Ok guys I have a 2009 Factory JCW car ... as one of the options taht came on my car was the $500 sports suspension. On the MiniUSA.com is says larger sway bars, but I have also read in here that it has different springs and such. Is this true?

Also can anyone tell me what the spring rates are for the sport suspension if they are different then stock.

Please note Im not talking about the JCW Sport Suspension (Red Springs) as I DO NOT have that.

Thanks!

 

found some answers:

so yes the JCW and Cooper-s come with the exact same suspension

The sport suspension (on all models) is different sway bars by 1mm and different springs ... however I cant find the spring rates on the sport suspension.

Anyone know the spring rates to the sport suspension (non-JCW)

 

The Reader's Digest version is no, nobody can show the springs are any different than the stock springs. Somebody noted a different part number, but not any difference in the springs themselves. The swaybars of course are verified thicker 1mm front/rear. FYI aftermarket swaybars start at 2mm thinker than stock, and are only made for the rear because thicker rears reduce understeer (thicker fronts increase understeer) and the car wants to understeer.

 

was anyone able to find the spring rates on the sport suspension (non-JCW)?
why is this info so hard to find?

I'm just trying to determine which rear sway bar size to order. I have a 2010 factory JCW with the optional ($500) sports suspension.

 

What size swaybar does the sport suspension (your current one) have? I keep reading that an aftermarket 19mm swaybar is the way to go if your looking for improvements on a daily driver that sees spirited driving as well as the occasional track.

 

You can't find the info, because Mini isn't saying, and nobody has made the effort to actually measure the spring rates, and publish the results.

It's not that hard, it's just a load cell and a dial indicator.

 

Hmm I have a load cell and some sport springs laying around and a press large enough to crush the Terminator. If I can figure out how to hold it without it shooting out across the room maybe I'll try it.

On my 2009 JCW with sport suspension option my dampers also say "sport" on them. I thought just the rear sway bar was 18mm and the front was stock thickness. The sport suspension is better than the stock for mildly spirited driving but it pitches fore and aft under heavy acceleration and braking and ricochets off every road irregularity. I ended up with a 22mm rear sway bar ( could not pass up the deal ) and NM springs. Pitching and the ricochet effect are gone and the car can be tossed around now with no worries.

 

The exact springs used depend on the weight of your car which varies with different installed options.