Oh, I had a loaner of 3-C Countryman not too long ago... Uhg, I feel for you...
You are lucky you have a MINI dealer who will do that for you. Mine won't...

 

Partially luck, mostly respect and good people over time.

After 15 years and four builds, it's a real partnership.

In this case I started discussing feasibility with my friend Joel DeCoff who is the chief technician. The parts decisions were mutually agreed to, as is always the case - up front.

I trust their work and experience, and they trust that I will never ask MoP to take responsibility for a non-OEM part, not the effects of my decisions. It has worked out brilliantly.

Once this lot is done and dusted, and during the slack days of winter, I've another project or two that we'll tackle. I'm still in analysis paralysis over ride height, spring rate, roll center, and tight clearances.

I had a chat with Joe (Service Manager) this morning, and asked him if he minded my being forthcoming in this blog about some of the more unusual jobs his crew has tackled, and to ensure his willingness to have others making similarly bold proposals. His view was supportive and open-minded, and he simply stated that any non-OEM adventures will always be taken on a case by case basis.

For me, aiming to run this Gollum IV well over 100,000 miles (I elected Extended Service to that mark during the purchase) knowing that only one shop has EVER touched the car is a great comfort and will pay off down the road I am sure.

So admittedly I am trying to have my cake, and also eat it.

Cheers,

Charlie

 

I know that my dealer did aftermarket stuff at one time, but I think they had some bad experiences with some people and that ended that. I have had problems with indie shops who supposedly knew what they were doing. I have had to either fix it my self, or go back to my dealer to get stuff fixed that was messed up by others. They have been good about that.

So to you for being a good customer and to MoP for taking the time with you...

I wish I could help with the suspension setup, but you are getting into details that are beyond me and my experience. Plus, my experience is for the track and a bit of conservatism, whereas for autocross you probably want something that is less conservative. I am very interested in reading about what you come up with.

 

Also curious what direction you'll go in, seems like the setup on the third gen isn't so different from the old cars, with the stock front bar I think square spring rates are the way to go, we're softer in the back and pumping up the rear tires to get the rotation we like out of it, not terrible but I think we could be using them better. Hope you nail it out of the box.

 

Someone stole the tranny...




Here's the OEM culprit - the open diff!




Now we wait for the phantom clutch...

FYI, the phantom clutch is a special pressure plate that shows up in inventory, but is not on the shelf, and which must therefore be sourced from Germany with an apparently open ended lead time...

Cheers,

Charlie

 

If it makes you feel good about the choice of the Quaife, you should know that the GP3 uses a Quaife. Yes, a real LSD dif in a MINI...

 

I don’t know if you are following any discussion about the GP3, but this car may have some bits and pieces that might work for you... such as sway bars (sounds like maybe front and rear), under body braces, etc. At least, as more specific details come out, they may give you some ideas for your upgrades. Here is a thread that I have been following;
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ml#post4505975

 

to he who waits (Galatians 5:22)...

I've now been tooling around in the Countryman for over two weeks. A stalwart little beast, which distinguished itself during this week's snowstorm. Perhaps I should not return it until spring??

Today however, I shall go and fetch Gollum - extracting him from the warm garage where he's rested while the clutch traversed the Atlantic, and setting forth on the indifferent road surfaces that are now pervasive around here.

Ah well, a better test ground for the Quaife could hardly be found.

Should be fun - we'll see.

Cheers,

Charlie

 

Thanks to the Mini of Peabody crew for this rather massive improvement.


Officially two wheel drive!


Cheers,

Charlie

 

Note to self: The Quaife is a good news, bad news proposition. The good news is that the car generates more thrust at the front wheels when traction is marginal. The bad news is that the slightly forgiving behavior of the eDiff, which appears to delay torque application and avoid wheelspin, is replaced by a direct connection from the gas pedal to both front wheels. That puts a sudden premium on throttle control!

One of my usual routes takes me from a secondary road up a tight clockwise ramp onto a divided highway, where there is a nice acceleration lane available.

Needless to say, a great spot to practice matching the twist of the steering wheel to the throttle position, so as to squirt up to 75 mph promptly and enjoy the muscular 3rd gear. The eDiff did OK up 'till this point - no drama.

