whats going on fellas,
i have a '07S jcw(engine kit) and iv been wanting to lower my car to reduce the nasty stock wheel gap the stock mini S has. now, should i get springs or coilovers (dont really want to get coil-overs because theyre so expensive) yet i would if it would be a better pick. i want better performance and not to ruin the stock handling or be worse for the car in the long run. please get back at me and tell me which brand and what i should do, thanks.

 

either way, if you want ultimate performance and longevity you'll wanna replace the shocks n springs as a package, so either coilovers(adjustable ride height, and potentially more options) or get springs n shocks like I have JCW shocks with mach V springs.

 

i say you get coilovers.
cuz in the long run youll be more satisfied with them.

coilovers are adjustable in like 30 diff heights.
you could slam your car or track it or auto x it.

springs are just springs.
youre gonna have to buy another set of shocks anyway cuz aftermarket springs on stock shocks wouldnt be a good combo after a while.

the stock shocks will blow out just because theres more pressure and weight put on them from the aftermarket springs. stock shocks werent made to be with aftermarket springs.
springs + shocks will be around 7-900 bucks.
might as well get coilovers for the same or even for a little bit more moolah.

if youre gonna go with coils, i suggest you look for them in the marketplace.
or like on ebay or cragislist, etc. but if youre gonna go with springs, make sure you get shocks soon after to be safe.

just be sure that if you get it new that youve checked everywhere and that you dont get ripped.

as long as youre satisfied with whatever decision youre gonna go with, then its all good.

 

good answer jb, should i get em used? or better brand new, for the coilovers that is

 

My vote goes to coilovers although some(TSW) makes nice springs that play well with the stock struts. You could technically just get springs, wear out your struts at about 30k miles and then replace the struts. This option allows you to spread out the cost. However, coilovers are definitely superior.

 

does anyone know if jcw suspension is gstock legal?

 

well the thing is about new coils or any auto part, is that because its new theres almost no room for negotiation or haggle. (simply cuz theyve never been touched or used before.) for most new parts, even on various websites, its gonna be around MSRP, which is usually more than what you'd think.

for used coilovers or any part, it's still very good as long as it has low miles on them. you can find used coilovers on NAM marketplace. a lot of used things are almost as good as new and its a lot cheaper than new stuff.

if youre gonna go with springs, there are a LOT of used springs, some new, on the NAM marketplace. so you can definately find a wide variety of springs there.

for whichever youre gonna get, make sure youre not getting ripped.
as you can already tell, thats what bothers me the most when it comes to purchases.

 

No it is not. Only factory options are g-stock legal. JCW suspension is dealer installed option.

But you could look at it this way. Are you interested in auto-x to win trophies or have fun? This is how I look at it and I auto-x my cooper in sts. Also don't forget auto-x is 85% driver, 15% car.

 

wassim, you can also go with what izzyg said as well. you could buy new springs and wear out your struts. dangerous thing is, every person has a diff driving style. some more aggressive than others. so by trying to wear them out, you wouldnt know when exactly theyre gonna blow.

sure you can get springs and keep on stock shocks for a while. thats not a bad idea. just have them shocks installed soon after the springs. to be safe.

 

I've used springs on all my previous cars and finally coilovers on my R56.. I say coilovers hands-down for performance and flexibility..

 

I love my M7 coilovers on my R56, very comfortable for street(set at the right dampening) and great at the track! I think anyone who has them would agree... i drive 100 miles to work and they are smooth or smoother than stock and handle great. Over 20,000 miles on them so far, with 5 track weekends and loving them!


P.s. if u go with springs ur gonna have to eventually have to get shocks...do the math...

 

Oh and I also read that as long as you don't abuse your Mini, the coilovers should last the life of your vehicle. Another reason to go coilovers! :P

 

I have the H&R ClubSport coil-overs on my R56. Look no further!

 

coilovers > springs+shocks

 

I can guarantee you that everyone who chose springs over coilovers was because of price. It would make no sense to get springs instead of coilovers if they cost the same. The benefits of coilovers are FAR greater than just springs.

Right now im running Mach V springs and sure they are great.... the car handles well albeit rough at times and i do bottom out more than i would like but I just couldnt drop 1500 on a decent set of coilovers. I would like to eventually but my budget just wont allow it.

 

You could take a look at the coilovers that were just reviewed in the new issue of the NAM Alliance online magazine. The reviewer gave them good marks if you aren't looking for ultimate track performance from a set of coilovers. They were $650 for the set, I believe, and something I may investigate when I finally get my car.

 

theyre called VMAXX Coilovers.
theyre big in the Vdub world.
here's one extensive and useful review on those coilovers for this one's guys vdub:

http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=3166754

 

im planning on buying those coilovers for my mini as well. its a great deal for the price. and theyre legit too. TUV approved as well. you should look into them if you dont wanna pay 1000+.

they made new ones for the MINI also.
http://www.stratmosphere.com/mini_drivetrain.htm

 

if i ever go for coilovers... i want to get a set that i can lower without reducing suspension travel.

 

Go what with you can afford but, if you can put coil overs you will be much more happy with the results. You can also adjust ride height.

 

Which ones are the easiest to adjust? I need to raise them in the winter and slam them in the summer. Stock height is a little low for the snow we got on my side streets. How much can you adjust them as well?

 

There all pretty much the same...there are two locking nuts for height adjustment. Its more the room you have rather than which one is eaisier to adjust. Its not that big a deal to make the adjustments.

 

Which one is the most versatile in the height movement? I would like to have something that moves a little higher than stock for the winter months and then slammed in the summer months. I was originally thinking about shocks or springs. After watching MINI's with the sport suspension it seemed that this is too low for the amount of snow we received lately. Basically I want to minimize the snowplow effect.

In addition, interested to see who has the most adjustments and fine tuning.

Cheers

 

As far as adjustments coil overs have colse to the same travel...You can go higher than the stock ride height on all of them. You can also contact the manufacturer to find out how much higher than stock you can go. H&R, M7 are just two to name some. H&R has a nice selection.

 

Many who have opted for coilovers have done so for the flexibility in height adjustment, such as what CaptainCradicles is looking to do. My question is about the alignment - I'm assuming you'd have to get an alignment every time you adjusted the height of your ride? I'm guessing that could get expensive pretty quickly and makes me think how often I'd do something like that.