Hello from Poland
#1
10-26-2013, 12:52 PM
Hello from Poland
Hello everyone. After over half a year of searching for my perfect R53, I finally gave up and ordered a brand new car. Last wednesday I picked up one of the last R56 JCW.
Although I treat the engine gently during break-in period, I must say I'm impressed with the car. I've been driving Honda S2000 for last 6 years (which I'm fortunate enough to keep) and I have a feeling, that JCW might be comparable in terms of performance, maybe even faster in typical road conditions.
I'm not sure if I'm going to beat Mini as hard as i've beaten S2000 (never broke BTW), however if you know good articles about driving FWD fast, please drop me a message.
Once again greatings from Warsaw.
Although I treat the engine gently during break-in period, I must say I'm impressed with the car. I've been driving Honda S2000 for last 6 years (which I'm fortunate enough to keep) and I have a feeling, that JCW might be comparable in terms of performance, maybe even faster in typical road conditions.
I'm not sure if I'm going to beat Mini as hard as i've beaten S2000 (never broke BTW), however if you know good articles about driving FWD fast, please drop me a message.
Once again greatings from Warsaw.
#2
10-26-2013, 01:41 PM
Congratulations on your new MINI! I don't know if there are many MINIs in Poland, but I expect you will enjoy the ride and handling more than your S2000. These forums will help you with any questions or maintenance and repair problems you might have. There are a lot of YouTube videos on FWD racing where you can see how MINIs and other FWD cars handle into the corners.
My grandfather came to the US from Warsaw almost 100 years ago when it was still a part of the former Austria-Hungary before the 1st war. He left a number of brothers and sisters, so I expect I have a number of unknown relatives around there I've never met.
Tak więc zapraszamy "kuzyna" w świat MINI!. Wiem, że będziesz cieszyć się dowożenia JCW!
My grandfather came to the US from Warsaw almost 100 years ago when it was still a part of the former Austria-Hungary before the 1st war. He left a number of brothers and sisters, so I expect I have a number of unknown relatives around there I've never met.
Tak więc zapraszamy "kuzyna" w świat MINI!. Wiem, że będziesz cieszyć się dowożenia JCW!
Last edited by KennyR; 10-26-2013 at 01:43 PM. Reason: typo
#3
10-26-2013, 01:51 PM
Hey guy. Welcome to NAM, and I hope you'll enjoy your new car.
I was fortunate enough that my Dad, being a member of Alfa Romeo Owners Club got a deal he could not pass for us to take some classes at Portland International Raceway when I was a kid. I've auto crossed twice about 20 years ago, but I'm sure that amongst people on this forum there are many much more experienced drivers than me.
From what I understand, because of the laws of physics there are not many differences between front wheel and rear wheel drive cars. Acceleration, deceleration, and body roll will have exactly the same effects on holding the tires to the road. -In fact I've read that it takes quite a lot of skill to drive an s2000 well. Your method of driving the MINI should be the same as your other car. Just try to be smooth, do all braking before you enter a turn etc.
The biggest difference between front wheel and rear wheel drive cars is that, in a rear wheel drive car, theoretically you can infinitely accelerate into a decreasing radius corner, and eventually you'll reach a point where the back end will break loose, and you can continue decreasing the radius of the turn. In a front wheel drive car, you'll eventually reach a point where the inside front tire begins to spin, and you can't decrease the radius nor accelerate any further. The principals of throttle steer are the same, along with steering wheel corrections, -accelerate to correct oversteer, decelerate to correct understeer- again only difference is that you can't "push" the back end around under acceleration with FWD. Honestly, I try not to slide around too much. On a racetrack there may be some corners where carrying more speed and drifting across the exit may be faster, but usually it's faster to drive around a corner than slide around it,... Sliding scrubs off speed.
One thing I found to be a pleasant surprise when I started driving the MINI, is that the things we learned about having "good form", like when turning left, push the steering-wheel up with your right hand rather than pulling the wheel down with your left hand for example,.... things like that didn't seem to make as much difference to me when I was driving my honda accord, but they make a difference and seem to inspire more confidence when driving the MINI, especially when approaching the edge of adhesion. The MINI has encouraged me to not be lazy, and to have good driving habits, and polish those skills a little.
Again, enjoy your car. You picked a super awesome one!
I was fortunate enough that my Dad, being a member of Alfa Romeo Owners Club got a deal he could not pass for us to take some classes at Portland International Raceway when I was a kid. I've auto crossed twice about 20 years ago, but I'm sure that amongst people on this forum there are many much more experienced drivers than me.
From what I understand, because of the laws of physics there are not many differences between front wheel and rear wheel drive cars. Acceleration, deceleration, and body roll will have exactly the same effects on holding the tires to the road. -In fact I've read that it takes quite a lot of skill to drive an s2000 well. Your method of driving the MINI should be the same as your other car. Just try to be smooth, do all braking before you enter a turn etc.
The biggest difference between front wheel and rear wheel drive cars is that, in a rear wheel drive car, theoretically you can infinitely accelerate into a decreasing radius corner, and eventually you'll reach a point where the back end will break loose, and you can continue decreasing the radius of the turn. In a front wheel drive car, you'll eventually reach a point where the inside front tire begins to spin, and you can't decrease the radius nor accelerate any further. The principals of throttle steer are the same, along with steering wheel corrections, -accelerate to correct oversteer, decelerate to correct understeer- again only difference is that you can't "push" the back end around under acceleration with FWD. Honestly, I try not to slide around too much. On a racetrack there may be some corners where carrying more speed and drifting across the exit may be faster, but usually it's faster to drive around a corner than slide around it,... Sliding scrubs off speed.
One thing I found to be a pleasant surprise when I started driving the MINI, is that the things we learned about having "good form", like when turning left, push the steering-wheel up with your right hand rather than pulling the wheel down with your left hand for example,.... things like that didn't seem to make as much difference to me when I was driving my honda accord, but they make a difference and seem to inspire more confidence when driving the MINI, especially when approaching the edge of adhesion. The MINI has encouraged me to not be lazy, and to have good driving habits, and polish those skills a little.
Again, enjoy your car. You picked a super awesome one!
#4
10-26-2013, 02:07 PM
Alex:
Great summary from someone with more experience than me.
I'd only add the need to become familiar with "torque steer" on FWD cars such as MINI when accelerating hard. MINI has worked to correct this, and seems lessened in my 2014, but not eliminated. It's not usually considered a "problem", but is a difference from racing around in RWD cars.
Great summary from someone with more experience than me.
I'd only add the need to become familiar with "torque steer" on FWD cars such as MINI when accelerating hard. MINI has worked to correct this, and seems lessened in my 2014, but not eliminated. It's not usually considered a "problem", but is a difference from racing around in RWD cars.
#5
10-26-2013, 02:19 PM
Alex:
Great summary from someone with more experience than me.
I'd only add the need to become familiar with "torque steer" on FWD cars such as MINI when accelerating hard. MINI has worked to correct this, and seems lessened in my 2014, but not eliminated. It's not usually considered a "problem", but is a difference from racing around in RWD cars.
Great summary from someone with more experience than me.
I'd only add the need to become familiar with "torque steer" on FWD cars such as MINI when accelerating hard. MINI has worked to correct this, and seems lessened in my 2014, but not eliminated. It's not usually considered a "problem", but is a difference from racing around in RWD cars.
I forgot about torque steer, and you're right. It is better on the MINI, but still there a little.
Last edited by AlexQS; 10-26-2013 at 02:24 PM.
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