ok so i know this topic has been posted before, but most of them are just generic questions. I am starting to save up for coilovers for next summer along with getting some other goodies ( sway bar endlinks, control arms, rear sway bar). my budget for coilovers is going to be $1000. I live in pittsburgh and plan on running them year round. we get a little bit of snow, but it is mostly ice.
what i am looking for is to have them sit about .5 to 1 inch above the tires (running 205/55/16). i still want function since i will be auto crossing, but i want it to have form also. looking for coilovers that have dampening adjustability.

I have a couple of companies in mind, however, ive heard good and bad things about them all.

k-sport: heard great things about them, handle nice, easy to adjust, etc... but heard they do not last that long?

BC's: a lot of people like them, great customer support, good for auto crossing, but also a lot of people rip on them since they are cheaply made(correct me if i am wrong)

Megan's: I had a set on my Subie and loved them, but heard with mini's people have alignment issues? other than that havent heard a lot about them.

If i am missing other companies in my price range please post them and how you like them or what you have heard.

 

I used to have an RSX so I'm familiar with those brands.

I've seen too many Ksport coilovers snap or the threads separate from the mount. Not getting those.

All 3 are cheaply made in Taiwan I believe. Possibly in the same factory. For the RSX they all had crap spring rates but I haven't done enough research yet for the Mini.

A lot of info came to light with the Skunk2 issue on K20A.

I'm in the same boat as you. Got a Miata but may still autox the Mini

 

I would argue you can't get a decent coilover for $1k. IMO any coilovers you would want start at $2k and go up from there. I think the questions you're asking have been asked many times before and you should go back and do some reading. Let me help...
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...-pictures.html

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...nd-others.html

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...er-review.html

If you're stuck on coilovers than look at the ST or KW V1. Good luck with the search

 

I hate to sound like a jerk but your budget is unrealistic for what you want to do. Finding a good quality coilover that has adjustable damping and will withstand being your daily driver in the winter is a tall order. Plan spend at least $2000 on the coilovers at this point. You truly get what you pay for with coilovers. It will bite you in the 8ss later if you go cheap.

 

TBH I'm thinking of going with Fortune 500s for the digressive shocks + I'd get swift spring rates.

I was going to go 510s with the RSX since spring rates on 500s top out at 12 and I wanted 8K/15K.

What rates you guys running?

 

You also need to factor in the cost of camber plates (if you want them) rear camber links $250 (which are necessary), and an alignment ~$100. Also you're assuming you have all the tools for the job.

Not saying this can't be done on a budget, just that you should consider every possible expense before doing it.

Also, a lot of people report vibrations after lowering cars that are not nearly new. I know a mechanic at the mini dealer who has the vibrations and he just lives with it. Just something to think about.

 

The coilovers that I have been looking at already have camber plates so I am good there. For camber links, isn't that what the control arms are or am I wrong? And I did know about getting an alignment but I just didn't list it. I do have all the tools for the job as I have done coilovers before on other vehicles

 

You'll have a lot of trouble digging up spring rates on minis. I would bet most people are just running whatever rates came with their coilover setup. We run 350 square hypercoil as they seem to be the most consistent as far as actually being measured at the spring rate stamped on the side of them.