I am new here but not new to working on cars. I am into autocross and would like to get into track days and hill climbs. I am loving this car tho! The mini handles so well for being stock. The power is not bad also but the whine from the supercharger sounds amazing!! I already started to delete the chrome and did a DIY intake and heat shield. Turned out not bad but would like to get a ALTA intake and got rid of the baffle behind the air box.

Here are so pictures. Not the best tho

 

Hey, welcome to NAM and MINI world! I'm with you on that supercharger whine. It's the thing I missed most when I went from an '05 R53 to my '13 R56.

You mention intake mods. Did the car come with any mods? If not, you'll want to add power with a smaller supercharger pulley and dial out under steer for autocross with a stiffer rear sway bar.

Where do you do your autocrossing? If you're in the Denver area, you still have a little time to sign up for the BMW Club's final autocross of the season.

 

I couldn't make my mind up on the supercharger or turbo model and went supercharger just bc of the whine haha.

The car did not come with any mods other then HID headlights. I did the heat shield and intake myself.

That is the next thing on my list is swaybar. Have not decided on what thickness yet. 25mm hallow sounds pretty good just bc of the weight benefit.

I havnt updated my profile yet. I plan on doing it today but I love in warminster pa. Philly scca and NEPA scca is where I do most my racing. Sometimes I go to the AC bander Feild one.

I still have not looked into mini clubs yet but would like to join one.

 

I had the H-comp hollow bar on my R-53 and liked it a lot. It was starting to get squeaky after awhile - in spite of re-greasing. As I understand it, they've improved the bushing material so I'm planning to get one for my R-56.

 

Another great mod for your car would be to get a set of r-56 front brake calipers. They are the same as the R-53 JCW brakes.

 

Thank you for the advice and I was not aware of that. I'm still new to the mini game and need to learn what can be used between the years. That is an upgrade I'm going to remember.