We've got several quotes in hand now, and are about to pull the trigger on a rather large order of studs... Basically, they'll be M14x1.25 to thread into the hub, and then be necked down to M12x1.5, with a knurl that will allow you to run current aftermarket rotors or the drilled hats of current BBK's (Wilwood, Stop-Tech, Brembo, our kit, etc.)...

Overall dimensions will be 65mm long, with 39mm of thread on the wheel side clear of the disk brake's hat, bullet nose for easy starting of nuts in the pits, with a black oxide finish. Super quality steel, made in the good 'ol USA. The length will allow you to run up to a 10mm spacer if you wish...

Again, this conversion stud will allow the M14 guys to run current aftermarket rotors, wheels and BBK's... You'll also be able to run the aftermarket M12x1.5 open nuts of your choice - tuner, keyed, etc.

Just wanted to gauge interest in such a product - I know I've gotten many, many positive responses already, but I wanted to gauge general interest.

 

I'm sure this product will be benefitial for me when I upgrade to stoptech BBK with a 3mm spacer.

Although I don't really understand all the measurements...

 

TXWERKS and I have been talking about this with my yet-to-be-recieved quote from ARP on this very design. I'm confident it will prove the simplest method of converting this funky thread deal to a more realistic design for everyone. If I don't get any feedback from ARP in a few days I'll be taking a few for inventory here as well to help lighten the load. Be nice if some other vendors would step up and take some also. I don't figure that there's really any money to be made with this, it's just a matter of being able to service our customers.

 

Hey Guys
Thats great for the people who want to do that. I now me and someone else with the 14mm who want 14mm. I don't want to give up my GP wheels to put the 13 in. brake kit on my car. Yea they would be great for the SSR's off my old car but then what do I do with my 18in wheels that came with the car. All the new MINI's are going to the 14mm lugs. I know 2 other GP guys who want 14mm studs. One of them also purchased a 13 in BBK for his GP but now has to use a spacer of 5mm to make the brakes fit.

Please we also need the 14mm studs.
Thanks for your ear.

Larry

 

I'll see what we can do about getting some M14 studs thrown into the mix... Since they'll be starting with M14 stock and turning it down on a CNC, I can't imagine why they wouldn't be amicable... The issue would be the open ended lug nuts - I'll look into that as well.

 

Thanks again for helping out. It's nice to see a vendor who'll listen to our concerns.

 

Put me down for a set of 14mm to 14mm
And yes, I would need lug nuts.

 

Thanks for showing interest MOTORN . Another GP owner trying to get his BBK kit to fit.

 

I would be interested in 14mm to 14mm studs for my Mini GP. I would like the studs to be long enough to use at least 10 mm spacers (to makeup for the large offset of the GP wheels). I have a 13" TCE/Wilwood BBK that I can not install until I get longer lug bolts or studs so that I can use a spacer (need 5 mm to clear caliper but would prefer 10 mm for appearance).

 

I'll take a set - a guy in our local club just had to have his SSR Comps drilled out to fit his new MINI, and between the cost of unmounting the tires, drilling out the holes, and re-mounting the tires, the 14mm -> 12mm conversion probably wouldn't cost much more, and it would be a one-time cost, allowing you to use a wider variety of wheels, brake kits, and things like that.

 

You could still use the GP wheels, even with 12mm studs. Some local GP owners swapped out the wheels between the GP and one of their older MINI's, just to see how they'd look. The X-lites from the older car fit the GP just fine (even cleared the JCW brakes), and the GP wheels went on the older car with no problems either.

I don't know if it was foresight or just plain dumb luck, but all of the stock MINI wheels produced to date fit either the 12mm or 14mm studs/bolts with no issues.

 

Bingo.
Regardless of who finally gets them produced it'll be a valuable product for all MINI owners.

 

Put me down for a set of the 14mm to 12mm studs...I'll prepay.

Need new lug nuts too...prefer open-ended version (some sanctioning bodies require them to race).

If I can also get some that have the integrated washer (rotates at the base of the nut) built in, that'd be great too--helps keep the finish on the expensive rims from getting scratched up.

I'll keep checking your site but please PM me or post when they're available. Thanks again!

