Can anybody help recommend some new springs that are "thinner" than stock, so I can dial in more negative camber? Right now my stock springs hit the firewall at -1.3 degrees. (I'll post pics below.)

I have KONI Yellow's right now with stock springs, and after extensive searching, the TSW springs from WMW look ideal. However they appear out of stock for at least 6 months, and the listing says specifically "One of the best features these springs have is that the front spring coils are stacked straight. This is important cause this will allow you to get more camber without the springs hitting the inner body. NO other springs are like this." [emphasis mine]

My KONI Yellow's are fine, and I'm trying to avoid buying a complete coil-over setup just to get smaller diameter front springs! Any ideas?

BTW, if it matters, the real problem I'm trying to solve is crazy high tire wear on the outside edge of my front tires during track days.

 

Here are some pics of my current set-up, and my rubbing problem:


KONI + stock springs

KONI Yellow

SPC camber plates - maxed out

Where my stock springs are hitting the firewall/body, limiting camber to -1.3 degrees

 

Swift Spec-R springs are straight-wound as well.

edit: Photo here.

 

Oh nice! Thanks for the right language as well, "straight-wound", I didn't know what I was looking for. These springs are now in the lead. I can live with ~5kg/mm, that sounds about double stock.

I've found it super hard to find ID sizes just searching around. Wish I could just slap on some 2.5" ID linear springs. Anyone happen to know if KONI sells replacement lower spring perchs? Or if they are even replaceable? (I bought my MINI with them installed, not sure if they are welded on.)

Anyway @@deepgrey, love your BRG R50 with the white top and mirrors. Go Jackets!

 

You know, I don't actually know if straight-wound is the right term. I could be misusing it . I might be thinking of another term for linear springs.

I'm pretty sure you can just knock the lower perches off the fronts. Not sure about the rear, and I have no idea if Koni sells other perches. My guess is no.

Thanks!

 

FWIW, with the KONI Yellows and Swift Spec R's, I got -1.9 on both sides w/o touching. I might've gotten a little more by judiciously "whacking" the inner wheel house with a 2 lb. sledge but, then, the limiting factor would be the strut tower openings. There's a tool to open them up as well but I don't want to perform that kind of surgery on the GP.

 

Without knowing baseline dimensions of the OEM springs, wouldn't you just be guessing on differences with any aftermarket options? FWIW, here are front spring comparisons measured when I swapped them last September (see post # 72 in my sig thread for pictures):

***************************EIBACH PRO***************JCW SPORT
FREE LENGTH******************7 1/2"**********************8"
WIRE DIAMETER***************13.1 mm********************13.8 mm
OUTER COIL DIAMETER**********5 5/8-6 1/4"**************5 3/4-6 3/4"
# COILS*************************4******************* ****3 3/4

 

Fantasitc info, thank you! I'm hoping that with my car a bit lower, and getting my negative camber closer to -2.0, that will be enough to stop killing my tires prematurely.

My plan is to cut some of the metal back on the strut tower openings to allow more room to adjust. And maybe use a sledge on that body seam that is rubbing now!

 

I know the OEM springs are rubbing now, and since I had a very hard time finding spring diameters listed at any major vendor, I was hoping folks here would know! I saw your rear spring diameters at 4" earlier in your thread but somehow missed post #72 - thank you for the pointer! (And I love your garage btw). It looks like the Eibach's are about a 1/2" smaller than the JCW Sports at the widest part. So both seem like they have the beehive shape.

Probably time to reach out to some vendors of the Swift Spec-R to see if anyone knows the diameter in the middle. And if it's close to your 6.5" number - I'll either have to find some TSW springs or bite the bullet and get coil-overs. (I know the MeisterR coil-overs use 2.5" ID springs, and I think others are similar, so that's a huge difference.)

 

Also, trying to measure @deepgrey 's photo, the Swift springs appear to be 80% of the diameter of stock. If the stock diameter is around 6.5", that puts the Swift Spec-R diameter at ~5.25", so that's about 5/8" off the radius. Giving me an extra ~1/2" of clearance, plus the camber effect of lowering.

With a set of tires costing me ~3x the price of the Swift springs, it seems like a worthwhile gamble!

Thanks for all the input in this thread, I'll post results if I buy/install the springs.

 

Oh no! I didn’t see your post. I could have taken some quick and dirty measurements when I swapped over to my winter tires. I want to say that they’re pretty much the same diameter most of their length, and that it’s roughly the same as the lower seat. I’m just going off memory (and my eyecrometer) from several years ago though.

