Hi All,

I'll be installing IE camber plates and H-Sport springs and rear control arms. I plan to get an alignment shortly after.

I assume that the springs will settle a bit over time. Should I plan the alignment right away or wait a few weeks or a month to allow everything to break in a bit first?

Thanks!

 

Adding negative front camber also adds toe-in on a MINI. I'd drive it easily for ten miles or so then head to the alignment shop. Just my .02.

When I installed the IE fixed plates on my MINI it handled horribly until I got it aligned.

 

Your springs aren't going to change (settle). You'll notice that every time you put your car on a jack and extent your suspension it will sit about 1/4 inch higher that it was before you raised it up. Your struts and shocks will settle but not your springs.

My point is that you don't have to wait for them to settle before alignment. The drive to the alignment shop will settle your suspension.

 

What???
Springs do "settle". H-sports settle a bit and it may take months for them to finish settling, if not a year.
Don't bother waiting, just get the alignment done now. The amount of settling will not change alignment much at all.

 

+1: But the extra toe-in you now have will make your MINI push like a pig. Alignment now FTW...

 

Love it! I'll definitely plan the alignment right away (whether they settle or not).

Thanks all!

 

I never thought about springs settling or not until I recently put on a set of Apex. There are minor "vibrations" and quirkiness that I am trying to resolve. Some suggests that they may go away as the springs settle. After much thought and putting on my engineer hat, I've figured that springs DON'T settle. Springs are all metallic and the only way they would "settle" is if the loads on them exceed the yield strength of the metal. So in order for springs to settle, the metal must yield and thus change the geometry of the spring. Change in geometry means change in spring constant. Aside from manufacturing defects, mfr would never make springs with yield strength lower than anticipated load. Now I still need to resolve the "vibration" I am experiencing.