros and cons to both linear and progressive designs. Neither can easily be termed superior or inferior. Linear rate springs will need to be softer to achieve good steady-state comfort level, or will be firmer than progressive springs during minor suspension movement. On the flip side, progressive springs may need to be stiffer at full travel to reach the same overall rate as a linear spring. Everything is a trade-off.

A progressive spring wind can also be used to give a spring extra droop travel, so the shorter-than-stock spring is not rattling around when the suspension is at full droop. You'll sometimes see coilovers that have "helper springs" for this purpose. Often those coils are so thin they're fully compressed when the car is at rest; they only come into play when the suspension is unloaded.

Spring design includes a lot of variables -- free length, rate at various compressed lengths, wire material, winding methods, finishing methods -- and progressive vs. linear is just one of the design decisions. As I've said before, your best bet is to ask around, and get a ride or drive in a car that's equipped with the parts you're looking to buy. Then get the part that works for you.

--Dan
Mach V

 

There's always a compromise. I wasn't insinuating that progressive rate springs were unpredictable, just that a linear spring will give more repeatable results in extreme driving. For 90% of the drivers on this board progressive springs are the better choice, but for those wishing to track their cars (That can't afford coilovers) a linear spring is the better choice.

I really don't mind a bumpy ride, comfort isn't very high on the list of cares for me, hence the plug for Linear Springs .

For what it's worth, I've driven a car with your springs, and they work well with the stock shocks .

 

Just had a set of Mach V springs installed on my R56. Danny at MINICorsa had all 4 of them installed in 15 MINUTES....props to him for an excellent job!

I HIGHLY recommend these springs to R56 owners looking for a quick suspension fix. I really could not stand the stock sport suspension, felt so floaty and I'd almost say it felt unsafe at high speeds. Not to mention, the car looked like a 4x4. Not anymore though! I haven't had much of a chance to really push them, but they already feel worlds better than stock, and gives the car the "R53 feeling" that I so missed. Plus the car looks so much better.

 

Mach Vs are they cold or hot windings?

 

Shoot Dan a PM directly, he's pretty good about answering questions about his own products

 

Cold. I don't know of any aftermarket automotive springs that are hot-wound. My understanding is that hot winding is normally used for very large spring material -- like 2" diameter stuff or bigger.

Why do you ask?

--Dan
Mach V

 

Dan, thanks for the reply. I'm researching my suspension options for my soon to be delivered R56. I don't want hot windings, they tend to sag over time and the rates can very on new springs as much as 10%.

 

so, to this day, anyone have any problems using non sport suspension?

 

These two quotes sum it up very nicely. The MACH5 springs perform well... but they are way too much when it comes to the SPORT suspension. It reminds me very much of how a stock STI feels lowered: very jarring on Cali's bad roads (which is a whole lot of roads in the Bay Area).
On the flip side, on a smooth ramp... they're like butta!

Now having said all that, I've been told much of the issue is actually the sport suspension, not the Spring choice; apparently it's stiff to begin with and has no tolerance for being lowered (and thus reducing damper travel). I wouldn't be one to talk to that since I had the springs on within a week of purchase.

At any rate, the springs delivered just as Dan said they would ... just too rough for me given where I live. I ordered my CROSS C/Os last week ... should be getting them installed the end of this week.

 

Isn't there a difference in suspension on the sport package in '07 vs '08? My '07 R56 has the sport package which was: 17" wheels, sport buckets, DSC and xenon headlights. I think the '08 sport package included sport suspension and deleted the xenon headlights.

Definitely make a difference when deciding which way to go on lowering.

 

Yes there is a difference in the contents of the Sport package. People here are referring to the same Sport suspension whether or not they got it as part of the Sport package.

 

so far no problems!

At work someone has a laserblue and white S like mine except its all stock. It amazes me how much better the car looks lowered.