In lieu of actual measurements, I had this photo sitting on my iPhone. It’s the wrong dimension, but at least it gives you a bit of reference, however bad it may be. Angles and lens distortion always make measuring from photos a pain.

 

Thank you @deepgrey ! All good. I've spent an obscene amount of time looking at and reading about coilovers, and have decided to redirect that extra money towards tires, and just commit to the Swift Spec-R for this season. I'll report back how much extra camber I am able to get. (And if its not enough, I plan to use a sledge to "modify" the firewall in that area!)

 

Swift Spec-R springs appear about 5.5" in diameter

 

Finally made up my mind on the components for the 2022 track season

• Swift Spec-R springs to get some more clearance
• 5X bump stops, because they seem like they know what they're doing (and @deepgrey has them!)
• Powerflex "race only" bushings for the rear, because race car
• Adjustable rear control arms, in case the lowering springs mess up the rear camber

 

looks like a sweet setup, I've toyed with the idea of the swift springs with koni yellows, but I worry the ride will be too stiff on streets for my taste. Un related, but how do you like the hawk dtc-60 compound, and are you running any cooling ducts? I'm running DTC-60 for track days with R56 calipers and cooling ducts and love them, but I'd like to delete the cooling ducts if I can do it without losing performance.

 

Hello, I wanted to ask you about the PowerFlex rear bushings, do you already have them installed? Have you noticed any change? Thanks.

 

Hi @Racingguy04 ! Sorry I missed this question. After driving around for a bit, it does feel stiff. On paper they are 2x stiffer, and it certainly jolts over bumps more. But I visually notice the slight drop and man it looks great.

I have really liked the DTC-60 pads. My Wilwood calipers have super small pad sizes, so I chew up pads at a ridiculous rate, but I have no cooling ducts and they reliably stop me at Road Atlanta turn 10A lap after lap. My top speeds are 110-120 MPH and I have zero weight reduction.

I *do* have some recent fluid boiling issues, but it was after I had a new shop bleed my brakes and I've run the DTC-60's all last year with no problems so I don't think it's pad related.

 

Hi @sanderJCW - I did install them, and frankly I don't notice any difference at all. I notice the stiffer springs, and now that I have the front camber I want, the rear end loses grip first, and I've had to dial back my rear sway bar to try to keep the behavior down at my skill level!

 

throw up a pic of how the car looks now with the drop! lol

 

Chris-You need to get cooling to your brakes. At a minimum, take out your front lamps and rig up some 2 inch ducts through the wheel liners. On my old 2005 MCS, I used (of all things) the tops from laundry detergent as adapters to use through the holes after I removed the lamps. You can use hogrings to secure the ends of the hose as they poke through the wheel liner. What brake fluid are you using...and how long a time between when the brakes were bled to actual track time? I always bleed mine no further out than 2 or 3 days before a track week-end.

 

@Aindrid I feel like I take way too many pics of my car, but somehow I struggled to find some good comparison shots between pre- and post-lowering springs!


This is stock springs, empty car.

This is Spec-R springs, empty car.

 

@NC TRACKRAT great point, and cooling the brakes can only help right?

I have used MOTUL and Redline 600 in the past. I usually have a shop bleed them a few weeks before a track day, and use the same fluid for 3-4 track days. All was fine (besides wearing out a set of pads in 2-3 days) until I snapped my supercharger belt at Road Atlanta and took my car to a nearby shop. Out of gratefulness for accepting my car on a weekend, I threw extra work in, and had the brakes bled. The next track day, I got an intermittent ABS light coming on, and fluid boiled over after every session.

I took the car home and bled the brakes myself, with a pressure bleeder, using sealed RL600. The next track day it still happened! So my current guess is that the shop got air in my ABS pump somehow, and I need to go find the tool/scanner that lets me bleed my ABS.

I haven't taken it to the track since, and have subsequently swapped out the pads for street pads so I can drive my kids to daycare and waffle house in the car (they refer to it as the "race car" and it melts my heart!). But just tooling around town that ABS light still comes on every now and then! Never came on for the life of the car before that one shop bled my brakes.

 

Chris-You're probably right about air in the ABS system. It's easy to do if they let the reservoir get too low. I believe there's supposed to be a method of bleeding the ABS by cycling the ignition on and off but I've never tried it. May be just an old wive's tale but worth a "search".