This morning as I rolled on the throttle, zipping from 45 up to highway speed, Gollum suddenly jumped left a foot - still within my lane - as BOTH tires reached the limit of traction at a point where I had not entirely unwound the wheel. That prompted the Note to Self just quoted.

I did not have to change my knickers, and lesson (re) learned.

Cheers,

Charlie

 

CMT52663

Having a mechanical diff is quite fun isn't it?! proper use of traction really does help propel the cars around corners in such a reactive fashion. Makes you change your driving style for sure

 

Life surprises...

Yesterday I came home, to have a bite and wait an hour or so before attending Ford vs. Ferrari...

I left, and within a hundred yards or so Gollum CLANKED!

I sh*t you not. He clanked. So I stopped, reversed direction, and returned to base.

Fast forward to 11 am this morning, ignoring the Mini Service call that failed to transport us to Peabody last night, and failed again this morning, but ultimately succeeded. A flat bed, because I am pretty freaked out at a CLANK!

Mind you the clank was not drive train, nor was it brakes - any minor ripple in the road would provoke it but no drama appeared to accompany it.

So we unloaded at Mini of Peabody, and while having a putt around the parking lot to illustrate the problem to my Crew Chief (Joel DeCoff - Chief Tech at MoP) we were assaulted by a black BMW that zipped out from behind a building at a generous speed and attempted to destroy Gollum. I stopped, and the benighted employee driving said BMW stopped, and when the dust settled we had kissed plastic without real damage, but destroyed the remaining parts of my nervous system.

Subsequent forensic investigations revealed the following startling truth - a Bilstein has failed by losing the top of the main shaft!


Looks normal (LF corner)



However...



Appearances may deceive...

So the good news is that all the hard work that MoP did to install the Quaife stands up, which I expected.

The bad news is that I've put one set of Bilsteins on the back (still there) and TWO sets on the front (each of the original front shocks had been replaced in the last year due to inability to adequately torque the top nuts). So this failure kinda triggers me as I have been debating a set of coil-overs come warmer weather.

So shall I put a 7th Bilstein on the car?

Nope.

So making lemonade out of this bitter situation means I've sourced a set of Works coilovers, and so we shall banish the Bilsteins, drop the ride height about 15mm, and corner weight.

That will improve Gollum's performance as a snowplow over the winter, and perhaps also the autocross performance come the warmth of spring.

I dunno whether to laugh or cry at this point.

Cheers,

Charlie

 

Sorry to hear about the Bilsteins. That isn’t right (stating the obvious). Good you caught it without it doing any damage. And I hope your nerves are returning to normal.

When you say “a set of Works coilovers” do I assume correctly you are referring to the JCW Pro Sport Chassis (suspension coilovers)? I just put them on my JCW and I am impressed. Stiffer, firmer, nice control over the base JCW suspension. I think you will like it and I expect it will do well for autocross.

A side note on mine. I am not sure how far they (dealer) lowered the car, but it is lot more than what I wanted. My before and after measurements are not making sense as it is lower than what they say it will go. So, I may have measured my “before” incorrectly. As a result of being so low, I think I am getting some CV joint rumble under hard acceleration that I have read about when people have lowered their MINI too much. Not everyone has had this happen. I am also scrapping going in and out of my driveway. None the less, it will be raised up.

Can I ask that you/dealer take some good before and after height measurements at the wheels and post them? It would be helpful to me. Thanks.

 

Yep, the Bilstein's should not break like that.

Yep, I am referring to the JCW Pro coil-overs, and your observations affected my decision, for which I thank you.

I've asked the crew to drop Gollum 15 mm. I may have to buy the shop a set of scales, as I do intend to have a proper cross-weight. That's a SWAG, as I have not measured the roll-centers. Anecdotally the GP is 10 mm lower than the S, and I've noted that too.

And I'll pass along measurements as they appear.

Daft, I am.

Cheers,

Charlie

 

Just an FYI - Here is a post by someone who did an in-depth measurement of the JCW suspension and the Pro suspension:
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ml#post4112455

It will be interesting to see what you come up with...

