Hey all,

I've had my "justacooper" for a while now. 2003 Cooper, indi blue, cold weather pkg, premium pkg, 5 spd, 16 inch rims, TSW engine damper, Megan catback, K&N 57i intake, yada yada. Only has 61,000 miles on it also. It's in great condition. No issues, mechanically sound, only issue if any is the rock chips on the front bumper. Now enough about that. Getting to my question is... I bought the car the beginning of this year, still owe $5,000-$6,000 on it. Should I just stick with the Cooper, or trade in on a S if I can find one? I've heard a lot about how much fun the S's are, and I really want the extra boost the supercharger gives. I'm not too picky about the year or anything. I'd probably be looking into a 2004-2006. Just because i'm not too fond of the 2nd gens to be honest. but i could do a 2nd gen if i found a great deal. Does anyone have any input on my issue? Am i just over thinking everything? Someone tell me to chill! Lol.

 

Setting aside my auto enthusiast hat and donning financial advisor hat: Eight months is not "for a while now." Buying and selling cars are both expensive transactions.

 

Hey TBangin23, whether you chill and just hang tight to what you have depends on your drivng habits I think. The MC does just fine in metro areas where speed is not really possible unless you like drag racing stoplights. If you only drive in congested cities, the S won't get you much more than just more of your gas money. If you are fortunate enough to get on the open highway hopefully with some curves, you might enjoy the S a lot more. Also, if you enjoy extracting more performance from the basic platform, the S gives you more to enhance.

 

hsautocrosser - Thanks for the advice. Posting this was more so to really get feedback like that. I appreciate it. I don't NEED a MCS. It's more so one of those things that, I would like to get one. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my MC. It's the best car I've driven so far. I think the main reason for bringing it up is it's been a little sluggish lately. (Since I got the new exhaust, it's been different. Not performance wise, just with the sound of the exhaust I almost expect it to accelerate faster. if that makes sense?) One thing I've been thinking is, I've heard the Sprint Booster does increase acceleration. I do understand it doesn't increase HP, just kinda fools the ECU to make it preform faster/quicker. So I've been thinking maybe that'll kick my butt into gear and get me off that issue. Also, I've been debating a rear sway bar. I've heard a lot of good things about them.. So maybe if I just put a few other mods into it'll feel better?

 

MCSfanboy- Thanks for the advice, like I said to hsautocrosser. I think he was right, I shouldn't jump the gun into getting a completely new car because it feels sluggish to me. So I'm thinking the Sprint Booster, and sway bar might be what I need. Any input on those?

 

I haven't driven the S, so I don't really know what I'm talking about, but I drive a Justa and before I trade it in for a turbo, I'll definitely be adding some simple mods (sway bar to start, lighter wheels and non runflats, maybe a sprint booster.) to see if that scratches the itch. That might work for you, just spend a few hundred bucks on mods and see how you feel before you go a few thousand more into the hole.

 

Thats what i was thinking.. I'm for sure going with the Sprint Booster, and the sway bar. As far as rims go. I actually just upgraded from 15 MINI rims, to 16 MINI rims. So I'm not sure thats an option for me. Also, not running the runflats anymore. Got rid of them as my first mod, if you'd call it that. Lol. Now I've got Bridgestone Weatherforce. Winters here are interesting, so I needed an all weather. Any other bits and pieces of something that might help out? That'd be much appreciated!

 

How much more do your new rims and tires weigh? I added 4.8lbs per corner and it clobbered the acceleration.

The sway bar modification is meant to reduce understeer (the car resisting turning). I can't comment because I have a second gen with the sport suspension and don't have any understeer. I do, however, suspect the sway bar mod is more useful on an S.

 

It kind of sounds like you've done most the general mods (or are close). The S offfers more if your the kind of guy that likes to continually tinker. There will always be comparable cars faster than a mini (even the S) in a straight line but they're rarely as fun overall.

I'd finish up with the rear sway bar, maybe some springs/shocks if your still itching... Drive that for a year or so and see. It looks like there's some good engine mods coming out for the turbos so you might consider a 2nd generation when the time comes.

My two cents

 

Well whatever my decision would be in the future, it WILL be a MINI. lol. No way I would switch it up now. I love this little car, it's more like a darn pet to me than a car now! I'm for sure going to go with the sway bar and the Sprint Booster. Like you said then, maybe in a year or so I'll switch it up and get a newer model. Although, if I do wait it a while. I might be able to jump into a JCW. Now that would be nice.

 

Order an '11 R56 MCS and do it right. With the refresh with the 9 extra horses, you can't go wrong.

 

Chill.

Spend some more time with your current car. Leanr the nuances of its handling and its mechanical oddities. Wait till you've honed your skills before you jump into the complexities of pressurized intake.

Enjoy the 38 to 40 mpg a bit longer.

