ive been in a couple of cars with springs.. they definatly make for a smoother ride, but you loose the hard suspension good for cornering.. makes it handle more like a car with hydro.

Their was a write up in MiniWorld about the coil conversion (July 08 issue). They said their are different types, some with spacers others with a longer coil and they gave them a positive wrap.
Obviously I don't believe they do these reviews out of their own pocket. Which ever company supplied the parts would do them a deal as MW do drop company names and contacts quite thickly, but I do reckon they have a margin of truth and honesty about the product being reviewed.
Theirs a few types here,
http://www.minispares.com/SearchResults ... e&ty=&rt=1
and some more,
http://www.minispares-online.co.uk/inde ... _cat_id=65
I was looking at them for my van but I thought they may be too rough for a cruiser and I wasn't sure how much it would cost all up so I went with the tried and try rubber cones If I were you I'd also look at coil overs.

_________________
Respect mine and I'll respect yours.

I have drven a few cars with coils and they are great ... even motorkhanad with them in one car... yes the ride is softer but it is still firmer than hydro...

unless your going to be racing the car i would use them ... they work really well with some stiffer shocks this is why most of the cars that come from japan with coils also have SPAX or KONI's fitted as well

as for new doughnuts i know of two people who bought brand new ones and within six months they were sagged out like the old one's...Leaving them with the same ride that required them to need to wear a kidney belt every time they went to the shops..

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I am the son of the STIG

HOTBRICKS
http://hotbricks.org.au/

'65 NCF MINI.....
'69 MINIMATIC.... 9 year resto still on the go

I love them for a road car...
and there are different rates available for a sporty ride.

Archangel
But then again, define 'better'??...
Having some teeth left after driving your car.
and not having that whining in your ear for days after from the missus that your car is crap to go in and she has a sore back

_________________
Miniworx Centre 0883741299
Sooperdooperminicooperexpertengineering
Online BMW Mini Shop

I have seen on Ebay UK people selling genuine rubber cones for around the 95 pound mark (not including shipping) for a set of four, which sounds about right to me. The packing looks genuine with correct part numbers etc.

Again, I like the sound of the Smootaride kit but whether it's worth it or not, I don't know.

if your going to put sprints on put a full coil over setup in it rathe then just changing the cone element ittle work slightly better

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Potato

But coil overs don't work

_________________
Miniworx Centre 0883741299
Sooperdooperminicooperexpertengineering
Online BMW Mini Shop

If the Indians can't make good rubber products, then they would be NFG at anything else.

Poor Jaguar/Rover

(But maybe the call centres for service would be OK)

_________________
1967 Cooper S - new front bearings to do.
1965 Cooper S shell - Slow progress. No time or money!
1966 Deluxe- next rustoration!
Mk 2 & XJ6 Jags. Less said the better.

I think that the quality of the rubber springs were partly doomed from the word go. The designer of the Mini suspension is Alex Moulton. He comes from a long line of rubber merchants in Bradford on Avon in England. His family was behind Avon tyres. Moulton sold Avon Tyres to get into the suspension field. The problem was while Moulton had his own rubber company he could make what he wanted but when he designed the Mini rubber suspension he had to convince Dunlop to make what was needed.
So I doubt that the rubber springs were ever as good as they should have been.
This is probably why Moulton came out with the Smootha-ride upgrade.

lol i have seen a defect notice that says battery must be securely held in, no zip ties!

funny funny stuff

And your not pissing blood at the end of the drive!

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"Not Speeding Officer..........Qualifying"

I thought I'd add my two cents as it looks like everyone else has. From what I have read and some cars I have driven one of the ideas of the spring conversions is to improve the ride of otherwise standard road minis fitted with 13" wheels. I have driven a couple of minis with 13" wheels and found them a bit rougher than minis otherwise the same but with 10" wheels. This I think is due to the 13" wheels been heavier than the original suspension was designed to handle (or handle well), the springs offer a altunative to the smoother ride kit. Hydrolastic suspension is more comfortable I agree but that is also designed to work with 10" wheels and unless someone starts making replacements (I don't know of anyone doing this) they will run out one day, or at least become very expensive. As for quality issues, you get what you pay for. Buy the cheapest available and they are bound to go wrong in some way. I am still to decide on what suspension I am using in my project mini but the spring conversion is one possibility I will be looking at.

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Lindsay Palmer
06 Mazda SP23
80 Alfa GTV (weekend toy)
86 626 Turbo (daily drive, now stolen)
71 cooper s replica
69 cooper replica
76 clubman
62 english 850
68 Mini Auto

I believe the engineers refer to this phenomenon as "unsprung weight". The lower the mass of tyres, hubs, brakes etc the better the handling. Apparently that's why some exotic cars (eg Jaguar) have adopted in-board discs on their rear suspensions.

Having said that, one guy I know here has 12" rims on his hydro mini, fully adjustable suspension, stiff displacers etc and the car rides & handles really well. And someone who was sold on rubber cones previously.

_________________
1967 Cooper S - new front bearings to do.
1965 Cooper S shell - Slow progress. No time or money!
1966 Deluxe- next rustoration!
Mk 2 & XJ6 Jags. Less said the better.

AEG163job what you have said is correct, lowering the unsprung weight is also the reason for some car makers using inboard brakes (jag and alfa). I found little difference quality of the ride between 10" and 12" wheels, but a big difference between either 10" or 12" wheels and 13" wheels. The only possible reasons I can think of is the total diameter (wheel and tire) is similar for 10" and 12" wheels and much bigger for 13" wheels, maybe the 13" wheels fall just outside engineered tolerences. And possibly the weight of the 13" wheels and tires fall just outside the engineered tolerences for weight, however I can't be certain as I have not weighted 13" wheels and tires.

_________________
Lindsay Palmer
06 Mazda SP23
80 Alfa GTV (weekend toy)
86 626 Turbo (daily drive, now stolen)
71 cooper s replica
69 cooper replica
76 clubman
62 english 850
68 Mini Auto

The main reason larger tyres don't ride as well as smaller ones is the lower profile required to make them fit.

The low profile tyre has less wall height and subsequently has less springing effect provided by the tyre to help soak up bumps.

Pete