 

I have done a few measurements on my original JCW car height and compared it to the MINI recommendations (which I can’t figure out) and what was done in the thread I linked to in the above posts. Thought you might be interested in what I found:
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ml#post4509354

 

I am Eddie, and I should have my results posted tomorrow for your consideration.

I've been a bit distracted by RCA on the Bilsteins, which may also yield to a useful answer.

Cheers,

Charlie

 

 

OK, folks here's the tale that has been simmering in the background this year. I believe it can now be told, as all the evidence is finally in.

In January of this year the MoP pit crew installed the K-MAC camber plates, which I sourced through ECS Tuning.

They allowed us to run a lovely alignment for the 2019 competition season, but ultimately became a serious issue.

Here is the timeline for this saga:


It seems that Kevin (Proprietor for K-MAC, out of Sydney AU) produced the camber plates believing that the F56 front shock mainshaft OD was 12 millimeters- which is not the case.

Actually the OEM shock top is 13.3 mm - like this:


OEM shaft OD.

The Bilstein B8 shaft is 13.2 mm, like this:


Bilstein shaft OD.

What lead the crew to finally realize the root cause was that the JCW Pro shaft would not even SEAT in the K-MAC plate as the diameter above the shaft base is greater than 12.5 mm (the base is 12.99 mm) like this:


JCW Pro OD

Other clues observed during this inquiry come from the deformation of the shaft top on the Bilsteins during the past year.

Right front (near failure after about 19k miles):


RF Bilstein - 19 k miles

And the total failure of the LF Bilstein - note the original profile of the shaft base has been hammered by the improper fitment, resulting in the failure:


Snapped LF Bilstein

Joel DeCoff and the Mini Crew, having been very patient, supportive, and reasonable during this ordeal suggested that the center plate of the K-MAC where the shaft seats should be re-bored to properly fit the collar at the base of the JCW Pro shock.

We did that, and subsequently the JCW Pro installation went well.

K-MAC listened, looked at the evidence, and finally the last email I received was this:

I note that Tirerack was interested in this research (thanks Kathy - acting as liaison with Bilstein) and I appreciate that support.
Regrettably I must also report that ECS tuning was NOT interested in this inquiry, and immediately referred me to K-MAC.
Mini of Peabody consistently went above and beyond the call of duty, which is typical of my experience with them over the last 15 years.

So all's well that ends well, and iin my next post I shall return to the JCW Pro setup, final dimensions, and initial impressions.

Cheers,

Charlie

 

Wow, what a find...

It is wonderful that MoP is that cooperative with you.

Glad to hear that K-Mac was interested and Tire Rack was supportive as well. It is disappointing that ECS was less interested and “sent you running”. Side question, but not necessarily for you to answer, are they going to fix theIr product?

I was looking at installing the K-Mac plates, but held off as my dealer is not so interested in dealing with aftermarket parts and didn’t want to impact the warranty. Glad I did hold off. Now, the question is (again, not aimed at you), how do I get the proper sized item from K-Mac if and when I do this? Or do I have to fix it myself? Ugh...

Looking forward to the rest of the story...

 

I will be interested to know if you would have switched from the Blisteins to the Pro if you had caught this sooner.

 

Probably not in fact.

C'est la guerre, ne'est-ce pas?

Cheers,

Charlie

 

OK, the Quaife and the JCW Pro installation are done, and all seems well.




Ride height measured from lower outer rim edge to top center of wheel well.




So, interestingly enough the JCW Pro installation instructions contains some specs for ride height that we ignored.

The rear shocks are near their lowest setting - the spec setting is not attainable ( are the JCW specs BS? ) - which drops the back 11 mm.

The fronts are within center range - which drops the nose 15 mm. Increase to rake from spec is 5 mm. Here again the JCW spec seems quite odd, and was disregarded.

After 20 miles in bad weather, the chassis is planted, quiet, and firm. Too soon to say of course.

But promising.

Cheers,

Charlie

 

 

So, your first impressions seem to be good, similar to my experience and that of others I have read about who have made this change.

I think mine are currently set at 562mm front and rear, and the fronts are slammed. You have the same wheels I have so I can relate to your measurements. I need to get my fronts up higher and see if that gets rid of the CV joint wobble I have. At least I think that is the issue.