Originally Posted by maxmini

As It has been quite awhile since I retold this story and over 400 of these units have been sold I guess it is time to mention a few things once again for those new to the Mini world. I had what could be described as a competition suspension , Leda gas emulsified coilovers, adjustable front camber plates, H-sport comp bars front and rear , rear adjustable control arms and a upper front strut tower brace . My best lap time at the big track at Willow Springs up to that point was a 143.2. At the time the weak part of my program was the motor so I felt that time was OK. My car had been in this configuration for close to 18 months so I was very familiar with the feel and capabilities of the setup. About 2 months after the event where I as able to put down the 143.2 I went back with the USS installed. There were no engine mods done during that time , the same Toyo Ra 1's were used and my best time on the day was a 141.4. More importantly I did not feel I was as close to the " edge " as I did turing the slower time . Now this is all my opinion and of course I have a vested interest. Thes times are all taken by my onboard Hot Lap system and is VERY accurate . Let me give you someone else's opinion who's credentials are a " bit " stronger than mine.

In december of 05, yes we have been selling these units that long, I did a event at California Speedway for Eurotuner Magazine called " My Car Challenge " . During the event my car was driven for two sessions by professional race car driver Will Turner owner of Tuner Motorsport / Race Team and Grand AM champion . He also has a Mini of his own that does not leave the shop without a full bottle of NOS so he knows his way around the Mini .During the event Will drove a variety of BMW's etc including a track prepared supercharged M3. Let me quote his comments as they were published in the April 2006 edition of Eurotuner Magazine

"Will's Assessment : The Mini was definitely the most fun car today. It was hard to tell the lap times as the car was deceivingly fast. It doesn't pull like the supercharged M3 but it was great in the corners and easily made up for lack of pace on the straights . It made good use of its R compound tires too. I would race this Mini the way it is - it could enter a Grand Am race and be competitive. "


On a side note at the end of the event Will sought me out to take one more run in the car during the last open lap session. Of all the cars there the fact that he picked mine felt pretty good . He offered to take me along and I could not refuse. Seeing what the car could really do was both eye opening and educational . I learned a few tricks in that 20 min that I will never forget . I tell you the difference between a pro and armature is amazing on so many levels one of the biggest is breaking. They go Deeeeeeep LOL. He cut my brake zone in half at least and I thought I was going in pretty far to begin with. The biggest thrill was Will spying the M3 about a half a lap ahead and him saying , " that has a supercharger and we are going to catch it.". I held on and 5 laps later we did just that . The Mini never made me more proud especially when the owner of the M3 came up in the paddock later to find out what the hell happened LOL .

Later in the day I had a nice sit down with Will and discussed a variety of things with regards to my car . He said the USS was certainly a benefit as he could never push his car as hard as he did mine. I didn't think about it but he said that under hard braking and he brakes HARD a mini has a tendency to wander a bit . He felt that mine tracked straighter than any he had driven. Also in the tight turns he was able to rotate the car at will, something he says is absolutely necessary in a FWD car to get thru the tight parts whether it be on a road track or Auto X.
So what does all this mean ? Well to sum it up I say it works . More importantly so does WIll and the other 399 happy customers

Randy
M7 Tuning

Originally Posted by succubus

Actually I think it's a good question, but nevertheless I've decided that based on my previous knowledge of the benefit of a stiffened chassis REGARDLESS of the suspension setup, I'm going to give the USS a try. Any time a professional race driver gives such a ringing endorsement of a street car, I listen.

Originally Posted by goaljnky

Yeah, make sure and come up and thank me. I will continue to call BS on your Kool Aid. To distill the flowery story above:

1. I drove my car before and after with the product I resell and it felt faster.
2. Second guy drove my car after and said it felt good.

Conclusion: Second guy agreed it was better.

Umm, OK. Still nothing but BS by M7. Was any other cars there to compare against? No? OK.

And Blimey: make sure to stop by the M7 shop. I am sure they have a lot more product that will make you "feel" faster. Well they have no shop, but the web site has a nice CF background.

Originally Posted by MINICHEF

you sir seem to be one pissed off MINI owner.
if you dont like the uss ok
if you like it ok
this is america and we freely do what we like and you are free to have your opinion
my opinion is you need to go take your blood pressure medicine, go out and drive the snot out of your MINI until it is impossible to wipe a smile from your face and then go home and make yourself a very stiff cocktail and forget all about m7

Originally Posted by goaljnky

..."It is the unpopular (or difficult) fight that is worth fighting."

Originally Posted by BigSky

Can't we all just get along?

Originally Posted by goaljnky

Yeah, make sure and come up and thank me. I will continue to call BS on your Kool Aid. To distill the flowery story above:

1. I drove my car before and after with the product I resell and it felt faster.
2. Second guy drove my car after and said it felt good.

Conclusion: Second guy agreed it was better.

Umm, OK. Still nothing but BS by M7. Was any other cars there to compare against? No? OK.

And Blimey: make sure to stop by the M7 shop. I am sure they have a lot more product that will make you "feel" faster. Well they have no shop, but the web site has a nice CF background.

