Thats the funniest statement I've heard in a long time!

 

Yowser! I guess there's something to be said for the fixed plates(which I have ordered and recently received ) for a daily driver in the rust/salt belt.

I guess ice racing is right out!

 

One thing that I do not see discussed when susspension tunning is the topic is tire pressure. You can get the car to do a lot with just a pound or two difference.

I have the H-Sport comp bar on the MINI. I put it on the softest setting and set the tire pressure the same all the way around. I did not like the set up at first. NO lift throttle oversteer. So I started playing with the pressures a bit. I found the sweet-spot to be 34 in the front and 36 in the rear.

So if you are concerned about the negitive camber in the front causing the car to oversteer or do something unexpected then make sure you have the same tire pressures all around.

All it takes is a pound or two to make some major changes in how the car handles. Get a good gauge and stay on top of the pressure levels.

Happy Motoring

 

Winter *seemed* over here in NH, as well. Today, I thoroughly washed the MINI (its first hand-washing since October), cleaned the winter crud from the engine compartment, pressure washed the undercarriage, clayed the whole car, and applied a two step Zaino quicky job. The weather was beautiful all day. Well, it's 32° and there's about 3" of wet snow on the ground (and the MINI) and it's still falling. The winter that would never start, seems that it will never end :impatient.

A friend of mine installed the H-Sport camber plates just before we went on the Arctic MINI Run. I'll have to see how his are holding up. I went the Ireland route, as well, to save some bux - and, as always, it's winding up costing more in the long run, as I'll probably go H-Sport or Helix next.

Yeah, almost sounds like a child's red rubber playground ball bouncing on the ground. I didn't expect it either, but got used it it before long.

 

I've got the Helix plates on my daily driver. Let me know where to look for seizing and I'll check mine out once it warms up (and the car comes back from the body shop).

Cursory visual inspection from the engine compartment didn't show anything to warrant a closer look, but that might not mean anything. And pretty much every bolt on the underside of my car is rusted, so I guess it would be pretty amazing if the camber plates weren't.

 

in UHV world (ulta high vacuum), we used silver plating on the bolts to prevent galling. While it sounds expensive, it's not really, and if you go the right place, they may be an off the shelf solution. But this would last forever.

On camber plate noise, I have the Hotckiss comp adjustables. I thought they were really quiet, but their sounds were just masked by my failing control arm bushings. Now that those are fixed, they, like alll mono-*****, do bang around a bit. Just the nature of the beast.

Matt

ps, I was at the AMVIV track events this weekend, and with about -2 up front, on the very tight course at Parump (however that's spelled) I didn't have any excessive wear on the outer front tires. And the place was just repaved last year. I also was a sub in the MC2 dynamic showcase. So between my laps in the intermidate group and the MC2 laps, I must have gone around almost 50 times! Quite the tiring day..... But had I had the stock camber, I know what I would have been doing on Saturday... Buying tires!

 

I can't wait to get to LRP next tues. and fri. to give my new setup a proper workout.

I had my dad in the car the other day and on one particular twisty he said, "whoooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaaa on winter tires?!?!?! you're braaaaaaave..."

haha all was under control. Plus, they're performance winter tires!

mb

 

I'm going up on the 7 of April PDA you should sign up for that one we have 9 mini's going

 

*****!!! My car will not be ready. Still have two blown shocks

 

Dr O. Just how noisy are the monoball camber plates. Sooner or later the rest of my suspension will be heim joints anyway. I doubt very much teh noice will bother me, or the ride. Just how harsh is it. I know these are hard questions to answer on line, but i dont know anyone with monoball camber plates. lets say this, 1 to 10, 1 being stock (for lots of room to play) and 10 being you cant drive it on anything but glass without busting teath, where would they fall? thanks for your help.

Oh, ive started to mod the 06 mustang, and they all use camber bolts because you have to chop up the car to do much of anything else with camber ot instal proper plates. Anyone here ever tried to get camber bolts into the mini. Although the way we drive our cars, they probably wouldnt hold thier setting. hahah

Beecher

 

So, just so I am clear, running -2.0 camber on the front will actually increase tire life in street/daily driver use?

 

If your driving is exclusively city streets and freeways, most likely not. If more of your route entails plenty of turns at speed, what Matt says is definitely correct.

 

the noise isn't too bad.... Maybe a 6 on your scale. On normal asphalt I can't tell it's not stock. Its on the bumps, potholes and expansion joints that it "talks to you". The only other measure I have is the "wife meter". She noticed, but didn't make any real negative comments. And at about 8 months into a pregnancy, she'll still ride in it!

And -2 seems to do me well. I honestly don't know if stock or -2 would have longer tire life on freeways, but for the mix of driving I find most Mini owners doing, -2 seems fine.

Matt

 

Being new here, I'd sure like input from some of you more experienced Mini drivers... I only drive on the street (as an old man, that's all they let me drive on!), and my goal is to reduce the understeer a bit, and avoid the 'dreaded mushroomed towers'.

Thanks in advance!

Mark Gibson
2007 MCSc

 

Matt, you should qualify your response with a video of the 30 minute mtn drive to your home! Mixed driving?

 

Everybody's going to Lime Rock and nobody will treck up to NHIS? Come on, folks.

 

What's nhis? where is it? My sister lives in Rutland VT is it close

 

New Hampshire Int'l Speedway, in Loudon, NH. 'bout 2:20 from Rutland

 

Does anybody make a fixed camber plate with more than -1.25degrees?

I am wanting to be able to go fixed, or adjustable and set it and forget it.

Constanly getting alignments does not sound fun to me...

Due to the cost a fixed plate seems to make more sense, and I dont plan on doing much adjusting.

The more I read.. It just seems -1.25 is not going to be enough... I do alot of twisty day to day driving and do occansional track days.

Thoughts?

 

Thanks for the info and the map quest

 

Hi Tony, I do still need to drive on freeways to get to my hills!

Moto... It's 1.25 MORE than stock. It should set you at about 1.75 negative (stock speck is 0 to -0.5 degrees, I think).

mgibson, your first name wouldn't be Mel, would it? Anyway, if you just want to dial out some understeer, a rear bar will do that. If you have wear on the outside of your front tires, the fixed camber plates will fix that and reduce understeer. I don't know if it will reduce is as much as you want, but it will be a start.

Matt

 

So long as your factory settings are consistent on both sides, a fixed plate would be fine for your needs. Adjustable are nice just in case they are not though...

You can pick-up used plates for a fairly good price in the Marketplace also. I have some new ones that I got a few months ago that I still have not installed because I'll be doing other things at the same time, and I'm not ready yet. Afterwards, I'll be selling my Webb plates...

 

hmmm. a 6 eh, sounds good to me, hahaha. I took the back seat out, so only one person could ***** at a time, and almost anyone else knows they wil lbe walking. Other than that, i could drive the mustang (which is about to get stage 1 race set up under it anyway, so it might not be that much beter, hahah) or the 1940(unles it rains). I think i will get the monos then,

Anyone have a street life expectancy on teh mono plates? thanks

Beecher

 

but a lot of them are rebuildable.... That is, if the bolts don't sieze!

Matt

 

NHIS is toooooooooooo far from NJ for a one day affair. Any two dayers?

mb