I purchased my 04 MCS last december with H&R springs, on the factory shocks. The car also had BFG KDW's that were cupped. I am not sure what caused the cupping of the tires. Too much PSI in tires, alignment, worn shock due to lowering spring? The inside of the the tires are worn bad and they are also cupped. I need to buy new tires but I dont want to do this and have them just cup again due to a suspension problem. The car has lower control arms but I dont think they are adjustable. How can I tell if the suspension is causing my tire problems? I either need to fix the suspension and then buy tires, or if my suspension is not causing the problem then I need to buy tires and make sure this time the tires are not over inflated. If the cupping is due to psi issues then I am thinking I need to buy lower control arms that are adjustable so that I can eliminate having the inside 2" of the tire wear totally bald before the rest of the tire shows any wear at all. Is this right?

Thanks!

 

are all 4 tires cupped or just the back.

If all 4 are cupped it's most likely a psi issue... however it could also be alignment. Either way an alignment is good 150 dollar insurance that everything is working the way it's supposed to.

p.s. Adj control arms are great with lowering springs. Some mini's get massive camber gain in the rear when you lower them even 1-1.5 inches. My car was one of those and showed almost 3 degrees of negative camber in back after springs. Either way this alone will not cause cupping, just some weird handling traits and some accelerated wear on the inside of the rear tires..

gl

 

The stock rear on MINI's built before Jan 05 do not have any adjustments in the rear for alignment. If you have after market control arms you are set and just need a good 4 wheel alignment. If you take a pic and post it, I'm sure someone can let you know what you have and how to work with it.

 

yes all 4 are cupped. I dont know if that is because the front were on the back at one time and were rotated by the original owner or because of the psi issue. I will take pics of my control arms and see what you think...thanks for the replies.

 

having looked at the pics you posted they do not look adjustable, vintage, but not adjustable.