Originally Posted by goaljnky

And Blimey: make sure to stop by the M7 shop. I am sure they have a lot more product that will make you "feel" faster. Well they have no shop, but the web site has a nice CF background.

Originally Posted by goaljnky

I had the USS on my car some time ago. It's issues with fitment and getting the run around from their staff notwithstanding, it did seem to do what they claimed. I must reiterate "seem". In my attempt to get rid of the racket it was causing I upgraded my suspension to the state described above. I and my co-driver immediately noticed a tremendous and positive difference. However, the USS was still making way to much noise so I finally elected to remove it completely. Surprisingly, once removed it had no negative effect.

Originally Posted by WestCoastMiniModMan

I like to thank M7 for an awesome product, the fit is impeccable with an awesome black anodized finish.
I installed the system in about an hour and that after never seen the product other then in pictures.

My car is an 05 MCS Convertible, with a Bilstein PSS9 suspension, H-sport comp bars front and rear, RDR camber plates, racing Dynamics STB and finally the H-sport rear control arms.

And I almost forgot, 255/35-18" wheels with Toyo T1R tires. All this rubber is possible as I custom fitted some fiberglass flares to my Aero Kit.

The car as it sat before the M7 USS was a handful, the car went from understeer to oversteer with an unsettling unbalanced feel. This made the car very hard to drive fast without white knuckle inducing antics.

After I installed the system I took the car out to the "Loop" my favorite neighborhood test track.... It's pretty amazing how the car will now dive in to the corners with more stability
and poise, no shimmy or sudden wobbles that was all to obvious before the under strut system.

I hope this answered some of your questions regarding the USS and the convertible application.

Johnny

Originally Posted by CFMINI

Had the m7 USS installed today on my 2002 MCS and got a chance to try it out on one of my favorite canyon carving runs on the way back home.

How does it work??? EXCELLENT!!

It makes the car feel more "settled" in high speed sweepers after your turn-in. If you hit a bump in the middle of a turn, the car does not "jump" like before.

I could not feel too much of a difference in low speed twisties - but I need more testing - Monday is a holiday!!

Originally Posted by FlynHawaiian

Well I just came back from the track and have to say the uss is the final touch on any suspension. I had a few instructors drive my car and have made many comments to me such as, "this car is set up amazing". All I can say is WOW. It was the final touch made the car straight and true. I'm so tired right now, that I cannot think too straight. Anyone who thinks they know how to drive their car should buy one and realize how much they suck without it :D.

Before I installed the uss, I was having a wierd problem where, when you gas the "hell" out of the car she was a bit "squirly"... Fixed that. The cornering ability of the car greatly improved quite a bit too. Was amazing to learn that the car sits and goes without any problems.

Over all, the "high speed" tracking and stability of the car have drastically improved about 10 folds. I'm really happy with the product.

Originally Posted by yumhaggis

Okay people I didn't think I was going to be one of the folks to say "wow" what a big difference I noticed right away . WRONG within 6ft of moving my car under power I could feel the tightness of the chassis, I knew that the very first corner I came to I just had to hit it hot & heavy and all I kept saying over and over was OMG this is so neat what a big differnce, worth every dollar, if you can only afford one change to your handling this is the one to do out of 5

Originally Posted by ///ACS330Ci

I've found the the M7 USS eliminates a lot of the chatter I previously had driving over rough surfaces, especially in corners under normal driving conditions as well as more spirited driving. So, IMHO I'd have to say it improves the ride quality overall no matter how you plan to drive your car.

Originally Posted by pure&simple

I'll second that. I just had the USS and M7 STB installed and noticed an immediate difference driving home - the car seemed to ride better over the highway expansion joints and the impacts seemed like they more damped. This was a welcome improvement as my suspension setup is pretty stiff. I'd speculate that the more suspension mods you've done and the harsher your ride, the more you'll notice an improvement with the USS and STB. (Since I had both installed at the same time, I can't comment on the effectiveness of one or the other... just the combination of the two seems to work well.)

Originally Posted by Deans_JCW

Just finished my install of the USS system and it makes a huge difference. I had the top strut bar on for about 2 weeks or so and that diffently helped but together with the USS...the difference is awesome I have stock s suspension, I'm waiting on a set of hsport springs from m7, I'll have more to say on the handling after I get those installed.

Originally Posted by PARTSMAN

A friend of mine with a cabrio that was at my dyno day at Swift had one installed while we were there. He said he loves it, makes a big difference.

Originally Posted by MSFITOY

Sweeet Mother of MINIs I like this setup I just finished a trouble free install of M7's USS and took Msfitoy out for a spin. I must say that the difference to me was very noticable...especially over the heavily grooved pavements across asphalt intersections (from Michigan's overweight semis:impatient). Turn in response feels quicker too...another keeper mod

Originally Posted by 62Lincoln

This sums it up for me, too. Had my USS installed today, and the difference is noticeable immediately. As others have noted, the car seems to ride more smoothly, as though the suspension is now able to more effectively do its job. The car also seems quieter and more stable over bumps. Very impressed.
Great job!

