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Is it worth it?

2K views 25 replies 9 participants last post by  Azbornmini 
#1 ·
I've owned my R53 Cooper S for almost 10 years now and covered 40,000 miles in this time. The car has just hit 90,000 miles.
The car is over 17 years old and for a while now the suspension has started to feel very, very tired!

Over the years the car has had poly bushes, a clutch, new PSP pump, R56 Brakes, pulley, Bypass valve, miltek, GP intercooler etc.

My question is. Do you think it's worth upgrading to KW V1's for around £1k? Or do you think i will be throwing money at a very old car, when i could just put it towards a newer model?

Cheers.
 
#3 ·
It's just a daily driver.
It's averaged 5k a year in the time I've had it. Never been on a track and never likely too.

I know I maybe should have done ot sooner, but one thing leads to another and I seem to only do upgades when things fail or break!
 
#5 ·
Then you might not want to go as expensive as V1s, maybe APs or even Meister's.
No it's not worth it but you should do it anyway. This is always the answer. In terms of man-maths, and to the extent it makes you feel better, if you stack it, you can remove and sell on the KWs.
Ha, I can't see why it wouldn't be as they hold their value for resale and improve the car...

Says the man who went turbo and then sold it all haha.

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#10 ·
OEM Top mounts are approx £60.

Going back to my original post I'll be spending about £1200 with labour etc. on a car that's worth £2000-2500 max.

Just didn't know if it's worth cutting my loses or get a few fun years out of the car with a bit of a refresh.
 
#14 ·
the value of the car doesn't matter. It's condition and whether you like it does. If it looks nice, trim is in nice order, mechanically not dead, not crashed or rotten, would you buy it again if you saw it today in nice condition etc? That's what matters or we'd never have nice older cars around.

do you drive the car in a way that warrants having certain types of suspension? If not, maybe just address the top mounts on yours, or any other ageing bush. Front top mounts will affect the car. If your dampers bounce then stock style replacements are cheap enough and easy to swap, here people are bound to tell you to get coils. If you're looking at coils that have to use stock top mounts or you'd use stock over adjustable then you have nothing to lose by just fitting those first and seeing if the car feels better, then make a decision on the damper side of things. Don't overlook the trailing arm front bushes if yours are original, stock type are good enough if ok.

A geometry check alone can change a cars behaviour especially in conjunction with the above.

If you go this route I'd say do your research, I'm sure you'll like whatever you choose, aside from the other model lark. My own view is only bother with kit that already has top mounts, and that has independent height and preload adjustment but it's all a hornets nest of options and opinion or experienced opinion, performance, brand, cost, application/use etc.

If you're still bothered about residual just renew with stock perhaps, it's not like the cars are slow with it ;O) At first I just put bigger stickier tyres on, after brakes the biggest rear bar I could find, then coils and different geometry.
 
#17 ·
I'm going to book the car in for top mounts in the next month or so and have a think about what i'm going to do about the suspension, but it needs looking at as it's starting to creek and the front really dives under braking.

I've had the car almost 10 years (It's an august 03 model) and addresses loads of wear and tear items and upgrades and had a real love hate over that time especially when it's cost me money!!!

The engine is great, never let me down and I've always had it serviced regularly, but the bodywork is starting to look tired with a few parking knocks and scatches.

I'm going to stick with it. Maybe after all these years the car is trying to tell me something.
 
#18 ·
Don't buy OEM top mounts... Get the adjustables with a decent set of coilovers and then you're knobbing two birds with one connie.

It's just a waste of money does the OEM ones when they're fitted to your new and better suspension.

The ST XTAs are a good shout. Look them up.

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#20 ·
if it's creaking it'll likely be the mount rubber split and trying to flex as the steering is turned but all it does is rub the torn parts against each other causing the noise, and if it's diving it could even be the mount has torn completely losing all damping control, so definitely worth changing sooner. these are easy to do yourself if the strut pinch bolt releases, you don't even need spring compressors on these. You can get aftermarket stock type.
 
#21 ·
The top mounts haven't split at all which is the odd thing, but one of them is sticking up way, way higher than the other, Like it is trying to push though. It creaks mostly when driving slowly with any lock which you would expect as it's loaded up more. It's more the nasty clunking noise when on the brakes. The odd thing is, apart from the diving under braking, it handles pretty straight!
 
#22 ·
something below it perhaps creaking against it, and if collapsed there, it will explain the damper rod pushing through maybe, I'd have to see it. Beneath what you can see from above is this, so it could be well rotten as some are.
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#25 ·
Sounds similar to mine was last October. Had a load of creaking when manoeuvring away from rest, and drivers side sticking up really high. Also dived around a bit on the brakes, and on lumps and cambers, but I didn't realise this until after the work to rectify had been done......Took it to Millsy and he fitted the ST XTAs I purchased from bidsy on here, did a full alignment once we had decided it wasn't going as low as he wanted it :wink: and it was transformed after.....
 
#26 ·
After 17 years of ownership I can say it only gets worse! I've got a fairly large file of all the receipts of stuff I added to my R53 along with work done by my mechanic, I mean tech, and I refuse to even look at it. Money spent vs. current value is not even in the same solar system! But, everytime I get in it and drive it, all that is in the past and all that matters is the here and now. Let's face it the car is fun to drive. I keep rationalizing everytime I put money into it and swear I'm going to sell it, but hell, It's an addiction. So why fight it? This is just one of those things that will never make sense. Just do it, plenty of time later in life to look back and wonder where the money went.
 
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