 

Well I have a MC and while I don't say I can outrun an S, I also don't fall too far behind if any. The secret to going fast is to drive aggressively, with my sport button on I generally win most stop light grans prix's by sticking my foot in it hard and bouncing off the rev limiter. Tires and suspension mods will get you the most gain for the dollar, and the sway bar will make a very real difference. Some sticky tires will give you the grip in the curves you need and your MC will produce all the power you handle speedwise it in the twisties, physics dictates the maximum speed you can carry in a corner and the MC will provide that number and enough more to put you on your head.

So get the S if you want, but make sure that you need whatever you think the S is going to give you that the MC doesn't.

 

Hi TB,

Here's a vote for growing older with your Cooper.

I've got a 2006 MINI Cooper, and bought it before I did enough research to know (really understand) the difference between a Cooper and a Cooper S. After driving my Cooper in a few situations where more HP matters (like the mountains in Colorado), I was convinced I needed a Cooper S.

Since my early days with the Cooper, I've settled into the car and discovered that for about 90% of the driving I do the Cooper is fantastic.

I noticed you've already done some upgrades, but I thought I'd put in a plug for the JCW Sound Kit. It transformed my Cooper. The ECU reprogramming did some/much of what the SprintBooster promises, the JCW intake is throaty, and the JCW exhaust is, well, very British-sounding. The upgrade doesn't increase HP much at all (some say 3hp), but it provided my MINI with a whole new sass-factor.

I'll add the JCW Brake Upgrade next, then possibly the JCW Suspension. Keeping it in the family.

Finally, and I don't have any direct experience here, I've read that the Cooper is geared differently than the S, and is actually very competitive with the S on certain track configurations. That's something to consider in favor of keeping your current MINI: you'll do just fine against the car you're considering as an upgrade.

 

I started out with a JustACooper, and loved it, it had pretty much every option you could possibly want but, I missed the power and accelleration of the EVO I had before the JustA. So $5000.00 and a year later I traded it in on a base model S of the same year ('05) and have had no regrets. I bought the S with max performance in mind, and when my reserve unit got called up to deploy I knew that my dreams of speed could come true. Now with over $12K in mods waiting for me when I get home, still no regrets but I want my JustA back for a daily driver.

 

I like this! Lol. But yes, I've decided that no matter what I do, I'm always gonna love this little car because it was my first MINI. So I'm not too eager to get rid of it now. Just gonna take it day by day and keep the mods flowing.

 

Treat yourself to a Driving School and Suspension Upgrades.

 

Hey TBangin23,
It was not long ago (back in March/April) that I too was in your shoes. I bought an 02 MC the previous August (MC ownership of 7 months +/-). Absolutely loved it. But, after having driven an S (friend's) and I knew that I made a mistake and not getting one the first time.
I only owed another $7,000 on the MC and it would be paid off. But, I traded it in and got an 04 MCS with only 39k miles and all the packages I wanted for $14k. Although it was not a financialy sound move, it was well worth the sacrafice. I love my S!

However, I don't think you will be disapointed the "justa" either. I wasn't but I knew I wanted more than what it could give me. My decision wasn't based on the supercharger alone though. It is the looks (bonnet scoop, dual tail pipes, 6speed manual, sport seats, etc) that come standard with the S. Plus, it had heated seats, sunroof, computer, auto-climate, cruise-control, xenons, foglamps, and a more preffered color. Granted, I could have added all that to my "justa" but it would have costed way too much to have been worth it.
If the pre-05 justas were not known for the bad midlands tranny, I probably would have kept it.

Just some food for thought.

 

I have both types. The Justa (R50) is an automatic which is fine because my kids drive it. I had lots of fun for 2 years with it. Its so interesting how you really don't need brakes for corners with a mini.

My R50 has a K&N air filter and a megan cat back. So aside from the CVT very similar. I suspect I may never have bought the "S" if it had a manual shift, but I was overruled. The kids need an automatic.

That said the S is a gas. As far as fuel economy I get the same mileage with both cars. No difference.

For highway driving the S is better for getting in and around because you have more power. If you live near mountains the S climbs better too.

But as far a fun goes the S is another level. For bombing around town I think 4rth gear is amazing. I have a Cold air intake ( mini madness ) which cuts a hole in the back of the engine compartment. The supercharger whine is so great. When you punch it who cares what the exhaust sounds like. I am not competing with rice rocket fart cannons. But that whine is like a spitfire roaring aloft to take on an ME109. ( yes I am old but I still have a pulse )

I have had three turbo cars. I am glad this is not.

The best part is you cannot make a bad choice. Both are winners.

cheers

 

So true.

I only wish the cars infront of me knew they didn't need to brake

They slow down to 15mph to take a turn that I can take at ~40-50 with no tire squeal...