Originally Posted by Gr8Force

Had the USS installed at the Dragon. Simply amazing! Any cabrios that don't get this mod are doing themselves the disfavor of not being able to enjoy their MINI beyond belief. In otherwords, if you doubt the performance of this mod then drive someone's who has it. Then you'll believe.

Originally Posted by coolcab

This system is awsome! Every Cabrio should have it. Peter and M7 have really turned aout a fantastic product. Tested out on the dragon. It is really worth the $$$$

Originally Posted by ncdave

Finally, my USS has been installed...

My Cooper (a non-S) has the 16" wheels with run-flats but not the Sports Plus Suspension. Having driven base Coopers, Coopers with the + suspension as well as S's, the feel of the car is much tighter and I would say it very close to the plus option but not quite as the general compliance of the base Cooper is preserved. I've only taken it out on a few twisties and turn in seems better as the car feels like it's rotating around the driver rather than plowing ahead. Will need to give it a better workout later and report. All-in-all, a worthwhile mod.

Originally Posted by haulinS

just took my newly installed USS out to the twisties this afternoon and all I can say is................yyyyeeeeesssssssssssss! I'm all smiles. It compliments the rear H-Sport Comp bar very well.

Thanks to Peter and the M7 Team for putting out another quality product.

Originally Posted by SpiderX

An update....this is an excellent mod......car is very tight and the turn in is improved......it instills extra confidence ..... car feels very solid

Originally Posted by QED

I've had my USS on for 24 hours and, like the others, I'm glad I spent the money. The car tracks more accurately than before. You need less little corrections on the steering wheel when taking a bumpy corner. It makes the MINI feel more solid, like a more expensive car. I am looking forward to my next track event.

Originally Posted by BlimeyCabrio

This thing truly is incredible. I have a stock S sport suspension - no other suspension mods. I took the car out to my closest nasty off camber rough pavement S curve. And it was like I was ON RAILS compared to before. Now I really understand what the whole "go kart" handling thing is all about - I was blown away. You can feel the suspension doing what it's supposed to, instead of fighting off the gyrations of the chassis...

I was highly skeptical. How can 10 lbs of aluminum make the kind of difference everyone has described (even if it does cost $350)???

Well, I'm here to tell you, IT DOES. WOW.

Originally Posted by abuzavi

To my good friends at M7,

I love you, and I hate you.

I love you, because the USS performs very well. My little car now truly drives like it is a go-kart. Granted, one that will do 140 mph, but a go-kart. Nothing phases it.

But i hate you, too. In a good way. When I got my car last November, I just drove it like it was stolen. Or, at least, that's how it felt.

Then I added an (Alta) 15% reduction pulley. Suddenly, I really was driving it like it was stolen. My gas mileage went into the toilet.

Now, with the USS in place, I'm betting these tires won't hit 15k miles. I don't know whether to remove the brake pedal, because I just don't need it any more, or to slap on some serious big brakes, because if I actually do need to use brakes, I'll need them in a big & bad kind of way.

Oh, and why a USS now? Me and the boys are heading to the Alps in a little bit, to go slay some real Dragons. Going to be a twistie bonanza. I don't know how many from the group are running out and getting the USS before then, but I'd bet that half the cars will have them on before we go.

Much thanks,
Art

Originally Posted by FFisher1

I did the one ball first, then put in the USS. Then I added the Upper Strut support bar and reinforcing plates. WOW .

Originally Posted by MiniMaybee

I love it. Makes the car so much more responsive! Very happy with it...

Originally Posted by goaljnky

When did we establish all that? The only statements of fact are these:

1. I asked for help and it took 8 month to get it. During the course of which the vendor stood me up on 3 occasions.

Originally Posted by goaljnky

2. Vendors solution was for me to remove my exhaust.

Originally Posted by goaljnky

3. Even knowing that I had a problem, the vendor never offered to take the product back.

Originally Posted by goaljnky

But, in this love in things just get twisted. I guess Fan Bois will be Fan Bois. Very well. I will leave you all to your circle jerk. The MOST important part is that you "feel" good about it.

Originally Posted by Skiploder

There is not one shred of proof that the USS does anything but lighten your wallet. I'm glad that someone spent an hour looking up all the quotes in praise of the product. Congratulations, you just spent a considerable amount of time proving nothing. Where are the tests proving that the handling is improved to such a degree that lap times or Auto-X times are improved? Are there other tests that can be performed?

...

As to the part doing performing as claimed - prove it. Prove it without referring to the infamous butt dyno or using terms like "it feels" or "it seems". Give the forum before and after lap times or handling data. Until then, accept that people are going to question whether or not this part works. So live with it.

Originally Posted by mozzarella

I find if you buy something you usually think it works that help when you are paying the MC bill.

Originally Posted by mozzarella

I find if you buy something you usually think it works that help when you are paying the MC bill.

Originally Posted by goaljnky

That will cost you a pint and a shot of Patron (I am principled, but not stupid)

Originally Posted by mozzarella

I find if you buy something you usually think it works that helps when you are paying the MC bill.