5 replies to this topic

[bigrob]

Hi guys
Im planning on sorting out the 100 to take a bigger and better engine, so i need to sort the body, brakes and suspension first.
As shes planned to have some serious go, is it possible to convert to coilovers, or would re adjusting the hydrogas work just as well?
Cheers guys,
Rob

[Mini-Mad-Craig]

Rob,

 

You should first look at individualising your suspension. As standard a Rover Metro, or 100 comes with linked suspension from front to back. Obviously the car is front heavy so it naturally has a nose dive stance with this set up. The aim is to remove the interlinked hydragas suspension so that each corner can be pumped to it's own individual pressure, rather than linked between the two ends. To do this it quite simple, you need to cut down the rods in a ratio that compensates for the weight of the engine.

 

The ratio you would use for the front is 3 to 1, which means that if you want to lower the car by 30mm, you would remove 10mm from the hydragas actuator rod. 

 

On the rears, a 5 to 1 ratio is used.

 

Okay, so the cars lower, but not stiffer, where do I go from here? The best way is to cut the rods down far enough that you would lower the car using the above calculations further than you wanted by one inch. This means that if you wanted to lower the car by 40mm, you'd remove enough length from the rod to lower it by 60mm, this means that you can then pump in enough hydragas fluid in its place to a higher psi than the factory standard 300PSI, 450 is the most widely used, this will increase stiffness by around 50%. 

 

An individualised Metro is a stiff car and handles great. There are then more mods that you can do to make the car even stiffer, like anti roll bars and shocks. You will need to buy some individualised valves, or get them front an MGF. They are fairly cheap, under £80 for all 4.

 

Rover Metros and 100's don't come with shocks unless they are the Mk3 GTI. You can however buy shock mounts for the front which weld in with the ready drilled hole as your marker, and the rear turrets are also a fairly easy conversion, too. With some welding and fabrication skills you could get them in. I think by this point your car should handle very well indeed! 

 

Watsons do a coil conversion kit for K-Series converted Minis, Its simply a spring which sits in place of the hydragas unit. I'm unsure on whether they've produced anything for the rear, since the K-Series subframe on the front is the only part which needs converting on a Mini with a K-Series since it can retain its usual shock and suspension system on the back with a regular rear subframe. It's certainly an option to get in touch with them and see what they can do, they're very helpful and reasonably priced.

Edited by Mini-Mad-Craig, 26 August 2013 - 11:27 PM.

[bigrob]

Oh brilliant mate thankyou. Thats a pretty comprehensive guide. Would it be best to get the rods machined down to keep the accuracy of the measured, or is being careful with a saw accurate enough?

[Mini-Mad-Craig]

Mine are sawed and filed, but machining would be ideal 

[cradley-heathen]

i would agree with just modifying the existing hydro system first.

 

mine is individualised, lowered and stiffened, and it has made a truly enourmous difference to teh way the car feels on the road.

 

i have also fitted a pair of gaz adjustable dampers on the front (replacing the original HLE ones) and this made probably an even bigger differnce to the car.

 

originally i had thought of going to coilovers on the front but now, im glad i didnt! im really happy with the way the cars drives and handles now, and there is very little body roll too. my advice is dont make life anymore complicated than it needs to be, just work with the hydrolastic system.

[bigrob]

Great mate cheers. I dont know if this will be going ahead now. I saw a small bubbly patch at the bottom of the rear arch, poked it with a screw driver and now ive got a good 6 inches of sill gone, and the whole arch is held in with filler...