I just bought a used 03 R53 with the Mini Madness suspension preinstalled. For about 30%-60% the rides fine. The rest of the time I feel like a ping pong ball in a concrete shower. I'm wondering how much handling I'm going to loose if I swap back to the stock R53 suspension?

Also, I do have a set of lighter Koeing rims to put on there. How much decrease in harshness can I expect by reducing the unsprung weight? I'm thinking the ride might in fact get worse.

 

For street driving, you'll probably not lose too much handling, however the stock suspension is pretty stiff. Do you still have run-flats? Losing those makes a big difference. Also, people seem to be pretty pleased with the ride on the Koni FSD's.

 

I am running stock wheels on run flats right now. I do have another set of tires on Koening rims I plan to swap out? That may be all I need to do. Strut wise I'm not sure what's on their now. It might be worth the price to swap them out to the Koni's if it improves dampening. I'm just tired of th jarring sensation. It's quite unsettling.

 

yep, i would do the wheel/tire swap first. That may be all you need

 

You'll potentially improve handling going back to stock on real world roads....having very little travel does not make a car handle better.

The keys to making an R53 ride and handle well are:

1. no runflats and no s-lite wheels, and definitely not both.
2. IE fixed camber plates (also prevents mushrooming)
3. shocks (koni yellow, or Koni FSD for a really soft ride. Or a GOOD set of coilovers. Not a cheap set, a good set.)

From there you can add a few toppings like a rear sway and front control arm bushings, but those are the basics to getting the car to feel good. It will handle very well and ride better than stock. Do not lower the car with any spring besides the WMW/TSW springs, Tein H-tech, or JCW. I really like my Teins.

For the track obviously there is a lot more to think about.

- drew

 

I'm assuming s-lite you mean super light wheels? Or is that like a specific style of Mini wheel from the dealer? I have a set of after market Direzza DZ101 on Koeings I need to put on there there. That might be all the difference I need.

I'm wondering how a set of Koni's would work with the Mini Mania suspension that's on there. I'm likely going to swap out for the factory suspension after a while if just to get the ride height up a little bit.

 

Sorry, yes I meant the OEM 17 inch wheels which are called s-lites despite weighing a thousand pounds.

 

Not your fault. I'm still learning the nomenclature. I know a ton about Miata's but I'm still learning quite a bit about the Mini.