 

Are we saying now that the R90's will fit my Mini with factory 14mm bolts?

 

More than one GP owner has swapped wheels with their other MINI. The concern seems to be with aftermarket wheels that are drilled for 12mm lugs or studs only.

 

I'm getting a set of EBC rotors Friday in stock size. I'll remove a wheel and see if they fit along with testing the R90's. I'll post the results. This is a May 06 built MCC.

 

They should - I think all the stock MINI wheels have a bolt hole diameter that's 16mm or so. I know the 15-inch "Holies" and the "X-lites" fit with the larger 14mm bolts.

 

I guess I'm a little confused, then. In post #4, you said that you were worried about not being able to use your GP wheels if you went with a 14mm-12mm conversion. I would think the GP wheels would work with either size. And the 14mm-12mm conversion is supposed to be able to work with up to a 10mm spacer, so my thinking was that you could get the conversion studs and run any of the big-brake kits out there that are already designed for 12mm studs, and still be able to use your GP wheels.

Sorry if I misunderstood your original post.

 

The build date for 14mm is 07/06

 

I don't want a conversion stud. 14mm is stronger. I already have the hats for the Wilwoods drilled for 14mm. Since the 14mm is going to be standard on all the new MINI's, it would seem the interest should be in a 14mm stud. The conversion to me is just a stop gap for the present.

 

What he said!

 

THANK YOU

We think the same way on this one.

 

Forgive me, but there are two issues here. Let's not confuse them.

The main goal here is a conversion. Why? Because the vast majority of wheels, brake kits and cars in service run the M12 thread. The value of the conversion extends to suppliers who manufacture wheels, to guys like me with brakes to those in the "marketplace" looking to purchase used wheels from other members. There's a massive numbers of car owners out there who are facing limited options currently.

The need for longer M14 studs is certainly a very valuable part of the market as well. Stength aside (yes clearly they'll be stronger but needed; personally I doubt it) you new guys should be handled as well.

The difficutly is whether or not the manufactures of other items; the brakes, wheels, aftermarket rotors, etc. are going to tool up for the market. At this time I'm not sure it's that strong. (I have no crystal ball) I'm going to suggest that the vast number of M14 owners will continue to be hampered by this change and the M12 conversion will prove your best choice.

 

Well, I've never heard of the 12mm bolts/studs snapping, so they're obviously strong enough. Honestly, I'm at a loss as to why MINI made the change to begin with. And if they felt the need to go with 14mm bolts, why not 14mm X 1.5? At least that's a size that's already in widespread use.

Regardless, even though lots of companies will probably start making 14mm studs once the R56 hits our shores, there's no guarantee that the wheel manufacturers will all step up to the plate and start making wheels with larger holes. Don't forget that the MINI is an extremely small part of the entire automotive community, so I don't see SSR (to pick an example) falling all over themselves to make their wheels fit the larger bolts.

Also, if the future brake kits for the R56 aren't backwards-compatible with the current cars that have 14mm bolts, then the post-July 2006 R53 models will likely be orphaned by the industry. If it weren't for the fact that the cabrios are going to be unchanged for another year or two, the entire run of 14mm-equipped first-gen models would consist of the GPs and five or six months' worth of Coopers and S's - hardly a large market for the brake component manufacturers.

Since your brake hats are already set up for 14mm studs, and you already have wheels that will fit over them, then that's obviously the best solution for you, but some others of us with post-July build '06 models see the 14mm -> 12mm conversion as a simple way to go back to a bolt diameter that's already been proven reliable, and to be compatible with all the wheels and brake kits that are already on the market, without worrying about when (if ever) a particular manufacturer will come out with 14mm-compatible parts.

 

Todd,
My wife and I both have 2006 'S' Cabrios, but hers has the M12 bolts and mine has the M14 bolts.
She's happy with stock brake components and her factory Webspokes, but I'm looking to upgrade. How hard would it be to swap parts between the two cars so that I end up with the M12 bolts on my car?
If it's a pain, I'll happily go with conversion studs, but if I can end up with M12 bolts just by a simple parts-swapping session, I might go that way, since it wouldn't cost me anything but time.