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1st GearNew members: make an initial post and introduce yourself as you shift from Neutral to First Gear. Current members: meet some of the new members.
As you may have surmised from my username, my name's Abram. I'm new to MINIs, coming from primarily from VW. I just recently took over an F56 MCS in Moonwalk Grey from my sisters as I had just sold my Volvo V60 Polestar and needed something smaller as I'm now living in SF. It's been a charming little hatch to get to know and I'm looking forward to really making it my own. I've been formulating a list of things to investigate and upgrades to ask questions about so I'm really excited to learn more from you all!
For now, here's a quick snap of my MCS (sorry for the background, I just liked the lighting as I was leaving the post office!)
Hey! My wife and I quite like Burlingame actually. We're both working in South Bay so we will probably wind up moving down closer that way later next year. As I mentioned this Mini's previous owner(s) were my younger sisters, as such it has not been driven with "performance" in mind. It's a pretty base spec S though it does have a sunroof (which I would have preferred not to have), the Nav system and a JCW steering wheel. First order of business is replacing the tires. They're runflats which I don't want, but additionally they're also mis-matched as a full set wasn't available when they needed a new tire.
My debate at the moment is whether to up the size a bit from the stock 195/55 to a 205/55 and pick up a set of Conti Extreme Contact Sports or to go ahead and replace the 16" stock loop wheels with a 17" model (leaning towards NM Eng. RSE05s in black since that's a lightweight 17x7.5" wheel). I'm pretty picky about wheels and don't hate the way the 16s look, I just feel that they're a bit small, but it might be alright with better tires, lowering springs and the rear sway bar. This is primarily a commuter car so I don't really want to make it a hardcore track car or miserable to live with daily. But I do want it to handle well. Additionally, I'm not much of a fan of the 17 or 18" options that Mini offers which is why I thought the RSE05s would be my ideal choice if I do swap my wheels out.
Presently, the mods of more immediate interest would be:
NM Eng. Rear Sway Bar
NM Eng. Lowering Springs
NM Eng. Power Module
Longer-term, I'd be interested in doing more of a JCW overhaul as well with the Brakes, Exhaust and Suspension from those cars. Also considering "de-chroming" the car and replacing all that trim with the black line options (though I'm not sure how that would look on the headlights). I also need a new shift **** so I'll probably get the JCW one to match my steering wheel.
Hey! My wife and I quite like Burlingame actually. We're both working in South Bay so we will probably wind up moving down closer that way later next year. As I mentioned this Mini's previous owner(s) were my younger sisters, as such it has not been driven with "performance" in mind. It's a pretty base spec S though it does have a sunroof (which I would have preferred not to have), the Nav system and a JCW steering wheel. First order of business is replacing the tires. They're runflats which I don't want, but additionally they're also mis-matched as a full set wasn't available when they needed a new tire.
My debate at the moment is whether to up the size a bit form the stock 195/55 to a 205/55 and pick up a set of Conti Extreme Contact Sports or to go ahead and replace the 16" stock loop wheels with a 17" model (leaning towards NM Eng. RSE05s in black since that's a lightweight 17x7.5" wheel). I'm pretty picky about wheels and don't hate the way the 16s look, I just feel that they're a bit small, but it might be alright with better tires, lowering springs and the rear sway bar. This is primarily a commuter car so I don't really want to make it a hardcore track car or miserable to live with daily. But I do want it to handle well. Additionally, I'm not much of a fan of the 17 or 18" options that Mini offers which is why I thought the RSE05s would be my ideal choice if I do swap my wheels out.
Presently, the mods of more immediate interest would be:
NM Eng. Rear Sway Bar
NM Eng. Lowering Springs
NM Eng. Power Module
Longer-term, I'd be interested in doing more of a JCW overhaul as well with the Brakes, Exhaust and Suspension from those cars. Also considering "de-chroming" the car and replacing all that trim with the black line options (though I'm not sure how that would look on the headlights). I also need a new shift **** so I'll probably get the JCW one to match my steering wheel.
Nice, I blacked out the chrome and have the NM Eng. RSE05s in black and a couple other mods on my F56 Hardtop. If you are even in the Burlingame area or have any simple questions, shoot me a DM and you can check it out.
Awesome! Yeah I'd love to check it out in person sometime. I've been doing research on shops to connect with up here and I believe I've landed on BR Racing out of Los Gatos. They remind me of my old performance shop for my VWs.
Awesome! Yeah I'd love to check it out in person sometime. I've been doing research on shops to connect with up here and I believe I've landed on BR Racing out of Los Gatos. They remind me of my old performance shop for my VWs.
