torque steer with performance upgrades

Asked by Jonpft Nov 15, 2010 at 07:13 PM about the 2009 MINI Cooper Clubman S FWD

Question type: Car Customization

I have just purchased a 2009 clubman s. I  am looking to install the following: Magnaflow exhaust, Alta r-56 cold air intake, high flow throttle body 59.75mm, and Alta Access port ecu performance recalibration. So my initial concern was the torque steer. So if after installing the aforementioned and torque steer is bad, how would you minimize it?

1 Answer

3,865

Fortunately, the "torque steer" you observed in your Clubman S, which is present in all 2nd gen MINI, is not real torque steer. The car pulls only when there is uneveness on the pavement. This is a result of the overly soft bushings being used in the front control arms. The suspension geometry does not stay true in such situation and the resulted uneven traction across the front axle causes the car to pull. This problem becomes more pronounced only when the suspension is lowered (increasing the neg. camber), or when wider/lower profile/stickier tires are used. As a result, the list of mods you mentioned is, at least, not going to make the "pull" worse. There isn't yet a solution to completely dial out this "pull", but if you still wish to alleviate the problem, put in aftermarket polyurethane (or even harder - solid bearings) control arm bushings and there should be noticeable improvements. The ride quality, on the other hand, will be compromised as a result.

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